IMPERFECT JOURNAL GEOMETRY - ITS EFFECT ON SLEEVE BEARING PERFORMANCE

The adverse effect of bearing journals with circumferential defects or lobes upon bearing performance is investigated experimentally, in both bearing tests and engine tests. In addition to showing the significant role of the lobe amplitude on bearing operation, the effect of the number of lobes is also demonstrated. These experiments show that increasing either the amplitude or number of journal lobes penalizes bearing performance in highly loaded situations.