Tapered Land Thrust Bearing Operating in Both Laminar and Turbulent Regimes

A fixed tapered land thrust bearing has been studied both theoretically and experimentally. Each land in contact with a flat rotating disk is made out of one inclined and one parallel section. Lubricant is fed through grooves which are inclined with respect of a radius in the direction of motion, flow is going from center to exit. Isothermal conditions are considered, both laminar and turbulent regimes are studied. Transition is characterized using local transition concepts. Constantinescu's theory is applied. The influence of groove inclination, film thickness, and flow regimes on operating characteristics is determined. A further analysis on the effect of centrifugal inertia terms in laminar lubrication is also conducted. Experiments are run on a special device in which speed and load can be varied and both friction torque and film thickness are measured. Water is used, thus temperature is kept constant and fluid dissipation is low. Presented at the 32nd Annual Meeting in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, May 9...