Methods for Determining Pressure Distributions in Lubricated Rolling Contact

Abstract

Two methods have been evolved for finding pressure distributions in lubricating rolling contact. In the first method, the circumferential profile of the gap between rolling disks is found by using an X-ray technique, and the pressures are inferred from the observed deformations of the disks. Several profiles have been obtained for a range of loadings, temperatures, and rolling speeds by using steel disks with polyphenyl ether as the lubricant, and plausible (though not greatly detailed) pressure distributions were derived from some of them. The second method uses a strip of manganin coaling on a glass disk which is loaded into lubricated, rolling contact with a second glass disk. The change in electrical resistance of the manganin due to film pressures is measured. The data recorded by this technique also appear to be reasonably reproducible and consistent.