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Lubricants
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Advances in Tribology and Lubrication for Bearing Systems
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Advances in Tribology and Lubrication for Bearing Systems

A special issue of Lubricants (ISSN 2075-4442).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (20 May 2026) | Viewed by 3572

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Yu Chen

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Mechanical Engineering, Jiangsu University of Technology, Changzhou 213001, China
Interests: lubricant analysis; contact and friction; dynamic analysis

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

We are delighted to extend an invitation for submissions to a Special Issue on the subject of " Advances in Tribology and Lubrication for Bearing Systems". Tribology and lubrication are significant for bearing systems. The harsh environment would cause the contact surface of the bearing to wear, and the service life would decline significantly. The tribological performance and lubrication characteristics of bearing systems depend upon a myriad of parameters, including the physical properties of the lubrication medium, surface shape, loading, groove structure, and working conditions. Additionally, the lubrication and wear performance of bearing system composites exhibit acute sensitivity to changes in environmental and flow characteristics at the sliding surface. Although much is known about the structure-property relationships in bearing systems, some mechanisms that determine their tribological performance and lubrication characteristics remain unknown. Our aim with this issue is to compile a comprehensive collection of the most recent, cutting-edge developments and innovations in tribology and lubrication for bearing systems.

We are seeking both review articles and original research that provide theoretical explorations, ground-breaking experimental research, and inventive computational approaches. These contributions will help deepen our understanding of the mechanisms at play on multiple scales. We also encourage novel applications that push the existing boundaries of this field. The scope of this issue includes friction, wear, lubrication, and contact mechanics in the context of bearing systems, as well as bearing engineering techniques and the design and fabrication of mechanical systems. In addition, the topic of fluid flow characteristics is encouraged, including multiphase flow, cavitation, phase transmission, and hydrodynamics. We anticipate this research will comprise experimental, theoretical, and/or computational work, or a combination thereof, to enable the predictive design of bearing systems for future technologies.

We are particularly eager to receive submissions from a diverse range of academics, industry researchers, and practitioners who are contributing to this rapidly evolving field. This call for papers represents an exceptional opportunity for your work to reach a broad audience and for you to engage with others in your field.

Dr. Yu Chen
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Lubricants is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • friction
  • lubrication
  • bearing systems
  • contact mechanics
  • wear
  • dynamics
  • hydrodynamic
  • multiphase flow
  • cavitation
  • vibration
  • flow characteristics

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Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.

Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

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31 pages, 9719 KB  
Article
Nonlinear Dynamic Behavior and Kinematic Joint Wear Characteristics of a Bionic Humanoid Leg Mechanism with Multiple Revolute Joint Clearances
by Yilin Wang, Siyuan Zheng, Yiran Wei, Jianuo Zhu, Shuai Jiang and Shutong Zhou
Lubricants 2026, 14(4), 167; https://doi.org/10.3390/lubricants14040167 - 13 Apr 2026
Viewed by 368
Abstract
With the rapid advancement of exoskeletons and rehabilitation robotics, modern healthcare increasingly demands high dynamic accuracy and reliability from medical devices. However, the dynamic response and durability of mechanical systems are greatly influenced by the inevitable existence of clearances in kinematic joints. Existing [...] Read more.
With the rapid advancement of exoskeletons and rehabilitation robotics, modern healthcare increasingly demands high dynamic accuracy and reliability from medical devices. However, the dynamic response and durability of mechanical systems are greatly influenced by the inevitable existence of clearances in kinematic joints. Existing studies predominantly focus on simplified planar or spatial mechanisms, offering limited guidance for complex mechanical structures in medical applications. To address this issue, a unified modeling framework is proposed in this study to explore the nonlinear dynamic behavior and wear properties of bionic humanoid rigid mechanisms incorporating revolute joint clearances. A dynamic model that accounts for revolute joint clearances is established, employing the Lankarani–Nikravesh contact model alongside a refined Coulomb friction approach to characterize contact behavior. To characterize the wear progression between the shaft and the bushing, the Archard wear model is employed, while the system’s dynamic equations are formulated using the Lagrange multiplier approach. Systematic simulations are conducted to examine the effects of clearance size, location, and multi-clearance coupling on dynamic response and wear behavior. The results reveal that clearances at the hip joint have the most pronounced impact on system performance, tibiofemoral joint clearances exacerbate precision disturbances, and foot-end clearances considerably undermine system robustness. Increased clearance sizes and the coexistence of multiple clearances aggravate wear and induce more severe nonlinear dynamic phenomena. Phase portraits and Poincaré maps further illustrate that the system may exhibit complex or chaotic behavior under certain conditions. This study offers theoretical insights into performance degradation mechanisms in humanoid robots with joint clearances and introduces a modular “driving–mid–terminal” structure that enhances model generality, enabling its application to exoskeletons and rehabilitation devices for design optimization, service life prediction, and health monitoring. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Tribology and Lubrication for Bearing Systems)
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16 pages, 12926 KB  
Article
Friction and Wear Behavior of Carburized Steels Against Ceramic Balls Under Starved Lubrication
by Xu Liu, Linye Yu, Ming Zhong, Jin Qian, Jiapeng Dai and Yongan Min
Lubricants 2026, 14(4), 157; https://doi.org/10.3390/lubricants14040157 - 5 Apr 2026
Viewed by 518
Abstract
Starved lubrication poses a critical challenge to hybrid ceramic bearings operating under severe conditions. This study investigates the tribological behavior of carburized 20CrMo steel sliding against Al2O3 ceramic balls and GCr15 steel balls under dry sliding, with oil-lubricated tests as [...] Read more.
Starved lubrication poses a critical challenge to hybrid ceramic bearings operating under severe conditions. This study investigates the tribological behavior of carburized 20CrMo steel sliding against Al2O3 ceramic balls and GCr15 steel balls under dry sliding, with oil-lubricated tests as a reference. Under oil lubrication, the 20CrMo/Al2O3 pair exhibits superior wear resistance, attributed to the high hardness of the ceramic counterpart. Under dry sliding, however, this pair shows a slightly lower friction coefficient but a wear rate approximately three times that of the 20CrMo/GCr15 pair. This counterintuitive behavior stems from two mechanisms: lower contact stress and friction-induced work hardening in the GCr15 pair, which together suppress wear. Further analysis reveals that secondary carbides in the carburized layer detach under repeated high shear stress, acting as hard third-body abrasives and accelerating surface damage. These findings highlight that hybrid ceramic bearings are more susceptible to lubrication failure than all-steel bearings. Under heavy loads and poor lubrication, residual compressive stress plays a key role in governing the tribological behavior of carbides on carburized surfaces. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Tribology and Lubrication for Bearing Systems)
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19 pages, 8529 KB  
Article
Nonlinear Analysis of Dynamic Behavior in a High-Precision Mechanism with a Revolute Clearance Joint
by Yu Chen, Qingbo Lan, Hongchang Wang, Xuze Wu, Xinzhou Zhang and Kai Wu
Lubricants 2026, 14(3), 122; https://doi.org/10.3390/lubricants14030122 - 12 Mar 2026
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 523
Abstract
Collision and wear are common phenomena in revolute clearance joints, caused by the positional deviation between the journal and bearing centers. The freedom of motion and contact–impact characteristics are reflected in the mechanism’s movement. The penetration behavior of the clearance joint is described [...] Read more.
Collision and wear are common phenomena in revolute clearance joints, caused by the positional deviation between the journal and bearing centers. The freedom of motion and contact–impact characteristics are reflected in the mechanism’s movement. The penetration behavior of the clearance joint is described using modified elastic contact model combined with Coulomb’s friction. In addition, the dynamic model of a high-precision mechanism with a clearance joint is established using Largrange’s equation. A dynamic performance experiment is also conducted. The results prove the validity of the proposed method. The kinematic accuracy of this mechanism is then used to evaluate the stability and motion error in a case study. Furthermore, the influence of the clearance joint on the dynamic behavior of the high-precision mechanism is thoroughly analyzed. The results show that the fluctuation range of the slider’s dynamic repeated precision for slider is only 0.022 mm under high-speed conditions, meeting the design requirement. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Tribology and Lubrication for Bearing Systems)
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16 pages, 4101 KB  
Article
Influence of Combined Load on Dynamic Behavior of Angular Contact Ball Bearing with Various Conditions
by Shunyao Wang
Lubricants 2026, 14(2), 61; https://doi.org/10.3390/lubricants14020061 - 29 Jan 2026
Viewed by 495
Abstract
The traditional analysis of dynamic characteristics inside a ball bearing mainly focuses on the kinematic trajectory in the steady condition, while various working conditions are often neglected in investigations. A general approach for dynamic modeling and analysis of an angular contact ball bearing [...] Read more.
The traditional analysis of dynamic characteristics inside a ball bearing mainly focuses on the kinematic trajectory in the steady condition, while various working conditions are often neglected in investigations. A general approach for dynamic modeling and analysis of an angular contact ball bearing (ACBB) considering combined load effects is proposed in this work. In the analytical model, the characteristics of contact-impact are considered and a dissipative contact model is employed to represent energy loss effects. A dynamic performance experiment of an ACBB is performed, which illustrates that the proposed model can be satisfied with the evaluation of dynamic behavior for an ACBB. The characteristic distribution of kinematics and mechanics for an ACBB are calculated, which reveals that there is the correlation between dynamic behavior and working conditions in an ACBB. Clear contact characteristics always appear in the worst working condition. Based on the dynamic stability, the optimal design of structural parameters for an ACBB is outlined, which will prove helpful to achieve a better bearing performance. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Tribology and Lubrication for Bearing Systems)
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Other

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10 pages, 1544 KB  
Brief Report
Efficient Characterization of Extreme Pressure Properties of Lubricants Using Advanced Four-Ball Test Methodology
by Krishnamurti Singh, Tushar Khosla and Mathias Woydt
Lubricants 2026, 14(1), 13; https://doi.org/10.3390/lubricants14010013 - 28 Dec 2025
Viewed by 1139
Abstract
The classic four-ball test was developed in the 1930s and has remained unchanged to this day. This versatile and widely used methodology would benefit from further development with modern tools and techniques. The classic four-ball test is traditionally performed with load steps, which [...] Read more.
The classic four-ball test was developed in the 1930s and has remained unchanged to this day. This versatile and widely used methodology would benefit from further development with modern tools and techniques. The classic four-ball test is traditionally performed with load steps, which makes it slow, and determining the exact last non-seizure load is quite challenging. To overcome this situation, a new methodology for testing the high-pressure properties (EP) of greases and oils is presented, using a continuous, constant-load ramp rate. The peak in the evolution of the coefficient of friction represents the occurrence of the last non-seizure sliding. The load at which the final non-seizure sliding occurs is defined as the last non-seizure load (LNSL). The obtained results are consistent with historical experience with “classic” four-ball EP tests, and the test procedure is fast and highly repeatable. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Tribology and Lubrication for Bearing Systems)
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