Review of the damage mechanism in wind turbine gearbox bearings under rolling contact fatigue

doi:10.1007/s11465-018-0474-1

Front. Mech. Eng.

2019, Vol. 14

Issue (4) : 434-441 https://doi.org/10.1007/s11465-018-0474-1

REVIEW ARTICLE

Review of the damage mechanism in wind turbine gearbox bearings under rolling contact fatigue

Yun-Shuai SU¹, Shu-Rong YU¹(

), Shu-Xin LI^1,²(

), Yan-Ni HE¹

¹. School of PetroChemical Engineering, Lanzhou University of Techno-logy, Lanzhou 730050, China
². School of Mechanical Engineering and Mechanics, Ningbo University, Ningbo 315211, China

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Abstract

Wind turbine gearbox bearings fail with the service life is much shorter than the designed life. Gearbox bearings are subjected to rolling contact fatigue (RCF) and they are observed to fail due to axial cracking, surface flaking, and the formation of white etching areas (WEAs). The current study reviewed these three typical failure modes. The underlying dominant mechanisms were discussed with emphasis on the formation mechanism of WEAs. Although numerous studies have been carried out, the formation of WEAs remains unclear. The prevailing mechanism of the rubbing of crack faces that generates WEAs was questioned by the authors. WEAs were compared with adiabatic shear bands (ASBs) generated in the high strain rate deformation in terms of microstructural compositions, grain refinement, and formation mechanism. Results indicate that a number of similarities exist between them. However, substantial evidence is required to verify whether or not WEAs and ASBs are the same matters.

Keywords rolling contact fatigue (RCF) white etching area (WEA) white etching crack (WEC) adiabatic shear band (ASB)

Corresponding Author(s): Shu-Rong YU,Shu-Xin LI

Just Accepted Date: 01 November 2017 Online First Date: 01 December 2017 Issue Date: 02 December 2019

Cite this article:

Yun-Shuai SU,Shu-Rong YU,Shu-Xin LI, et al. Review of the damage mechanism in wind turbine gearbox bearings under rolling contact fatigue[J]. Front. Mech. Eng., 2019, 14(4): 434-441.

URL:

https://academic.hep.com.cn/fme/EN/10.1007/s11465-018-0474-1
https://academic.hep.com.cn/fme/EN/Y2019/V14/I4/434

Fig.1 The origin of the surface crack in the rotating bending fatigue

Fig.2 Crack originating at an inclusion in the rotating bending fatigue

Fig.3 Surface-initiated crack. (a) Surface cracking in the RCF; (b) section appearance in pure rolling, reprinted from Ref. [17] with permission from the International Journal of Fatigue; (c) cracking in wear tests, reprinted from Ref. [18] with permission from the Journal of Materials Engineering and Performance; (d) pits in the RCF sample

Fig.4 (a) White bands orientated at 20^o–35^o or 80^o with respect to the surface, reprinted from Ref. [20] with permission from the Tribology Transactions; (b) WEA in the subsurface, reprinted from Ref. [21] with permission from the Tribology Letters

Fig.5 The shear stress variation with the depth under various coefficient of frictions

Fig.6 WEAs in a bearing, reprinted from Ref. [44] with permission from the Tribology Transactions

Fig.7 ASBs in various materials. (a) and (b) ASBs in AISI 52100 of our study, reprinted from Ref. [48] with permission from the Materials Science and Engineering: A; (c) ASB in Ti-3Al-5Mo-4.5V reprinted from Ref. [49] with permission from the Materials Science and Engineering: A; (d) ASB of Ti-6Al-4V reprinted from Ref. [50] with permission from the Materials Characterization

Fig.8 (a) and (b) Grain refinement in the matrix next to the WEA, reprinted from Ref. [40] with permission from the Wear; (c) and (d) grain refinement in the ASBs, reprinted from Ref. [48] with permission from the Materials Science and Engineering: A

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