Further Study of the Effect of Water Vapor on Slider Air Bearing

It has been proved that water vapor in moist air contributes to slider air-bearing pressure in a totally different way from dry air. It is a very good first order approximation to take a constant water vapor pressure inside and outside the interface. The simulated slider flying height and attitude in moist air are different from that in dry air and the higher the relative humidity the bigger the difference. This work is a further study of the effect of water vapor on slider air bearing. In this paper, the effect of slider air-bearing pressure on the saturated water vapor pressure is explained. The adsorbed water film thickness on slider and disk surfaces as a function of relative humidity at different temperatures is calculated. The effects of slider air-bearing pressure, temperature, slider-disk spacing, and relative humidity on the water vapor pressure in slider-disk interface are studied. An empirical equation is developed for the calculation of accurate water vapor pressure distribution in slider-disk interface.