Progression of Surface Damage in Rolling Contact Fatigue.

Abstract : Deep groove 6309 ball bearings were tested under heavy load in MIL-L-23699 lubricant using an ultraclean closed loop recirculating lubrication system in which the only metallic wearing component was the test bearing. A limited amount of Ferrographic analysis on the oil samples obtained from these tests has not established a definite correlation between Ferrogram readings and bearing failure progression. The discrimination of the Shock Pulse Analyzer (MEPA) to differentiate between a failed and non-failed bearing was confirmed. The shock value increased from 500 or less on a running bearing to 1000 or more on a failed bearing. (Modified author abstract)