Optimization of groove texture profile to improve hydrodynamic lubrication performance: Theory and experiments

It is well known that groove texture with a careful design can be used to enhance the load-carrying capacity of oil film under the conditions of hydrodynamic lubrication. In this study, a general parametric model was developed, and agenetic algorithm-sequential quadratic programming hybrid method was adopted to obtain the global-optimum profile of the groove texture. The optimized profiles at different rotating speeds are all chevrons. The numerical analysis results verified the effect of the optimization. In addition to the numerical optimization, experiments were conducted to validate the superiority of the optimized results.The experimental results show that the optimized groove texture can efficiently reduce the coefficient of friction (COF) and the temperature rise of the specimen. In particular, the optimized groove textures can achieve stable ultra-low COF values (COF < 0.01) under certain conditions.