DrLucaBiancofiore

Summary

I'm a Junior Research Fellow of the Tribology group. My research has the aim to shed light on the complex mechanisms that govern lubrication in order to address the need to e.g. (i) extend bearings‟ life to save energy and (ii) optimise the design of biomedical implants for improved healthcare.. Fluids are often introduced to reduce friction between moving solid contact surfaces byforming a lubricant film. Two regimes arise when a full film forms between the surfaces: (i) hydrodynamic lubrication (HL) and (ii) elastohydrodynamic lubrication (EHL). EHL occurs under extreme conditions, such as high pressures, when the deformations of the solid surfaces have to be considered. As a result, although EHL often plays a significant role inadvanced technological applications, such as automotive, biomedical devices, renewableand oil and gas, many of its fundamental aspects are yet to be unravelled. Due to the impossibility to visualise the evolution of very thin films forming between surfaces moving at large speeds and subjected to high pressures, experiments cannot answer many of the questions that researchers have posed for more than a century. Hence, the development of accurate fluid models for lubrication is of major interest. However, the models traditionally favoured by researchers have structural deficiencies, which hinder accurate predictions of the EHL film behaviour. A step-change in both the approach and the methodologies adopted to tackle lubricatedcontact problems is needed to reach the ambitious goal of understanding the fluid dynamics of EHL. My cross-disciplinary research aims to fulfil this need by developing analytical and numerical tools which will be able to unravel the complex physics responsiblefor the subtleties of EHL and to produce predictive models for lubricant failures and friction reduction. I'm currently collaboratoing with key academic and industrial partners. 

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