Role of protein concentration on transient film thickness in synovial fluid lubricated joints

A computational model of protein aggregation lubrication has been developed for predicting transient behaviour in lubricated prosthetics. The model uses an advection-diffusion equation to simulate protein transport in order to map concentration changes throughout the contact and inlet zones of an elasto-hydrodynamic contact. Concentration increases lead to exponential increase in fluid viscosity giving rise to lubricating film thicknesses an order of magnitude larger than would be expected using conventional elasto-hydrodynamic theory. The model parameters have been calibrated such that good agreement in transient film thickness is achieved with observed experimental results.