Run-In Finishing and Tribological Performance Evaluation of Ceramic Bearings

摘要

The objective of this effort was to assist in the development of ceramic bearing technology, particularly hybrid bearings. The focus was to address major obstacles to the implementation and use of hybrid bearings. The two areas addressed were cost reduction and qualification of hybrid bearings systems. The effort was divided into three task areas: (1) The development of run-in finishing procedures to address cost reduction by finishing Si3N4 rolling elements and the steel race ways of bearing in-situ; (2) Chemical conditioning of surfaces to improve the tribological performance of hybrid contacts under boundary lubrication conditions; (3) Assessment of tribological attributes of a hybrid contact under conditions relevant to bearing operation.