COMPUTER METHODS IN APPLIED MECHANICS AND ENGINEERING 31(1982) 179-187

NORTH-HOLLAND PUBLISHING COMPANY

NUMERICAL METHODS FOR CALCULATING PRESSURE

DI!3TRIBUTION IN GAS BEARINGS

Zi-Cai LI* and E. DAI

Shanghai Institute of Computer Technology, Shanghai, China

Received 24 August 1981

In gas bearings, the pressure distribution is governed by a non-linear Reynolds equation. In order to
solve this equation two numerical methods, the conservative difference scheme and the finite element
method, are provided in this paper. They are superior to the finite difference. method of Colemman [2].
Use of the finite element method is advocated because of its flexibility in solving the Reynolds
equation.

1. Introduction

In order to obtain a numerical solution of the pressure distribution in gas bearings,

Colemman [2] provided a finite difference method. However, it is not very feasible in complex
problems. For example, it is very difficult to construct a difference equation on the nodes of
the interior boundary, especially on the corner boundary point. Therefore the present paper
will provide two methods-the conservative difference scheme and the finite element method.
The evidence from a numerical example is that the results obtained by both methods are more
accurate than those obtained by the finite difference method of Colemman [2].

2. The nonlinear Reynolds equation and its boundary conditions

In this paper we take the gas bearing of a spiral groove thrust plate as an example. In the
stable case the pressure distribution of the gas bearing will satisfy a dimensionless Reynolds
equation:

where r and 8 are polar coordinates, p is the pressure, A is a compressibility number, H is the
clearance having different values in different regions (Fig. 1):

*Present address: Department of Computer Science, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario MSS lA7, Canada.

00457825/82/OOOO-OOOO/!IO2.75
@ North-Holland
180 Z.-C. Li, E. Dai, Numerical methods for gas bearings

Fig. 1. Gas bearing with a spiral groove thrust plate.

H = HI in the groove region,

Hz in the ridge and seal regions,

where HI and Hz are positive constants.

Obviously (1) is a nonlinear equation, its solution domain is a circular ring (Ri I r I R,),
where Ri and R, are the radii of the interior and outer circles (Fig. 1). Because of the symmetry
it is enough to solve in the groove and its neighbourhood ridge and seal regions (Fig. 1).
Let

y=lnr, u = p2. (2)

Eq. (1) becomes

Under the transformations (2) a symmetric solution region in Fig. 1 transforms into S of
Fig. 2. The width along the direction 0 of that figure is 21r/z (z is the total number of grooves).

Fig. 2. The solution region S = SI US2 with the coordinate system Y-O-0.
 Z.-C. Li, E. Dai, Numerical methods for gas bearings 181

Since on physical grounds, the pressure is always positive, d/u in (3) exists. In this paper we
assume that u has a positive lower bound, &, namely,

U~So>O. (4)
Eq. (3) is a quasi-linear elliptic equation. Obviously, (3) is simpler than (1). Its boundary
conditions are as follows.

u=l, ony=y,=lnR,, (5)

au/ay = 0 ) on y = yi = In Ri (6)
and
u(y, 8 + 277-/z)= u(y, 0) for all 8. (7)

Eq. (3) is also equivalent to

d2U, + *= fl ezy du,

ay2 ae2 H:di de ’
1=1,2, (8)

where u1 and u2 represent the solution, u, in regions S1 and S2, respectively.

On the interior boundary T’,,,there are two conditions of continuity for flux,

= 2A ezyd/u(H, - Hz) cos cr , on DB (9

and
H3au,=H3au, onm (10)
l JY * dy ’
3

where cr is the spiral groove angle and where the solution u is continuous on the interior
boundary, i.e. u = u1 = u2.
Colemann [2] suggests that the finite difference method be used for solving (8~(10).
However, the interior boundary BD is not parallel to the coordinate axes 0 and Y, so the
discrete difference equations in [2] for the condition (9) are too crude. Moreover, it is difficult
to see which of (9) or (10) should be used for the difference equation at the corner, D, of the
interior boundary F’,. So, we seek some better numerical methods.

3. The conservative difference scheme

Eqs. (9) and (10) can be combined as a single equation

H: 2 - H; 2 = 2A e”d/u(H, - Hz) cos(n, 0)) (11)

182 Z.-C. Li, E. Dai, Numerical methods for gas bearings

where II denotes the direction of the normal to the interior boundary. We can easily prove
that the boundary conditions (5j(7) and the equation:

H3 g dl = -2A 36 e2yHv/U dy (12)

f ri rt

are equivalent to (3), @k(7) and (ll), where 17_is the boundary of any subregion Si C S, n is
the outward normal direction of Tim
Eq. (12) represents conservation of gas mass and can be used for constructing the difference
equation. Consequently, it is not necessary specially to consider the troublesome interior
boundary conditions (11). The resulting conservative difference scheme, though easily
obtained, is more reasonable than the finite difference method of Colemann [2].
The solution region S is divided into many right triangles and acute triangles (Fig. 3).
Suppose that ml and m2 are the numbers of equidistant nodes along the direction 0, ytl and n2
are the numbers of equidistant nodes along the direction Y. Denote m = ml + pnz, n = IZ~+ n2.
In order that the triangle division is into right triangles and acute triangles, the ratio of mesh
spacings Ayj/AOi must satisfy the following inequalities:

i sin 2c~5 Ayi~A~i5 ctg at, (13)

where Ayi and AOi are the mesh spacings along the directions Y and 0, respectively. From the
partitioning in Fig. 3 the integers ml, m2 and ~1~must satisfy

i sin 2a zz k. (14)
and
~sin2~~k*(l+~)~~ctg~ (15)

where /I is the width ratio of groove to ridge. The constant k. is given by

ko = (z/2n) In(RJR,) ,

and R, is the radius of the middle circle in Fig. 1.

Fig. 3. The triangulation.

 Z.-C. Li, E. Dai, Numerical methods for gas bearings 183

When conditions (14) and (15) hold, the partitioning in Fig. 3 creates right triangles or acute
triangles, ensuring that the origin Ai of the escri- circle of a triangle is in or on the triangle
itself. The region enclosed by the straight lines AiAi of origins is taken as a mesh region.
Let us take an interior point 0 and its mesh region (Fig. 4) as an example for discretization of
(12). The left-hand side (12) can be approximated as

(16)

where the coefficients

aj = [AjCjH& + C,A,-,H$_,]/OJ . (17)

A, = A6, AjC;. also denotes the length of the straight line AjCp
When the coordinates of the vertices of the triangle A,, are known, we can easily obtain the
coordinates of the origin A of the es&bed circle (Fig. 5):

XA = -(ydi + y$j + ymdm)/4A 7

J’A = -(Xidi + Xjdj + X,dm)/4A

wheredi=x~-x~+yf-y~,dj=x2,--x:+y$- y?, d, = X: - XT + xf - XT, and the area of the

triangle is

l Xi yi

A=$1 xj yj
1 Xfn ym * (18)

Thus the coefficients aj of (17) are obtained from the cooginates of origins Ai.
The right-hand side of (12) containing the nonlinear v/u can be approximated as

fQ
Q j
In

*A
T
P

Fig. 4. The interior point 0 and its mesh region Si. Fig. 5. A triangle element, e.
184 Z.-C. Li. E. Dai. Numerical methods for gas bearings

-2A I‘ e2yH~/U dy = i= pj(~/ui + ~\/uo)

, (19)
f. j=l

where the coefficients on the right are given by

pj = -A ezy’, [HA,(YA, - YG) + HA,-,(Y, - b-1)1.

Then the difference equation of seven nodes is obtained from (12) (16) and (19):

5 cYj(U, - U(j)= f: pj(d<+ A&). (20)

/=o j=l

Obviously, the conservative difference scheme (20) has contained the interior boundary
conditions (11). In addition, there are the boundary equations from (5)-(7). We obtain m X yt
difference equations in the m x it unknowns ui, and denote them in the simple operational
form

F(V)= K, (21)

where V is an unknown vector with the components ui, F is a nonlinear operator, K is a

known vector. Eq. (21) can be easily solved by the Newton method [4].

4. The finite element method

It is worth noting that (14) and (15) must hold for the stable numerical solution of the
conservative difference scheme (20). However, the finite element method in this paragraph
need not satisfy these limitations and is better because of its flexibility.
Suppose that the exact solution U* of (3), (5)-(7) and (11) exists. Then, we construct two
equations

(22)
and
H: 2 - Hz $f = 2A e2yd/u*(Hl - Hz) cos(n, 0) (23)

on DB and CB. Obviously, the solution of (22), (5)-(7) and (23) is still u*. If we temporarily
regard u* as a constant solution, (22) and (23) are ‘formally’ linear. Define a functional

I(U) = I 1 [iH3[ ($7 + (ST]- 2~ ezyHd/ $} dy df3. (24)

Then, among all admissible functions satisfying (5) and (7), the solution U* makes the
 Z.-C. Li, E. Dai, Numerical methods for gas bearings 185

minimum of the functional I(U), i.e., the first order variation of I(U) is equal to zero:

aI = 0. (25)

Below, we obtain the difference equation by the finite element method [l, 3,5]. Take the
linear function in a triangle element (Fig. 5):

U = NiUi + Niui + N~u, 3 (26)

where Ni = (ai + bix + ciy)/2A, ai = Xjy, - X,yj, bi = yj - ym, Ci = X, - ~j. The coefficients Uj, bj,
cj, a,, b, and c, can be similarly expressed.
First, we apply the linear finite element method regardless of the presence of q/u*. Then, it
follows that if e denotes the triangular element in Fig. 5,

= & H3[(biui + bjuj + b,u,)bi + (CiUi+ CjUj+ cmUm)Ci]

-$bi/I e H e2yd? dy de. (27)

-
Second, since u* = u, the integral containing vu* can be approximated as

-$bi//e H e2yd/u* dy de = -t bi H e2Yd/u dy de

- -
= -+AbiH[e2YTduUT+ e2ypdup + e2yQd/uo]
z -&4biH[(e 2yr+ ezyp)V/ui + (e 2YP+ e2Yo)d/ui + (ezyO+ e2YT)d/um] , V-3)

where the points P, Q and T are shown in Fig. 5. Then, we obtain

$P’(u)=$ [(bf +
I
Cf)Ui + (bibi + CiCj)Uj + (bib, + CiCm)Um]
-
- $4biH[(eZY’ + e2yp)VG+ (e2yp+ e2yo)d/ui + (ezyO+ e2YT)duu,] . (29)

Finally, the nonlinear difference equation at the interior point 0 is obtained from (25) and
(29):

(30)
186 Z.-C. Li, E. Dai, Numerical methods for gas bearings

where &j and Bj are the coefficients independent of U. In addition, there are the boundary
conditions (5) and (7). Then, the numerical solution for u can be easily obtained by the
Newton method [4].
After the numerical solution for u has been obtained, the integral of the pressure
distribution is evaluated from

(d/u- 1) e2y dy df3. (31)

We can prove the convergence of the finite element method and provide the error estimate
of its numerical solution according to the analytical method of the nonlinear finite element
method [l].

5. A numerical example

Consider a gas bearing of a spiral groove trust plate with the parameters z = 15, (Y= 72”,
p = 1.3, HI = 5.5, Hz = 1, Ri = 0.4, R, = 0.7, R,= 1. Take ml = 4, m2 = 3, nl = 20, n2 = 15.
Then (14) and (15) hold. All-the triangles divided are right triangles or acute triangles. We
calculate the pressure p = d/u by the conservative difference scheme and the finite element
method, then obtain the value of w from (31). Table 1 presents the calculated results for
various compressibilities, A.
It is seen from Table 1 that the difference between two methods is very small, the largest
relative error being only 0.2%. This suggests how reasonable and consistent the two methods
are. The quantity w of (31) above, evaluated by either method is closer to the experiment
value than is that obtained by the finite difference method of Colemann [2]. Indeed, the finite
element method is the best of these three methods.

Acknowledgment

This work was supported by the Shanghai Institute of Computer Technology. Also it is with
pleasure that we express our acknowledgment to Professor L. Endrenyi and Dr. G.L. Feng for
their valuable suggestions.

Table 1
The integrated value of the calculated pressure dis-
tribution

The finite element The conservative

A method difference scheme

5 0.130685 0.130686
20 0.524077 0.524142
130 3.393624 3.394879
500 12.491314 12.513590
 Z.-C. Li, E. Dai, Numerical methods for gas bearings 187

References

[l] P.G. Ciarlet, The Finite Element Method for Elliptic Problems (North-Holland, Amsterdam, 1978).
[2] R. Colemann, The numerical solution of linear elliptic equations, Trans. ASME, Ser. F 90 (1968) 773-776.
[3] J.T. Oden and J.N. Reddy, An Introduction to the Mathematical Theory of Finite Elements (Wiley,
New York, 1976).
[4] J.M. Ortega and W.C. Rhinbodt, Iterative Solution of Nonlinear Equations in Several Variables (Academic
Press, New York, 1970).
[5] G. Strang and G.J. Fix, An Analysis of the Finite Element Method (Prentice-Hall, Englewood Cliffs, NJ, 1973).