Purpose The purpose of this paper is to study thermal-fluid-solid coupling deformation and friction failure mechanism of bearing friction pairs under the working conditions of high speed and heavy load. Design/methodology/approach The deformation is simulated based on thermal-fluid-solid coupling method, its deformation distribution law is revealed and the relationships of deformation of friction pairs, rotational speed and bearing weight are obtained. Findings The results prove that the oil film temperature rises sharply, the lubricating oil viscosity decreases rapidly, the film thickness becomes thinner, the deformation increases, the whole deformation is uneven and the boundary lubrication or dry friction are caused with the increase in rotational speed and bearing load. Originality/value The conclusions provide theoretical method for deformation solution and friction failure mechanism of hydrostatic thrust bearing.

Purpose This paper aims to describe a theoretical and experimental research concerning influence of recess shape on comprehensive lubrication performance of high speed and heavy load hydrostatic thrust bearing with a constant flow. Design/methodology/approach The lubrication performance of a hydrostatic thrust bearing with different recess shape under the working conditions of high speed and heavy load has been simulated by using computational fluid dynamics and finite volume method. Findings It is found that the comprehensive lubrication performance of a hydrostatic thrust bearing with circular recess is optimal. The results demonstrate that recess shape has a great influence on the lubrication performance of the hydrostatic thrust bearing. Originality/value The simulation results indicate that to get an improved performance from a hydrostatic thrust bearing with constant flow, a proper selection of the recess shape is essential.