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Marine Mechanical Engineering
Applied Mechanics and Tribology Laboratory Industrial Materials Laboratory Energy Conversion Laboratory Mechanical Design Laboratory Systems Applied Physics Laboratory
Mechanical Design Laboratory
Research laboratory: Mechanical Design Laboratory
Laboratory philosophy: Smooth movement from the micro to the macro!
Program outline: Irrespective of the size of a machine, friction will always play a part in the function of ‘movement'. This friction must be understood and managed if smooth movement is to come about. The Mechanical Design Laboratory furthers research that takes an interest in diverse fields of ‘friction and lubrication' ranging from roller bearings and piston ring lubrication to molecularly thin film lubrication.
Graduate School instructor(s): Katsumi IWAMOTO (Professor), Kentaro TANAKA (Associate Professor), Kazuo TOYAMA (Teaching Associate)
Research topics:
(1)  Piston ring lubrication

Related instructor(s): Katsumi IWAMOTO
Outline: In this research students measure the oil film thickness and frictional force produced between piston rings and liners using a device to test the lubrication of reciprocating movements. This aims to ascertain clear guidelines for optimal design to ensure good lubrication in engine piston rings.
Figure 1. A device for testing lubrication of reciprocating movements measures friction and lubrication states in piston rings during reciprocating motion.
Figure 1. A device for testing lubrication of reciprocating movements measures friction and lubrication states in piston rings during reciprocating motion.
(2)  Stress states of mechanical parts under elasto-hydrodynamic lubrication

Related instructor(s): Katsumi IWAMOTO
Outline: This research aims to ascertain guidelines for optimal design of respective mechanical parts by investigating stress states within materials with relative slipping that are under elasto-hydrodynamic lubrication and where high pressure is generated in oil films such as in roller bearings and gears.
(3) 

Numerical analysis of lubricant film flow phenomena using a particle method
Related instructor(s): Kentaro TANAKA
Outline: This research clarifies the flow phenomena in extremely thin lubricant films of a few nanometers in thickness (nano: 10-9m) using a particle method (MPS: Moving particle semi-implicit method). (A hard disk, for instance, the main memory device in a computer, has an approximately 2-nanometer thick lubricant film applied to it.)
Figure 2. Flow in 5-nm thick fluorine lubricant film
Figure 2. Flow in 5-nm thick fluorine lubricant film
(4) 

Lubricant design from the molecular scale using molecular simulations

Related instructor(s): Kentaro TANAKA
Outline: The physical properties of lubricant oils are predicted using molecular simulations (a method of molecular dynamics). In future the research aims to design and select lubricant molecules from their molecular structure.
Figure 3. Lubricant molecule on substrate. Unevenly distributed the molecules are sparsely spread.
Figure 3. Lubricant molecule on substrate. Unevenly distributed the molecules are sparsely spread.
(5) 

Developing a device to measure frictional vibration

Related instructor(s): Kentaro TANAKA
Outline: This research furthers the development of a device that measures frictional vibration during rapid sliding (up to 10 m/s) quickly and at high resolution. This research would like to clarify the influence that factors such as lubricant molecule type and thickness have on frictional vibration.
Figure 4. Testing device under development. Frictional vibrations being measured with a Laser Doppler Vibrometer and a high-resolution capacitive displacement meter.
Figure 4. Testing device under development. Frictional vibrations being measured with a Laser Doppler Vibrometer and a high-resolution capacitive displacement meter.
Principal current topics for master’s theses:

Stress analysis of bearing surfaces via elasto-hydrodynamic lubrication theory
Lubrication status of piston rings
Influence of thin film lubricants on the stability of frictional vibrations
Design of marine structures factoring in fluid shock
Simulation of microfilm lubricant flow using a particle method

Applied Mechanics and Tribology Laboratory Industrial Materials Laboratory Energy Conversion Laboratory Mechanical Design Laboratory Systems Applied Physics Laboratory
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