New numerical solution for self-acting gas journal bearings

Taking a small pressure change in the gas film of self-acting gas-lubricated journal bearings into account, the corresponding nonlinear Reynolds equation is linearized through appropriate approximation and a modified Reynolds equation is derived and solved by means of the finite difference method (FDM). The gas film pressure distribution of a self-acting gas-lubricated journal bearing is attained and the load capacity is calculated. The numerical solution has a better agreement with experimental data than a direct numerical solution for different values of the bearing number. It is of interest to note that the eccentricity ratio, at which the new numerical solution is in better agreement with experimental data, is different when the bearing number is changing. The new numerical solution is slightly larger when the eccentricity ratio is smaller, and becomes slightly smaller when the eccentricity ratio is larger.