Lubricant flow in thin-film elastohydrodynamic contact under extreme conditions

To further extend knowledge about fluid film friction in elastohydrodynamic contact, it is important to examine how lubricant flows. In this paper, several film thickness results obtained by interferometry technique for different kinds of experiments were analyzed and discussed based on lubricant flow continuity. Results of two steady-state and two transient experiments are presented. Possible speed profiles that can explain observed film thickness distributions were suggested. It is shown that major part of present experiments can be explained by a single speed profile known as a plug flow. This finding is in contradiction to usual linear speed profile predicted by Reynolds equation.