Lubrication analysis of externally pressurized circular porous bearings

The present study introduces a mathematical formulation for externally pressurized circular porous bearings. A porous layer is used to cover one of the bearing surfaces. An empirical boundary condition with a nonzero tangential velocity, which is known as the velocity slip at the interface, is incorporated into the analysis. The effect of pressure on lubricant viscosity is also considered. The mathematical model consists of two coupled partial differential equations; the first governs the pressure distribution in the film and the second governs the pressure distribution in the porous layer. A simultaneous numerical solution of these equations with the boundary conditions is presented. The effects of porous layer permeability parameter, lubricant viscosity parameter, recess radius, and film thickness on pressure distribution and load-carrying capacity are presented and discussed.