On the validity of the Reynolds equation for the simulation of wet grinding processes

Abstract

Wet grinding is a process with a complex interaction of individual sub‐processes such as fluid mechanics, continuum mechanics and thermodynamics and branched coupling of corresponding properties. In order to be able to represent these properties in a model, this paper develops a description of the hydrodynamic properties in the grinding gap as a building block for a simple but accurate model to describe the process of wet grinding. To this end, it is shown that the Reynolds equation, which is well‐established in the lubrication theory, is also suitable for describing an exemplary grinding wheel with abrasive grains or pores. This is done by demonstrating the feasibility of a calculation and by comparing the results with Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulations.