Mixed Lubrication Analysis of Vane Sliding Surface in Rotary Compressor Mechanisms

Abstract

Numerical analysis for mixed lubrication has been performed in order to investigate the lubrication characteristics of the sliding surface of the vane in a rotary compressor. The modified Reynolds equation and the elastic contact equation, considering the surface roughness, are solved as a coupled problem. Using this analysis, the lubrication characteristics of the sliding surface of the vane are investigated by parameter survey on the design parameters such as the vane-slot length and the clearance between the vane and vane-slot. It is found that the influences of the vane-slot length on the friction loss were larger than that of the clearance.

Keywords

• rotary compressor
• vane
• vane-slot
• mixed lubrication
• surface roughness
• friction