AN EXPERIMENTAL COMPARISON OF 2 STEADILY LOADED PLAIN JOURNAL BEARINGS

A potentially powerful effect on the characteristics of plain journal bearings is local thermal deformation of the bearing surface. Although there are a few analyses that consider the effect, it is ignored by m ost journal bearing codes used by industry. There is also almost no ex perimental data in the literature that focuses on this effect. To gene rate such data, two identical, 101 mm dia., 57 mm long bearings - one fabricated from steel and one from bronze - have been tested in a prec ision journal bearing test rig. Comparisons between shaft displacement data for steady loading of the two bearings show that the deformation s are important to consider.