Newcastle University

A team of seven MSE graduates has been declared this year’s winner of the BGA/IMechE Final Year Project Prize for their MEng project “Instability Mechanisms in Journal Bearings.”

The team members, who all graduated in the summer with MEng degrees, were Design students Louis Wallace (Project Manager), James Murray, Andrew Myers and Steve Addison, and Mathematical Modellers Mike Sherlock, Richard Bowman and Tom Hughes.

The photograph shows the project test rig and team, together with one of the project supervisors, Dr David Swailes, and School technicians. Details of the prize-winning project are given below.

Congratulations to the team for their hard work and success!

Instability Mechanisms in Journal Bearings

The main aim of the project was to investigate and gain a better understanding of the causes of instability mechanisms in hydrodynamic journal bearings. Two main lines of research were undertaken within the project. Firstly, mathematical models were developed and studied to gain insight into the underlying physical mechanisms and secondly a suitable test rig was designed and manufactured to facilitate practical implementation and validation of the basic principles. The need for experimental testing of this nature was highlighted in the design of the test rig in order to understand bearing behaviour under externally applied loads and varying shaft speed. Data gathered from the mathematical models and the experimental testing allowed investigation into the relationship between eccentricity ratio and load, bearing stabilisation and the torque induced on the bearing body.