ARTICLE IN PRESS

Tribology International 42 (2009) 284 292

Contents lists available at ScienceDirect

Tribology International
journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/triboint

The effect of surface texturing in soft elasto-hydrodynamic lubrication

A. Shinkarenko, Y. Kligerman , I. Etsion
Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, TechnionIsrael Institute of Technology, Haifa 32000, Israel

a r t i c l e in f o

a b s t r a c t

Article history:
Received 15 October 2007
Received in revised form
2 June 2008
Accepted 17 June 2008
Available online 29 July 2008

A theoretical model is developed to study the potential use of laser surface texturing (LST) in the form of
spherical micro-dimples for soft elasto-hydrodynamic lubrication (SEHL). The model consists of mutual
smooth elastomeric and LST rigid surfaces moving relatively to each other in the presence of viscous
lubricant. The pressure distribution in the uid lm and the elastic deformations of the elastomer are
obtained from a simultaneous solution of the Reynolds equation and the equation of elasticity for the
elastomer. An extensive parametric investigation is performed to identify the main important
parameters of the problem, which are the aspect ratio and area density of the dimples. The parametric
analysis provides optimum parameters of the surface texturing and shows that LST effectively increases
load capacity and reduces friction in SEHL.
& 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Keywords:
Elasto-hydrodynamic lubrication
Surface texturing
Numerical analysis

1. Introduction
Soft elasto-hydrodynamic lubrication (SEHL) is used in several
mechanical components such as rotary lip seals [1,2], elastomeric
reciprocating seals [36] and metering size press [7], etc. Until the
last decade, most studies of SEHL were of experimental nature
only because of the complexity of the problem. The rst
signicant analytical models appeared in the literature only about
10 years ago, thanks to the rapid development of computing
capabilities.
Shi and Salant [1] developed a deterministic mixed lubrication
model, simulating the interface between a moving perfectly
smooth rigid surface and a stationary rough perfectly elastic lip
surface. The asperity pattern on the lip surface (roughness) was
modeled by a two-dimensional sinusoid. The model was applied
to rotary lip seal. The authors divided the domain between the
surfaces into three regions: the lubrication region, the cavitation
region and the contact region. In a following paper, Shi and Salant
[2] expanded their model to a more realistic condition of a quasirandom sealing surface. The results showed that interasperity
cavitation appears at extremely low shaft speeds, and the
attening of asperities is signicant throughout the entire range
of operation. Furthermore, the shear deformation of asperities
plays an important role in preventing leakage.
Nikas [3,4] developed a numerical model to study the sealing
performance of rectangular elastomeric seals for reciprocating
piston rods used in linear hydraulic actuators. The model was
used to calculate the contact pressures and lm thickness as well

 Corresponding author. Tel.: +972 8292075; fax: +972 8295711.

E-mail address: mermdyk@tx.technion.ac.il (Y. Kligerman).

0301-679X/$ - see front matter & 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/j.triboint.2008.06.008

as the leakage rates and friction for a dynamic or static contact

between a seal and a reciprocating piston rod. The models [3,4]
aiming at the minimization of both the leakage and the wear of
the seal assumed that the elastomer obeys the Hookes law. This
assumption was examined in a following paper by Nikas and
Sayles [5], where a non-linear constitutive law (MooneyRivlin
model) instead of the classic Hookean model of linear elasticity
was used. It was shown that the differences between the results of
the linear and non-linear models are usually between 0% and 5%,
but can be as high as 15% depending on the operating conditions.
Salant et al. [6] developed a model for a reciprocating
elastomeric seal with a non-rectangular cross-section geometry.
The model consists of an iterative computational procedure to
analyze the coupled uid mechanics, deformation, and contact
mechanics problems. The model takes into account mixed
lubrication and surface roughness effects and shows the major
role that these subjects play in determining whether or not the
seal leaks.
Low friction and wear are main factors in a well-designed seal.
Laser surface texturing (LST) is known as an effective means for
achieving these goals in mechanical components such as
mechanical seals [810], piston rings [1113], and bearings
[14,15]. The models presented in Refs. [8,11,14] assume full
hydrodynamic lubrication in the gap between the relevant mating
surfaces, when one of them contains thousands of micro-dimples
produced by laser texturing. The classical Reynolds equation was
used to evaluate the hydrodynamic pressure in the uid lm, and
cavitation effects were accounted for. The viscous friction was
evaluated from shear stresses in the uid lm. It was found
from extensive parametric analyses that the most important
LST parameter is the dimple aspect ratio (the ratio of dimple
depth over dimple diameter). These models were veried

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A. Shinkarenko et al. / Tribology International 42 (2009) 284292

Nomenclature
A
c
C
E
E
ff
Ff
h
H
h0
H0
hp
l1
L1
l2
L2
p
P
pa

dimensionless area of half of one dimple column, R1L1

initial clearance
dimensionless initial clearance, c/rp
Youngs modulus of elastomer
SEHL stiffness index, Erp/6mU
friction force per unit area
dimensionless friction force, ffrp/6mU
local lm thickness
dimensionless local lm thickness, h/rp
local dimple depth
dimensionless local dimple depth, h0/rp
maximum dimple depth
elastomer length in the x1 direction
dimensionless elastomer length in the X1 direction, l1/
rp
elastomer length in the x2 direction
dimensionless elastomer length in the X2 direction, l2/
rp
local pressure
dimensionless local pressure, (ppa)rp/6mU
ambient pressure

experimentally [8,12,15], showing good correlation between the

analytical and experimental results. An added benet of LST was
observed during experiments under starved lubrication condition
[12], where the dimples served as micro-reservoirs for lubricant.
An extensive review of LST state of art can be found in Ref. [16].
The laser texturing usually produces spherical dimples, but
other shapes may also be produced (see e.g. Refs. [1719]). In most
cases, the dimple geometry has little inuence on the tribological
performance, provided the aspect ratio is preserved. Surface
texturing in the form of asperities rather than dimples for SEHL
application is described in Ref. [20]. Various asperity geometries
were analyzed to study their effect on lip seal performance. In this
case too, the optimum performance depends on the aspect ratio of
the asperity and is very little affected by its actual geometry.
In the present study, we investigate the effect of LST on the
tribological performance (load-carrying capacity, viscous friction
force, and leakage) in SEHL. The main goal is to nd the LST
parameters, which for known elastomer physical properties,
lubricant viscosity, and given operating conditions (temperature,
sliding velocity, and pressure gradient) provide the best tribological performance.

2. The model
A schematic of the model is presented in Fig. 1. The model
consists of an elastomeric body with a smooth untextured surface
and an innitely long rigid LST counterpart (which can be a piston
rod, for example, in a hydraulic cylinder). The two bodies are sliding
relatively to each other with a constant velocity, U, in the presence of
a viscous lubricant. The viscous ow between the elastomer and the
LST counterpart produces a hydrodynamic pressure (see e.g. Ref. [8])
tending to separate the mating surfaces and to deform the
elastomer. Fig. 1(a) shows the elastomer prior to any deformation,
whereas Fig. 1(b) presents the case of the deformed elastomer. The
elastomer is innitely long in the x3 direction and has nite length,
l1, and thickness, l2 (see Fig. 1). The elastomer is attached to a rigid
foundation and is separated from the rigid LST counterpart by
a thin layer of viscous lubricant having a local thickness h(x1, x3)
(see Fig. 1(b)). It should be emphasized that the distance between

r1
R1
rp
Sp
uni
ui
U
w
W
xi
Xi

d
D

e
eij
m
n
snij
sij
,j

285

half-side of imaginary square cell

dimensionless half-side of imaginary square cell, r1/rp
base dimple radius
dimple area density
displacement vector components
dimensionless displacement vector components,
uni =r p
sliding velocity
average pressure
dimensionless load-carrying capacity, wrp/6mU
Cartesian coordinates
dimensionless Cartesian coordinates, xi/rp
variation of the local lm thickness
dimensionless variation of the local lm thickness, d/
rp
dimple aspect ratio, hp/2rp
deformation tensor components
dynamic viscosity
Poissons ratio
stress tensor components
dimensionless stress tensor components, snij r p =6mU.
partial derivative of a variable with respect to xj

the rigid LST textured counterpart and elastomer foundation is

maintained constant. It should also be noted that the moving
textured surface may cause transient effects due to periodic entering
and leaving of dimples into and out of the uid lm zone, which may
lead to transient elastomer deformation and possible squeeze action.
However, because of the relatively large number of dimples present
in the uid lm zone at any given time, usually between 10 and 15
dimples depending on the elastomer length and area density of
dimples, this end-effect can be neglected, as was shown in Ref. [11].
Such squeeze action was also neglected in the case of a lip seal and a
rotating shaft textured with controlled microasperities [20].
In Fig. 1, the clearance c is the initial clearance between the still
stationary surfaces. The value of c may be either positive or
negative, depending on the loading condition prior to any relative
sliding. In both cases, during sliding the surfaces of the elastomer
and the counterpart are separated by a clearance h(x1, x3).
Fig. 2 presents a geometrical model of the laser-textured
surface. The dimples are uniformly distributed on the counterpart
surface (see Fig. 2(a)) with an area density Sp. The curvature of the
rigid LST rod and the elastomer can be neglected due to the small
clearance (in the x2 radial direction) compared to the radius of the
rod. In this case, the problem domain is innitely long in the x3
(circumferential) direction and has nite length in the x1 (axial)
direction from x1 0 to x1 l1 (see Fig. 1(a)). Each dimple is
located in the center of an imaginary square cell of sides 2r1  2r1
(see Fig. 2(b)) and has the shape of a spherical segment with a
base radius rp and maximum depth hp. The dimple area density
and base radius are related to the square cell side by
r
rp p
r1
.
(1)
2 Sp
Modeling of the SEHL requires a simultaneous solution of two
interrelated problems: the hydrodynamic lubrication between the
sliding surfaces and the deformation of the elastomer.
2.1. The hydrodynamic lubrication model
The local pressure distribution between the elastomer
and the LST counterpart is obtained from a solution of the

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A. Shinkarenko et al. / Tribology International 42 (2009) 284292

x2

Rigid foundation

l1
l2
Undeformed elastomer
hp

pa

pa

x3

x1

Rigid LST counterpart

x2

Rigid foundation

Deformed elastomer

h0(x1, x3)

x3

(x1, x3)

h(x1, x3)

x1

Rigid LST counterpart

U
Fig. 1. Schematic illustration of (a) the model with initially undeformed elastomer and (b) the model with nal deections of the elastomer.

Rigid LST
Counterpart

Elastomer

2r1
x2

x1
x3
x1

2r1

U
x3

x1

2r1

x3
Fig. 2. A geometrical model of a laser-textured surface: (a) schematic of the model; (b) zoom-in on a group of dimples; and (c) a single column of dimples in the x1
direction.

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287

time-independent (squeeze effect is neglected) Reynolds equation

for viscous incompressible Newtonian uid in laminar ow:




q
q
qh
3 qp
3 qp
h
h
.
(2)

6mU
qx1
qx3
qx1
qx1
qx3

The pressure and shear stress distributions obtained from the

solution of the Reynolds equation are used as boundary conditions
for the equations of elastomer deformation.

In Eq. (2), x1 and x3 are the Cartesian coordinates, p is the local

pressure, m is the dynamic viscosity of the uid, U is the relative
velocity between the mating surfaces, and h is the local lm
thickness given as

2.2. The elastomer deformation model

hx1 ; x3 c h0 x1 ; x3 dx1 ; x3 ,

1. The elastomer is isotropic and homogeneous.

2. The deformations of the elastomer are small (geometric
linearity).
3. The elastomer obeys Hookes law (physical linearity between
stress and strain).
4. The elastomer is almost incompressible (Poissons ratio
0.49ono0.5).
5. Visco-elastic effects are negligible.

(3)

where d(x1, x3) is the change in the local lm thickness due to

deformation of the elastomer, c is the initial clearance (see
Fig. 1(b)), and h0(x1, x3) is the local depth of the dimple (see
Fig. 1(b)).
Because of periodicity of the surface texturing in the x3
direction (see Fig. 2(b)), and the symmetry of each axial dimple
column of width 2r1 about its longitudinal axis x3 0
(see Fig. 2(c)), it is sufcient to consider the pressure distribution
within just one half of a single dimple column (conned between
x3 0 and x3 r1). Thus, the boundary conditions for the
Reynolds equation are as follows:

 symmetry of the pressure distribution about x3 0, periodi-

This model is based on the following assumptions:

The time-independent equilibrium equations (when body

forces are neglected), the linear straindisplacement relation,
and the linear constitutive law (Hookes law) are given by

snij;j 0,

city, and smoothness of the pressure distribution in the x3

direction:

ij 12uni;j unj;i ,

qp
qp
x ; x 0
x ; x r 1 0;
qx3 1 3
qx3 1 3

snij

(4a)

 ambient pressure at the inlet and outlet of the slider (see

Fig. 1(a)):
px1 0; x3 px1 l1 ; x3 pa .

(4b)

The boundary conditions Eqs. (4a) and (4b) should be

complemented by a cavitation pressure in potential cavitation
regions. In the present paper, the Reynolds cavitation condition
was applied.
The dimensionless formats of the Reynolds Eq. (2), the local
lm thickness Eq. (3), and the boundary conditions Eqs. (4a)
and (4b) are:




q
qP
q
qP
qH
H3
H3
,
(5)

qX 1
qX 3
qX 1
qX 1
qX 3
HX 1 ; X 3 C H0 X 1 ; X 3 DX 1 ; X 3 ,


qP
qP
r1
X ; X 0
X1; X3
qX 3 1 3
qX 3
rp

0,

PX 1 0; X 3 PX 1 L1 ; X 3 0,

xi
;
rp
l1
L1 ;
rp

hp
h
c
; 
; C ,
rp
rp
2r p
p  pa r p
h0
d
,
H0
; D ; P
rp
rp
6mU

(10)

!
h
 n 
i
En
ij
kk dij ;
1n
1  2n

dij

1;

if i j;

0;

if iaj:

(11)

In Eqs. (9)(11), an index notation of the general form ui,j

denotes partial derivative of ui with respect to xj and a repeated
index denotes summation (e.g. ekk e11+e22+e33). Also snij;j is
the divergence of the stress tensor snij , and eij represents
the deformation tensor components. The components of the
local displacement vector within the elastomer are uni , E is the
Youngs modulus, and n is the Poissons ratio of the elastomer
material.
Using Eq. (10) in Eq. (11) and then substituting in Eq. (9) leads
to the equation of equilibrium in terms of displacements:


 n 
1 n
ui;j unj;i
unk;k dij 0.
(12)
2
1  2n
j

(6)

The boundary conditions for the elastomer are as follows:

(7a)

 The local shear and normal stresses on the elastomer interface

(7b)

with the uid lm (see Fig. 1) are equal to the viscous shear
stresses due to the Couette ow and hydrodynamic pressures,
respectively. Hence (see Ref. [8]),

where the various dimensionless parameters are dened as

Xi

(9)

sn12 x1 ; x2 0; x3

(8)

and e is the aspect ratio of a dimple.

The Reynolds Eq. (5) with its boundary conditions Eqs. (7a)
and (7b) and the Reynolds cavitation condition was solved by a
nite difference method [8]. This method allows reducing the
Reynolds differential equation to a set of linear algebraic
equations for the nodal values of the pressure. These were solved
using successive over relaxation iterative method [21].
Shear stresses are also developed in the uid lm due to both
Poiseuille and Couette ow components. However, because of the
very thin lm thickness, the effect of the Poiseuille ow on the
shear stresses is negligible compared to that of the Couette ow.

mU
a,
hx1 ; x3

sn22 x1 ; x2 0; x3 px1 ; x3  pa ,

(13a)

(13b)

where a 0 accounts for the vanishing stresses in cavitating

zones and a 1 belongs to the non-cavitating zones.
The upper surface of the elastomer is attached to a rigid
foundation (see Fig. 1), and therefore all the displacement
vector components vanish on this surface:
uni x1 ; x2 l2 ; x3 0.

(13c)

 The symmetry and periodicity of the shear and normal stresses

at the elastomer/uid interface in the x3 direction result in
similar symmetrical and periodical deformations within the
entire elastomer body. Thus, the boundary conditions for the

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A. Shinkarenko et al. / Tribology International 42 (2009) 284292

elastic deections are given by

8 n
u3 x1 ; x2 ; x3 0 un3 x1 ; x2 ; x3 r 1 0;
>
>
>
>
n
n
>
>
< qu1 x ; x ; x 0 qu1 x ; x ; x r 0;
1 2 3
1
qx3
qx3 1 2 3
>
>
n
n
>
qu2
qu2
>
>
>
: qx x1 ; x2 ; x3 0 qx x1 ; x2 ; x3 r 1 0:
3
3

(13d)

The dimensionless form of Eq. (12) and its corresponding

boundary conditions Eqs. (13a)(13d) are given in Eqs. (14)
and (15a)(15d), respectively:


 n 
1
ui;j uj;i
uk;k dij 0,
(14)
2
1  2n
j

s12 X 1 ; X 2 0; X 3

1
a,
6HX 1 ; X 3

(15b)

ui X 1 ; X 2 L2 ; X 3 0,

(15c)

8
u3 X 1 ; X 2 ; X 3 0 u3 X 1 ; X 2 ; X 3 R1 0;
>
>
>
>
>
< qu1 X ; X ; X 0 qu1 X ; X ; X R 0;
1
qX 3 1 2 3
qX 3 1 2 3
>
>
>
qu2
qu2
>
>
X ; X ; X 0
X ; X ; X R1 0;
:
qx3 1 2 3
qx3 1 2 3

(15d)

where the various length and stress dimensions are normalized in

the following forms:
uni
;
rp

L2

l2
;
rp

R1

r1
;
rp

(19)

(15a)

s22 X 1 ; X 2 0; X 3 PX 1 ; X 3 ,

ui

coordinate, whereas u3 is an odd function. Therefore, the full

Fourier expansions are given as


8
N
P
kpX 3
>
0
k
>
u
X
;
X
;
X

0:5u
X
;
X

u
X
;
X

cos
;
>
1
1
2
3
1
2
1
2
1
1
>
>
R1
k1
>
>
>


>
N
>
P
kpX 3
>
>
> u2 X 1 ; X 2 ; X 3 0:5u02 X 1 ; X 2
uk2 X 1 ; X 2 cos
;
>
>
R1
>
k1
>
>


>
<
N
P
kpX 3
uk3 X 1 ; X 2 sin
;
u3 X 1 ; X 2 ; X 3
R1
>
k1
>
>


>
>
N
>
P
kpX 3
>
0
k
>
;
X

0:5P
X

P
X

cos
;
PX
>
1
3
1
1
>
>
R1
k1
>
>
>


>
N
>
P
1
kpX 3
>
0
>
>
F k X 1 cos
:
: 6HX ; X a FX 1 ; X 3 0:5F X 1
R1
1
3
k1

sij

snij rp
.
6mU

Substitution of Eq. (19) into Eqs. (14), (17a), and (17b), leads to
the k independent sets of partial differential equations: uk1 X 1 ; X 2 ,
uk2 X 1 ; X 2 , and uk3 X 1 ; X 2 . These new differential equations were
solved numerically by nite element method. An appropriate
nine-node rectangular nite element was developed to obtain
uk1 X 1 ; X 2 , uk2 X 1 ; X 2 and uk3 X 1 ; X 2 for each harmonic k of the
shear load, Fk(X1), and normal pressures, Pk(X1), on the elastomer/
uid interface.
Once the deections u1(X1, X2, X3), u2(X1, X2, X3), and u3(X1, X2,
X3) are found, the dimensionless change of the local lm thickness
D(B) u2(A) at any point B (see Fig. 3) due to the deformation u(A)
that moved the point A to the position A0 can be obtained from

DX 1 u1 X 1 ; X 2 0; X 3 ; X 3 u3 X 1 ; X 2 0; X 3
(16)

u2 X 1 ; X 2 0; X 3 .

(20)

Eq. (14) for the elastomer deection requires proper deection

boundary conditions. For this purpose, the boundary conditions
Eqs. (15a) and (15b) expressed in terms of stresses should be
rewritten in terms of elastic deections. Using Eqs. (10) and (11)
for the Hookes law and straindisplacement relation, Eqs. (15a)
and (15b) become

Using the solution of Eq. (20) in Eq. (6) leads to the modied
uid lm prole for the next iteration of the Reynolds equation
solution as described in the following text.

u1;2 u2;1 X

Fig. 4 presents a owchart of the numerical procedure for the

simultaneous iterative solution of the hydrodynamic lubrication
problem (see Eqs. (5)(7)), and the deformation of the elastomer
(see Eqs. (14), (15a), and (15b)). An initial guess of the local
clearance is used to solve the Reynolds equation (Eq. (5)),
resulting in a rst approximated pressure and shear stress
distributions. These distributions are used as the boundary
conditions (see Eqs. (15a)(15d)) for the set of differential
equations (Eq. (14)) giving the elastomer deections, which in
turn change the local clearance or, in other words, the lm prole.
The modied lm prole is returned to the Reynolds equation, etc.
The iterative process is repeated until a desired convergence is
achieved (see Fig. 4).
The hydrodynamic load-carrying capacity, W, is obtained by
integrating the pressure over the area A:
ZZ
rp
1
W
w,
(21)
PX 1 ; X 3 dX 1 dX 3
A A
6mU

u2;2

2 0

n
1  2n

2
1
1 n
a,
E
6HX 1 ; X 3



u1;1 u2;2 u3;3

X 2 0

(17a)

1
 1 nPX 1 ; X 3 ,
E
(17b)

where the dimensionless parameter E, which is subsequently

referred to as the SEHL stiffness index, is given by
E

En r p
.
6mU

(18)

This SEHL stiffness index gives the ratio of the elastomer

stiffness (elastomer Youngs modulus, E) over the unit hydrodynamic opening force (proportional to mU/rp). Since E and mU/rp
affect the elastomer deformations in opposite directions, namely
increasing E or reducing mU/rp reduces these deformations, it is
clear from Eq. (18) that the SEHL stiffness index E is a measure of
the level of elastomer deformations. The higher is E, the smaller
are the elastomer deformations. As will be shown later, the SEHL
stiffness index E is the most important dimensionless parameter
in the present model.
Since all the variables are periodic in the x3 direction, they may
be expanded into Fourier series with coordinate-depending
coefcients. This reduces the level of complexity of the solution
from a single 3D problem to a set of k independent 2D problems
[22]. It follows from the symmetry and periodicity that the shear
and normal stresses as well as the u1 and u2 components of the
displacement vector are even functions with respect to the X3

2.3. The iterative procedure

where A R1L1 is the dimensionless area of one half of a dimple

column and w is the dimensional average pressure over the
elastomer/uid interface.
The dimensionless friction force, Ff, due to the viscous shear
stresses in Couette ow is obtained by (see Ref. [13]):
ZZ
1
dX 1 dX 3
rp

f ,
(22)
Ff
A A 6H
6mU f
where ff is the dimensional average shear-distributed load over
the elastomer/uid interface.

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289

X2
Deformed elastomer

(X1 - X3) plane of the initial

un-deformed elastomer
surface

A
u(A)

(B)
B

A(X1, 0, X3)

u2(A)
A

u(A) displacement vector of the elastomer at point A

A(X1+u1, u2, X3+u3)

(B) = u2(A)

B(X1+u1, 0, X3+u3)
Fig. 3. Variation of the uid lm prole due to the elastomer deformations.

3. Results and discussion

START

The load-carrying capacity (Eq. (21)) and the viscous friction

force (Eq. (22)) are a good measure of the effectiveness of the
surface texture. Hence, a parametric analysis was performed to
study the effect of the following dimensionless parameters on the
load-carrying capacity and friction force:

Parameters Input:
E, , C, , Sp, L1, L2









Initial guess of local film thickness, H, and

pressure, P.

Evaluation of the hydrodynamic

pressure, P (Reynolds Eq. (5)-(7))

The main goal of the parametric analysis is to identify the optimum

LST parameters e and Sp (see the rst two in the above list) for a
certain elastomer application represented by the rest of the parameters in the above list (geometry, physical properties, and operating
conditions). Two criteria of optimization are implied: maximum loadcarrying capacity and minimum friction in the uid lm.
The reference case for the present parametric analysis was
selected as follows:

Evaluation of the surface deformation,

(Elasticity Eqs. (14), (15a) -(15d) and 20))







Modification of the film profile (local

film thickness), H (Eq. (6))

Unacceptable
Error calculation for film
thickness and pressure

Acceptable
Evaluation of load carrying capacity (Eq.
(21)) and friction force (Eq. (22))

aspect ratio, e hp/2rp;

dimple area density, Sp;
length of elastomer, L1 l1/rp;
thickness of the elastomer, L2 l2/rp;
Poissons ratio, n;
initial clearance, C c/rp;
SEHL stiffness index, E Erp/6mU.

dimple diameter, 2rp 100 mm;

dimple depth, hp 10 mm;
dimple area density, Sp 0.3;
Youngs modulus, E 107 Pa;
Poissons ratio, n 0.499.

A value of the Poissons ratio slightly less than 0.5 was used in the
present solution to avoid the singularity in Eq. (11) for incompressible materials. Another option of dealing with this problem is by a
different formulation of Eq. (11), e.g. the mixed formulation in
Ref. [22], but this is outside the scope of the present work.
Typical dimensions of the elastomer were assumed as

 elastomer length, l1 1.5  103 m;

 elastomer thickness, l2 1 103 m.
The reference lubricant viscosity was assumed m 0.05 Pa s,
and typical operating conditions were assumed to be

END
Fig. 4. Flowchart of the numerical procedure.

 initial clearance, c 1.5  106 m;

 sliding velocity, U 2 m/s.

ARTICLE IN PRESS
A. Shinkarenko et al. / Tribology International 42 (2009) 284292

The dimensionless parameters corresponding to the reference

case along with their wide range of variation used for the
numerical experiment are shown in Table 1. The parametric
analysis is performed by changing the value of each parameter in
Table 1 in its turn while maintaining a xed value for all the
others.
Fig. 5 shows the proles of the undeformed and deformed
elastomer interface along with the textured prole of the rigid
counterpart and its sliding direction indicated by the arrow. The
results are presented for the reference case (see Table 1). The
distorted shape of the dimples is due to the different scales used
for the vertical and horizontal axes.
The elastomer deformations consist of three components:

10
Dimensionless Local Pressure, P

290

8
6
4
2
0
0

The dimensionless pressure distribution (for the above reference case of Fig. 5) in the uid lm along the center line of the
dimple column, X3 0 (see Fig. 2(c)) is presented in Fig. 6. The
pressure achieves local maxima at the local converging clearance
region of each dimple and reduces to zero at the local diverging
clearance region of each dimple (cavitation zones). These local
maxima decrease in their value in the direction of the counter
body sliding because of the diverging average clearance.

Minimum
value

Reference
value

Maximum
value

Dimple area density, Sp

Aspect ratio, e hp/2rp
Initial clearance, C c/rp
Length of elastomer, L1 l1/rp
Thickness of elastomer, L2 l2/rp
SEHL stiffness index, E Erp/
(6mU)

0.05
0.02
0.16
10
0
415

0.3
0.1
0.03
30
20
830

0.5
0.2
0.06
60
60
125000

Dimensionless Vertical Coordinate, X2

Parameter

Undeformed Elastomer
Profile

0.05

(X1,X3)

0.00
-0.05
-0.10
-0.15
Rigid Counterpart Profile

-0.20
0

10
15
20
25
Dimensionless Longitude Coordinate, X1

Fig. 5. Proles of the mating surfaces.

30

5.5

0.53

5.0

0.37

0.30

4.5
0.24

4.0
3.5

0.18

3.0

Sp = 0.10

2.5
2.0
0.05

0.1
Aspect Ratio,

0.15

0.2

Fig. 7. Dimensionless load-carrying capacity, W, vs. the aspect ratio, e, for different
values of the dimple area density, Sp.

Deformed Elastomer Profile

0.10

10
15
20
25
Dimensionless Longitude Coordinate, X1

L1 = 29, C = 0.03, L2 = 20, E = 833

6.0

0
Table 1
The dimensionless parameters and their range of variation

Fig. 6. Dimensionless pressure distribution, P, along the center line of a single

column of dimples.

Dimensionless Load Capacity, W

1. global compression of the elastomer due to the pressures in the

uid lm;
2. tilt of the elastomer due to viscous shear stresses, which result
in a bending moment, and hence clearance tendency to diverge
in the sliding direction (the shear stresses are in the direction
of the counterpart velocity);
3. the local deections of the elastomer having a wave-like
appearance (see Fig. 5) with the same frequency as that of the
dimples resulting from local change of the hydrodynamic
pressure within the dimples.

30

As shown in Refs. [714], the aspect ratio, e, plays a major role in

affecting the tribological performance of LST components. The
effect of this parameter on the dimensionless load-carrying
capacity, W, is presented in Fig. 7 for several values of the dimple
area density, Sp. The aspect ratio has an optimum value that
maximizes the load-carrying capacity. This is because the aspect
ratio denes the average slope of the converging lm thickness
zone of each dimple, which is known to be the main factor affecting
load capacity in slider bearings. The optimum aspect ratio changes
slightly with the area density but a ratio of e 0.060.08 can be
used as an optimum for the entire range of Sp.
Fig. 7 also shows that the load W increases with the dimple
area density, Sp, up to about Sp 0.30. Above this value, W is little
affected by Sp, and in fact for very high Sp values, W will start
decreasing. The existence of optimum area density can be
understood by examining the two extreme cases of Sp 0 and
Sp 1 (in both cases, no dimples exist). In approaching both cases,
the dimples effect decreases drastically. This phenomenon was
observed for the entire range of E with decreasing saturating value
of Sp as E increases but with negligible effect on the saturated
value of the load W. From many numerical simulations, it was
found that varying the other parameters of the problem (C, L1, and
L2) over their entire range (see Table 1) does not affect the
saturating value of the dimple area density. As a result, the value
Sp 0.3 was selected as a preferred value for the entire range of E
regardless of all other parameters.

ARTICLE IN PRESS
A. Shinkarenko et al. / Tribology International 42 (2009) 284292

The effect of e on the load-carrying capacity for different values

of the SEHL stiffness index, E, is presented in Fig. 8. It can be seen
that the aspect ratio, e, has a very weak optimum but this
optimum value depends on E. As can be seen from Fig. 8, a single
value of (e)opt 0.06 can cover a wide range of the SEHL stiffness
index from 420 to 25 000. For higher E values, a somewhat smaller
(e)opt value is found. A higher E results in smaller deections of the
elastomer and thus produces smaller clearance, which according
to the ndings in Ref. [14] requires a smaller optimum aspect
ratio. The smaller clearance due to higher E also increases the
hydrodynamic pressure and thus the load capacity as is shown in
Fig. 8. The present results obtained for high values of the SEHL
stiffness index are in good agreement with those of the nominally
parallel thrust bearing [14]. This is because innitely high value of
E leads to negligible deformations of the elastomer and the SEHL
model approaches the case of two rigid surfaces.
Fig. 9 presents some typical results of the load-carrying
capacity vs. the aspect ratio for different combinations of L1, L2,
and C. From many numerical simulations, it was found that the
parameters L1, L2, and C hardly affect the optimum aspect ratio. On
the other hand, L1, L2, and C strongly affect the load-carrying
capacity. Increasing the elastomer length, L1, increases its bending
stiffness, while decreasing the elastomer thickness, L2, decreases
the bending moment on the elastomer resulting from the uid
lm shear stresses. In both cases, the tilt of the elastomer (see
Fig. 5) decreases and results in smaller divergence of the clearance

L1 = 29, L2 = 20, Sp = 0.3

L1 = 29, L2 = 20, C = 0.03, Sp = 0.3

125000
75000

25000

10

E = 420

3400

1650

833

6800

Dimensionless Load Capacity, W

Dimensionless Load Capacity, W

in the sliding direction. This in turn increases the efciency of the

surface texturing (which is the highest for parallel surfaces) and
therefore increases the load-carrying capacity.
Reducing the initial clearance, C (mainly to negative values),
increases the load-carrying capacity, W, as would be expected. The
effect of C on W is displayed in Fig. 10, which shows the
dimensionless load-carrying capacity vs. the dimensionless
initial clearance for different values of the SEHL index and
their corresponding optimum values of the LST aspect ratio.
A principal assumption of the present model is the ever existence
of full hydrodynamic lubrication (no contact between the
surfaces is permitted). It was found from numerous simulations
that for certain negative values of the initial clearance, C, and
depending on E, the local gap may disappear at least at one
point. In these cases, the present model is not valid any
more. These limiting negative C values are shown as the very
left points of each curve in Fig. 10. They depend on the SEHL
stiffness index because higher values of E correspond to smaller
deections of the elastomer surface and as a result smaller real
positive clearance (lm thickness). Further increase of E or
decrease of C increases the number of contact points between
the mating surfaces.
A transition from full hydrodynamic lubrication to mixed
lubrication can be obtained by plotting the maximum load W vs. E
corresponding to the limiting initial clearance C values shown in
Fig. 10. The results are presented in Fig. 11 showing the range of

1000

100

0.05

0.1

0.15

E = 83300,
= 0.03

100

E = 8330,
= 0.04

10

E = 833,
= 0.06

1
-0.16

0.2

Aspect Ratio,
Fig. 8. Dimensionless load-carrying capacity, W, vs. the aspect ratio, e, for different
values of the SEHL stiffness index, E.

7.0

-0.12

-0.04
0
0.04
-0.08
Dimensionless Initial Clearance, C

0.08

Fig. 10. Dimensionless load-carrying capacity, W, vs. the dimensionless initial

clearance, C, for different values of the SEHL stiffness index, E.

Sp = 0.3, E = 833

6.5

350

L1 = 45, L2 = 20, C = 0.03

L1 = 39, L2 = 20, Sp = 0.3

6.0

Maximum Dimensionless
Load Carrying Capacity, W

Dimensionless Load Capacity, W

291

5.5
5.0
4.5
L1 = 29, L2 = 20, C = 0.01

4.0
3.5

L1 = 29, L2 = 20, C = 0.03

3.0

L1 = 29, L2 = 50, C = 0.03

2.5

300
250
200
150
100

Mixed Lubrication

50
Hydrodynamic Lubrication

2.0
0

0.05

0.1
Aspect Ratio, 

0.15

0.2

Fig. 9. Dimensionless load-carrying capacity, W, vs. the aspect ratio, e, for different
values of L1, L2, and C.

0
1.E+02

1.E+03
1.E+04
SEHL Stiffness Index, E

1.E+05

Fig. 11. Maximum dimensionless load-carrying capacity, W, vs. the SEHL stiffness
index, E.

ARTICLE IN PRESS
292

A. Shinkarenko et al. / Tribology International 42 (2009) 284292

The validity of the present model, which is based on the

assumption of full hydrodynamic lubrication, was analyzed in
terms of the limiting SEHL stiffness index and associated loadcarrying capacity, and the maximum load causing transition to
mixed lubrication was identied.

Dimensionless Friction Force, Ff

2.70
L1 = 29, L2 = 20, Sp = 0.3, E = 833

2.50
2.30
2.10
1.90

1.70
Acknowledgments

1.50

1.30
1.10

W=3

0.90
0.70
0

0.05

0.1
Aspect Ratio,

0.15

0.2

Fig. 12. Dimensionless friction force, Ff, vs. the aspect ratio, e, for different values
of the dimensionless load-carrying capacity, W.

validity of the present model. At any given E, there is a maximum

value of W above which the present model becomes invalid.
So far, the optimization of the LST parameters involved
maximizing the load-carrying capacity. It is expected that such
optimization will also minimize the friction force at a given load.
This is because with a given load the optimum LST results in more
efcient hydrodynamic pressure generation, and hence in the
highest lm thickness and the lowest shear stresses at the
uidelastomer interface. This argument is indeed demonstrated
in Fig. 12 that shows typical behavior of the dimensionless friction
force, Ff, vs. the dimple aspect ratio for different values of the loadcarrying capacity. It is observed from Fig. 12 that with E 833 the
optimum aspect ratio for minimum friction is in the range
e 0.080.1, similar to the optimum e range for maximum loadcarrying capacity with the same E 833 as shown in Figs. 79.
Namely, the same optimum LST parameters provide both maximum load and minimum friction. Fig. 12 also shows that higher
load-carrying capacity is associated with higher friction force as
would be expected from a thinner uid lm.

4. Conclusion
A theoretical model was developed to analyze the potential of
LST in soft elasto-hydrodynamic lubrication. It was found that
texturing of the rigid counterpart generates a load-carrying
capacity that can be maximized by selecting a preferred dimple
area density, Sp, and an optimum dimple aspect ratio, e. The
optimum parameters for maximum load also minimize the
friction force.
The optimum values of the LST parameters were found from an
intensive parametric investigation. It was found that the dimple
radius does not affect the tribological performance of SEHL. The
best value of the dimple area density, Sp, is almost independent of
all the other parameters of the problem and is about Sp 0.3. The
optimum aspect ratio depends exclusively on the SEHL stiffness
index, E. As E changes from 420 to 6  105, the optimum aspect
ratio (e)opt varies from 0.1 to 0.02, respectively. Further increase of
E does not affect the optimum aspect ratio, which remains 0.02.

The authors wish to acknowledge the support of the partners

of the Kristal Project and the European Commission for their
support in the integrated project Knowledge-based Radical
Innovation Surfacing for Tribology and Advanced Lubrication
(EU Project Reference NMP3-CT-2005-515837).
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