Micro-Elastohydrodynamic Lubrication of an Elliptical Contact With Transverse and Three-Dimensional Sinusoidal Roughness

The paper describes the results of the analysis of elastohydrodynamic (EHD) lubrication of an elliptical contact between a rough, stationary surface and a smooth, moving surface. Roughness takes the form of sinusoidal grooves aligned in the direction transverse to that of lubricant entrainment. The conditions analyzed are chosen to correspond to the operating conditions of a high speed, high temperature disk machine. The main feature of the results is the almost complete flattening of the roughness that occurs, accompanied by a corresponding ripple in the pressure distribution. A contact with three-dimensional roughness has also been analyzed, and this shows that in comparison with the two-dimensional case, the longitudinal grooves tend to persist.