LAUSR

Abstract The paper introduces a new fast combined analytical and numerical computation model of thrust bearing, which can be applied to analyse the transient rotor dynamics of rotating machines. The bearing model is designed to allow an efficient solution to long-term processes while retaining its high-level capability to describe the bearing dynamics and tribology. The model includes the effects of lubricant inlet temperature and pressure and also effects of temperature, shear rate and inertia of the bearing lubricant layer. This bearing model used in the virtual turbocharger allows detailed analysis of both the design of the bearing itself and the vibration and noise issues of the turbocharger. The results obtained through the bearing model are verified using Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) and by technical experiments on real exhaust gas turbochargers.