On the role of second Newtonian viscosity in EHL point contacts using double Newtonian shear-thinning model

• Role of second Newtonian Viscosity in EHL point contacts is investigated.
• Its effects with respect to load, scale, rolling and sliding speed are discussed.
• Good agreement is found between the simulated and published experimental results.

The influence of second Newtonian viscosity on the behavior of film thickness in EHL point contacts is investigated numerically. The shear-thinning behavior of the lubricants is modeled using the well-recognized and experimentally proven double Newtonian Carreau viscosity equation. The computed results illustrate substantial increase in the film thickness with increasing second Newtonian viscosities. The effect of second Newtonian viscosity on the variation of EHL film thickness with respect to load, scale, rolling and sliding speed is also discussed herein. The results indicate the importance of considering the effect of second Newtonian viscosity for accurate prediction of film thickness pertaining to shear-thinning lubricants. The comparison of film thickness predictions with published experimental results validate both the numerical approach and rheological model employed.