Angular contact ball bearings are widely used in high-speed rotating machinery, where solid contaminant particles inevitably enter the lubrication system under practical operating conditions. These particles may disturb the oil film structure, intensify frictional heat generation, and introduce time-varying contact disturbances. Thus, the thermo-dynamic behavior of the bearing is significantly affected. Firstly, to investigate the influence mechanism of contaminant particles on the temperature rise and vibration response of ball bearings, a particle–lubrication–structure coupled dynamic model is established. Then, the particle-modified viscosity relationship is analyzed. Based on elastohydrodynamic lubrication theory, the modified Reynolds equation is proposed to describe particle-induced disturbance in point contacts. The lubrication model is further coupled with frictional heat generation and bearing dynamics. Finally, the numerical simulations and experiments are conducted at different rotational speeds and contaminant concentrations. The results show good agreement with the simulation, with a maximum temperature error of 9.2% and a maximum relative amplitude error of 7.6%. Results demonstrate a nonlinear increase in bearing temperature with contaminant concentration,and reveal that particles promote earlier onset of dynamic instability,along with an overall elevation in high-frequency vibration components. These findings provide critical insights into failure mechanisms and predictive maintenance strategies for bearings operating in contaminated environments.
Wang et al. (Mon,) studied this question.