SPECIAL ISSUE PAPER 191

Investigations on power losses in high-speed gears

Y Diab, F Ville , and P Velex
Laboratoire de Mécanique des Contacts et des Solides (LaMCoS), UMR CNRS-INSA No. 5514, Villeurbanne Cedex,
France

The manuscript was received on 29 August 2005 and was accepted after revision for publication on 13 January 2006.

DOI: 10.1243/13506501JET136

Abstract: Power losses in high-speed gears come from the friction between the teeth (sliding
and rolling), the lubrication process (dip or jet lubrication), the pumping of a gas – lubricant
mixture during the meshing, and the losses associated with windage effects. The authors have
developed different approaches to analyse the contribution of each power loss source, namely:

(a) the windage losses based on simplified air flow models neglecting the influence of the
lubricant, which compare well with the experimental evidence from a specific test bench;
(b) an original model of gas trapping in the intertooth time-varying spaces, which has been
validated using the experimental findings on a spur gear test rig in which pressure transdu-
cers have been placed at the bottom of the space between two teeth;
(b) tooth friction, by introducing into a three-dimensional dynamic model of gears a new
traction law based on measurements from a two-disc machine which accounts for lubricant
properties and surface finish.

The combination of the three models allows for the prediction of gear efficiency over a wide
range of speeds and loads for jet-lubricated geared units. This approach also makes it possible to
improve tooth geometry and gearbox design to minimize power losses and heat generation. The
procedure is illustrated in several industrial applications.

Keywords: tooth friction, windage, pumping, gears, gear dynamics, power losses, lubrication

1 INTRODUCTION are briefly presented and commented upon; an out-

It is generally accepted that the total power loss in
gears can be broken down into the contributions of
friction between the teeth, lubrication (churning
and/or jet lubrication which could induce gas –oil
trapping in intertooth spaces), and gear windage
effects. Despite its practical importance, the predic-
tion of power losses in geared systems has only
received limited attention and the literature on this
subject is rather sparse; most papers report mainly
experimental evidence and few models enable
quantitative evaluation of the various power loss
sources. The approaches developed by the authors

Corresponding author: Laboratoire de Mécanique des Contacts et
des Solides (LaMCoS), UMR CNRS-INSA No. 5514, Bât. Jean
d’Alembert, 20 av. A. Einstein, 69621 Villeurbanne Cedex, France.
email: fabrice.ville@insa-lyon.fr
line of the basic principles and experimental assess-
ment of windage, air trapping, and tooth friction loss
models are provided. Further details concerning the
different models can be found in the authors’
papers referenced in the bibliography. Finally, the
models are applied to two different gear trans-
missions to prove the feasibility and the interest of
the proposed methodology in an industrial context.
2 GEAR WINDAGE LOSSES [1]
One of the main causes of power losses in high-speed
(HS) gears (with tangential speeds .90– 120 m/s) is
due to fluid circulation around gears in an air –oil
mixture. Following the earlier papers by Dawson
[2], Anderson and Loewenthal [3], the authors have
developed several approaches for the prediction of
windage losses [1] comprising the following.

JET136 # IMechE 2006 Proc. IMechE Vol. 220 Part J: J. Engineering Tribology
192 Y Diab, F Ville, and P Velex
1. A dimensional analysis based upon the dimen-
sionless groups of terms that account for the
flow and fluid characteristics (viscosity and den-
sity), the gear geometry (tooth number, pitch
diameter, and face width), and the kinematics
(rotational speed). The different coefficients in
the dimensionless groups of terms have been
obtained from a wide range of tests on the
experimental apparatus specifically developed
for this study.
2. A quasi-analytical model simulating in a simpli-
fied manner the fluid flows on the gear faces and
inside the teeth.
The results of the two modelling methods have
been compared with the experimental results
obtained from the test rig shown in Fig. 1, which con-
sists of a 3 kW electric motor operating a shaft on two
high-precision preloaded ceramic ball bearings via a
friction wheel. The tested gear (or disc) is mounted at
one free end of the shaft, and the other free end is
used for speed measaurements by means of axial
slots. Once maximal speed is reached, the rotating
shaft and gear system are disconnected from the
power supply by a pneumatic jack, which removes
the motor-friction wheel assembly. Speed is
measured by a magnetic probe that counts the
impulses generated by the rotation of the slots.
Power loss is derived from the time variation of
speed by applying the kinetic energy theorem. The
results in Figs 2 and 3 have been obtained for a
disc and four different spur gears, whose character-
istics are listed in Table 1. The agreement between
the experimental results and the formulae from the
dimensional analysis and the fluid flow simulation
is very good (the relative deviation does not exceed
14 per cent).
Fig. 1
Proc. IMechE Vol. 220 Part J: J. Engineering Tribology
3 POWER LOSSES BY AIR PUMPING [4]
In the geared transmissions, tooth lubrication is
necessary to cool surfaces and to reduce friction.
However, during the meshing of HS spur or helical
gears, the mixture of air and lubricant is successively
compressed and expanded in the intertooth spaces
giving rise to significant heating and power loss.
During the time period in which a tooth first crosses
the addendum cylinder and proceeds to fill up most
of the volume between the teeth, a fraction of the air
and the lubricant in the tooth space is expelled out of
the gear. The time duration of a mesh period in
turbo-machinery is extremely short and the air –
lubricant mixture can be significantly compressed
and heated. This is followed by a suction effect
when the intertooth volume increases as the mesh-
ing teeth start to separate. The total loss corresponds
to the energy exchanged with the external environ-
ment for both the compression and the suction
phases.
3.1 Model definition
The modelling principles rely on (a) the simul-
taneous resolution of the equation of continuity
combined with the first principle of thermodynamics
applied to open systems, (b) the discretization of the
time-varying intertooth volumes, and (c) the accu-
rate analysis of the geometry of the meshing parts
to determine the flow areas and the associated leak
surfaces. The spaces between the teeth are sliced
into a number of finite volumes or pockets with con-
stant thermodynamic properties, connected by
either radial or axial exchange surfaces called
canals. During the meshing process, every pocket is
idealized as a piston. In the case of spur gears, the
Test rig
JET136 # IMechE 2006
 Power losses in high-speed gears
Fig. 2 Comparisons between the experimental results
and the results from the dimensional analysis
for the four gears
positions of the pistons at one given time are identi-
cal for all the discrete pockets along the face width of
one given tooth pair in mesh. In contrast, helical
gears are decomposed into a series of staggered
thin spur gears with the positions of the pistons
depending on the axial position to simulate the
more progressive intertooth volume variations
(Fig. 4). At every time step, an Euler method (predic-
tor) and a Newton – Raphson scheme (corrector) are
successively applied to all individual pockets.
Fig. 3 Comparisons between the experimental results
and the results from the fluid flow analysis for
the four gears
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193
3.2 Experimental validation
The numerical results have been compared with the
experimental findings of Houjoh et al. [5] obtained
on a test bench in which the instantaneous pressures
within intertooth volumes were measured. For a spur
gear and several helical gears, measurements have
been taken at several locations across the width. In
this paper, the comparisons in Fig. 5 are limited to
the spur gear example and the pressure variations
at the tooth midface; the results for helical gears
are given in reference [4]. A good agreement is
observed thus validating the proposed model of gas
pumping by the meshing teeth.
3.3 Calculation of the power loss
The corresponding power loss is illustrated in Fig. 6,
which shows the averaged power loss over one mesh
period versus speed. A strong dependency on speed
is found, as power loss is approximately proportional
to the speed to the power 2.8. The helix angle appears
as a first-order parameter, although no influence of
load has been observed, indicating that gear set
efficiency deteriorates as speed increases.
4 POWER LOSSES DUE TO TOOTH FRICTION IN
GEARS [6]
Sliding friction between the teeth is recognized as
one of the main sources of power loss in geared
transmissions as well as a potential source of
vibration and noise [7]. Therefore, its accurate mod-
elling is of primary importance in efficiency and
vibration analyses of mechanical transmissions. For
lubricated contacts, various empirical friction laws
based on the results from simulators can be found
in the literature. One of their limitations comes
from the specimen surface texture, which is often
different from that of actual gears. Moreover, most
of these models were established for high slide-
to-roll ratios and cannot be used for low slide-to-
roll ratios as encountered near the pitch point in
gears. The authors initially carried out friction
measurements using an elasto-hydrodynamic lubri-
cation (EHL) simulator with contact conditions and
surface finish close to those in gears, covering a
Table 1 Spur gear and disc data
Pitch diameter Tooth width
(mm) (mm) Module (mm)
Gear 1 288 30 4
Gear 2 144 30 4
Gear 3 144 60 4
Gear 4 144 60 6
Disc 300 30
Proc. IMechE Vol. 220 Part J: J. Engineering Tribology
194 Y Diab, F Ville, and P Velex

Fig. 4 Discretization of intertooth clearances

wide range of sliding/rolling conditions. A new trac-
tion law applicable to gears has been derived and
integrated in a three-dimensional dynamic model,
which makes it possible to calculate instantaneous
normal and tangential tooth loads.
out on the highly instrumented gear test rig
described in reference [8], from which the instan-
taneous total tooth friction forces can be derived.
The simulated forces are in very good agreement
with the experimental ones, as illustrated in Fig. 7.

4.1 Experimental validation

To validate the gear model and the proposed friction
law, bearing force measurements have been carried

Fig. 5 Experimental and simulated pressures at Fig. 6 Simulated power losses due to trapping (spur
various rotational speeds (spur gear) and helical gears)

Proc. IMechE Vol. 220 Part J: J. Engineering Tribology JET136 # IMechE 2006
 Power losses in high-speed gears
Fig. 7 Total friction forces at the mesh (resisting
torque: 1570 mN; pinion rotational speed:
200 r/min; spur gears; and hydrostatic bearings)
4.2 Power losses
From the instantaneous sliding velocities and fric-
tion forces at all points of contact on the mating
teeth [6], power losses can be calculated using the
gear dynamic model. It has been found that, for the
example treated, profile reliefs can significantly
influence power losses because they lead to a better
load distribution over the entire tooth surface, thus
reducing the load amplitudes and, consequently,
the friction forces in the engagement and recess
zones where sliding velocity amplitudes are signifi-
cant. Considering the average power loss (Fig. 8)
over one mesh period, a reduction of 50 per cent
Fig. 8 Influence of tip relief on power losses (resisting
torque: 1570 mN; pinion rotational speed:
200 r/min; spur gears; and hydrostatic bearings)
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195
due to profile modifications is observed, suggesting
that these can be a non-negligible parameter for
optimizing gear efficiency.
5 EVALUATION OF THE POWER LOSSES FOR
TWO DIFFERENT GEAR TRANSMISSIONS
Two application examples are considered which
illustrate the potential and interest of the modelling
procedures.
5.1 CETIM test bench
The system shown in Fig. 9 is used for measuring
power losses and analysing the fatigue life of gears.
It is a back-to-back drive comprising two identical
spur gear pairs: a slave gear for closing the kinematic
chain and a test gear. Torque is applied indepen-
dently of speed via a rotary hydraulic jack inserted
in the mechanical loop which can provide large cir-
culating powers and tooth loads with minimum
power inputs. The gear data are given in Table 2.
The two shafts are supported by two identical
double-row spherical roller bearings, the units are
splash lubricated (Mobil Gear 629, kinematic vis-
cosity of 320 st at 60 8C), and the oil temperature
inside the bench is 75 8C once thermal equilibrium
is reached.
A first series of calculations has been carried out
for an input torque of 1500 Nm and for a speed ran-
ging from 500 to 2500 r/min. First, it is observed that
the gear efficiency (or power losses) varies with speed
and that an optimal gear efficiency of 99.53 per cent
is obtained at 2000 r/min. This optimal value corre-
sponds to a total loss of 1.5 kW for a transmitted
power of 314 kW. It should be noted that the esti-
mated average torque varies between 1489 and
1493 Nm, which represents a very slight variation
(,0.2 per cent, Fig. 10). Analysing the distribution
of each power loss (windage, trapping, and friction),
it is clearly shown (Fig. 11) that .95 per cent of the
total loss is due to tooth friction. For this application,
this result is coherent because:
(a) the rotational speeds remain low (,2500 r/min
which corresponds to a tangential velocity of
52 m/s), so that windage losses are of secondary
importance (maximum of 97 W);
(b) the gears are narrow-faced (30 mm) which, com-
bined with the limited speeds, leads to negligible
power losses by gas trapping (maximum of 4 W
according to the simulations).
.
5.2 Turbo-gear set
The second example (Fig. 12) is a single-stage turbo-
gear speed reducer with high rotational speeds
Proc. IMechE Vol. 220 Part J: J. Engineering Tribology
196 Y Diab, F Ville, and P Velex

Fig. 9 Test bench

Table 2 Test bench

Number of teeth
Pinion 20
Gear 20
Face width (mm)
Pinion 30
Gear 30
Pressure angle (8) 20
Helix angle (8) 0
Module (mm) 10
Addendum coefficient 1
Profile shift coefficient 0
Dedendum coefficient 1.4 Fig. 11 Power loss distribution according to the
Surface roughness (r.m.s) (mm) 0.63 rotational speed for an input torque of 1500 Nm

(a) two shafts, denoted HS and low speed (LS), sup-

ported by four hydrodynamic journal bearings;
(input: 6643 r/min and output: 1800 r/min) and high
(b) a double-helical gear pair whose geometrical
power (55 MW which corresponds to a nominal
characteristics are given in Table 3 and which is
resisting torque on the wheel of 291 510 Nm). The
lubricated by a turbine oil (kinematic viscosity
gear characteristics are given in table 3 and the
of 32 cSt at 40 8C) injected at 50 8C by a series
gear ratio equals 3.69. This gearbox consists of:
of jets along the face width;
(c) a welded casing;
(d) a cooling power station.

Fig. 10 Gear efficiency and output torque of the CETIM

transmission according to the rotational speed
for an input torque of 1500 Nm Fig. 12 Turbo-gear reducer (55 MW)

Proc. IMechE Vol. 220 Part J: J. Engineering Tribology JET136 # IMechE 2006
 Power losses in high-speed gears 197

Table 3 Geometrical data (turbo-gear transmission)

Number of teeth
Pinion 155
Gear 42
Face width for one helix (mm)
Pinion 205
Gear 200
Pressure angle (8) 22.5
Helix angle (8) 29
Module (mm) 10
Addendum coefficient 0.83
Profile shift coefficient
Pinion 0.314
Gear 0.238
Dedendum coefficient 1.3
Surface roughness (r.m.s.) (mm) 0.63
Fig. 14 Power loss distribution according to the
rotational speed for an input torque of
79 074 Nm

gear rotational speed varying between 900 and

Fig. 13 Gear efficiency and output torque according to
the rotational speed for an input torque of
79 074 Nm
In such devices, accurate predictions of power
losses are crucial because a very small percentage
of the input power can represent several kilowatts,
which define both the cooling system and the ther-
mal behaviour of the transmission. First, the gear
efficiency and the output torque are analysed for a
1800 r/min and an input (engine) torque of
79 074 Nm (Fig. 13). It can be noticed that, contrary
to the previous example, gear efficiency decreases
as speed increases and the output torque also
decreases (reduction of almost 2 kNm when the
rotational speed is doubled). However, the associ-
ated gear efficiency reduction, which seems low
(0.5 per cent), represents 380 kW. A detailed analysis
of the power loss distribution (Fig. 14) shows a sig-
nificant increase of the proportion of windage as
speed becomes larger, which appears as the preva-
lent source of loss in the case of wide-faced HS redu-
cers (þ46 per cent when the rotational speed is
doubled). In contrast, tooth friction loss is largely
independent of speed and keeps a constant level
of 40 kW over the speed range, whereas the

Fig. 15 Maximum temperature along the face width of the wheel (wheel rotational
speed ¼ 180 r/min)

JET136 # IMechE 2006 Proc. IMechE Vol. 220 Part J: J. Engineering Tribology
198 Y Diab, F Ville, and P Velex
contribution of gas trapping represents only 3 per-
cent of the total loss (7 kW). Although trapping
losses are low, they play a potentially significant
role in the thermal distortions of the gear flanks.
Figure 15(a) represents the evolution of the maxi-
mum temperature across the face width calculated
at 1800 r/min on the gear. It is shown that there is
a temperature difference of .30 8C between the
tooth centre (i.e. between the two helices) and
points situated at about two-thirds of the width.
This phenomenon generates thermal distortions of
the teeth and makes it necessary to modify tooth
shapes in the lead direction.
6 CONCLUSION
The various modelling strategies developed by the
authors with regard to power losses in gears have
been summarized and some of the elements of vali-
dation based on experimental evidence have been
shown. Their practical interest has been illustrated
on industrial cases for which the individual sources
of dissipation have been investigated. From the
simulated results, the following conclusions can be
drawn: (a) tooth friction is the dominant cause of
power loss in LS and medium-speed gears, (b) wind-
age becomes prominent in HS wide-faced units, and
(c) in terms of power dissipation, gas trapping seems
to be of secondary importance whatever the speed
range, but its effects on tooth thermal distortions
and, consequently, on tooth shape modifications
are crucial. It has also been demonstrated that profile
relief can substantially influence the dissipation
mechanism due to tooth friction by lowering the
load on the portions of the flanks where sliding vel-
ocities are high. The latter observation suggests
Proc. IMechE Vol. 220 Part J: J. Engineering Tribology
that, apart from transmission error, tooth load distri-
bution, root stress, etc., power loss can be considered
as one more variable to be taken into consideration
in the optimum design of tooth shape modifications.
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