UNIT V

BEARINGS
Sliding contact
Types of Sliding Contact Bearings
The sliding contact bearings in which the sliding action is guided in a straight line and carrying
radial loads may be called slipper or guide bearings. Such type of bearings are usually found in
cross-head of steam engines.

The sliding contact bearings in which the sliding action is along the circumference of a circle or
an arc of a circle and carrying radial loads are known as journal or sleeve bearings. When the
angle of contact of the bearing with the journal is 360° then the bearing is called
a full journal bearing. This type of bearing is commonly used in industrial machinery to
accommodate bearing loads in any radial direction.

Properties of Sliding Contact Bearing Materials

When the journal and the bearings are having proper lubrication i.e. there is a film of clean,
non-corrosive lubricant in between, separating the two surfaces in contact, the only requirement
of the bearing material is that they should have sufficient strength and rigidity. However, the
conditions which bearings must operate in service are generally far from ideal and thus the other
properties as discussed below must be considered in selecting the best material.

1. Compressive strength. The maximum bearing pressure is considerably greater than the
average pressure obtained by dividing the load to the projected area. Therefore the bearing
material should have high compressive strength to withstand this maximum pressure so as to
prevent extrusion or other permanent deformation of the bearing.

2. Fatigue strength. The bearing material should have sufficient fatigue strength so that it can
withstand repeated loads without developing surface fatigue cracks. It is of major importance in
aircraft and automotive engines.

3. Comformability. It is the ability of the bearing material to accommodate shaft deflections

and bearing inaccuracies by plastic deformation (or creep) without excessive wear and heating.

4. Embeddability. It is the ability of bearing material to accommodate (or embed) small

particles of dust, grit etc., without scoring the material of the journal.

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5. Bondability. Many high capacity bearings are made by bonding one or more thin layers of a
bearing material to a high strength steel shell. Thus, the strength of the bond i.e. bondability is an
important consideration in selecting bearing material.

6. Corrosion resistance. The bearing material should not corrode away under the action of
lubricating oil. This property is of particular importance in internal combustion engines where
the same oil is used to lubricate the cylinder walls and bearings. In the cylinder, the lubricating
oil comes into contact with hot cylinder walls and may oxidise and collect carbon deposits from
the walls.

7. Thermal conductivity. The bearing material should be of high thermal conductivity so as to

permit the rapid removal of the heat generated by friction.

8. Thermal expansion. The bearing material should be of low coefficient of thermal expansion,
so that when the bearing operates over a wide range of temperature, there is no undue change in
the clearance. All these properties as discussed above are, however, difficult to find in any
particular bearing material. The various materials are used in practice, depending upon the
requirement of the actual service conditions. The choice of material for any application must
represent a compromise.

Rolling contact bearings

In rolling contact bearings, the contact between the bearing surfaces is rolling instead of sliding
as in sliding contact bearings. We have already discussed that the ordinary sliding bearing starts
from rest with practically metal-to-metal contact and has a high coefficient of friction.

It is an outstanding advantage of a rolling contact bearing over a sliding bearing that it has a low
starting friction. Due to this low friction offered by rolling contact bearings, these are called
antifriction bearings.

Types of Rolling Contact Bearings

Following are the two types of rolling contact bearings:
1. Ball bearings; and 2. Roller bearings.

The ball and roller bearings consist of an inner race which is mounted on the shaft or journal
and an outer race which is carried by the housing or casing. In between the inner and outer race,
there are balls or rollers A number of balls or rollers are used and these are held at

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proper distances by retainers so that they do not touch each other. The retainers are thin strips
and is usually in two parts which are assembled after the balls have been properly spaced. The
ball bearings are used for light loads and the roller bearings are used for heavier loads.

Thrust Ball Bearings

The thrust ball bearings are used for carrying thrust loads exclusively and at speeds below 2000
r.p.m. At high speeds, centrifugal force causes the balls to be forced out of the races. Therefore at
high speeds, it is recommended that angular contact ball bearings should be used in place of
thrust ball bearings.

Select a single row deep groove ball bearing for a radial load of 4000 N and an axial load of
5000 N, operating at a speed of 1600 r.p.m. for an average life of 5 years at 10 hours per
day. Assume uniform and steady load.

Hydrodynamic Lubricated Bearings

We have already discussed that in hydrodynamic bearings, there is a thick film of lubricant
between the journal and the bearing. A little consideration will show that when the bearing is
supplied with sufficient lubricant, a pressure is build up in the clearance space when the journal
is rotating about an axis that is eccentric with the bearing axis.
The load can be supported by this fluid pressure without any actual contact between the journal
and bearing.

The load carrying ability of a hydrodynamic bearing arises simply because a viscous fluid resists
being pushed around. Under the proper conditions, this resistance to motion will develop a
pressure distribution in the lubricant film that can support a useful load. The load supporting
pressure in hydrodynamic bearings arises from either

1. the flow of a viscous fluid in a converging channel (known as wedge film lubrication), or
2. the resistance of a viscous fluid to being squeezed out from between approaching surfaces

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(known as squeeze film lubrication).
Assumptions in Hydrodynamic Lubricated Bearings
The following are the basic assumptions used in the theory of hydrodynamic lubricated
bearings:
1. The lubricant obeys Newton's law of viscous flow.
2. The pressure is assumed to be constant throughout the film thickness.
3. The lubricant is assumed to be incompressible.
4. The viscosity is assumed to be constant throughout the film.
5. The flow is one dimensional, i.e. the side leakage is neglected.
Important Factors for the Formation of Thick Oil Film in Hydrodynamic
Lubricated Bearings

According to Reynolds, the following factors are essential for the formation of a thick film of oil
in hydrodynamic lubricated bearings :
1. A continuous supply of oil.
2. A relative motion between the two surfaces in a direction approximately tangential to the
surfaces.
3. The ability of one of the surfaces to take up a small inclination to the other surface in the
direction of the relative motion.
4. The line of action of resultant oil pressure must coincide with the line of action of the
external load between the surfaces.

Design a journal bearing for a centrifugal pump from the following data : Load on the journal = 20
000 N; Speed of the journal = 900 r.p.m.; Type of oil is SAE 10, for which the absolute viscosity at
55°C = 0.017 kg/m-s; Ambient temperature of oil = 15.5°C; Maximum bearing pressure for the
pump = 1.5 N/mm. Calculate also mass of the lubricating oil required for artificial cooling, if rise of
temperature of oil be limited to 10°C. Heat dissipation coefficient = 1232 W/m/°C.

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A full journal bearing of 50 mm diameter and 100 mm long has a bearing pressure of 1.4
N/mm. The speed of the journal is 900 r.p.m. and the ratio of journal diameter to the
diametral clearance is 1000. The bearing is lubricated with oil whose absolute viscosity at
the operating temperature of 75°C may be taken as 0.011 kg/m-s. The room temperature is
35°C. Find : 1. The amount of artificial cooling required, and 2. The mass of the lubricating
oil required, if the difference between the outlet and inlet temperature of the oil is 10°C.
Take specific heat of the oil as 1850 J/kg/°C.[

Sommerfeld Number
The Sommerfeld number is also a dimensionless parameter used extensively in the design of
journal bearings. Mathematically,

A footstep bearing supports a shaft of 150 mm diameter which is counter- bored at the end
with a hole diameter of 50 mm. If the bearing pressure is limited to 0.8 N/mm and the speed
is 100 r.p.m.; find : 1. The load to be supported; 2. The power lost in friction; and 3.The
heat generated at the bearing. Assume coefficient of friction = 0.015.

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Raimondi and boyd method

The objective knowledge required for designing full journal bearings for the maximum load (W)
and the minimum friction (f) is collected from the following sources: Raimondi and Boyd,
Standard Handbook of Machine design- Shigley, Orthewein, Juvinall and Design data book –
PSG. The values of h0/C taking film rupture into account for full journal bearings at L/D = 0.25,
0.5, 1 and are given by Raimondi and Boyd [4, 5] or can be obtained from Shigley’s Chart as
shown in Figure 3. The data here is taken from Design Data book PSG [7]. The desired values of
all the performance variables can be found by applying it in Equation 6 given by Raimondi and
Boyd:

Expert Knowledge-Base System For Computer Aided Design of Full Hydrodynamic Journal
Bearing

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Sommerfield number (bearing characteristics number) S

 Minimum film thickness ratio h0/C

 Attitude Angle i.e. angle at which minimum film thickness is attained Φ

 Friction coefficient variable f(r/C)

 Total bearing flow rate variable Q/rCNL

 The ratio of side flow rate (in z-direction) to the total flow rate QS/Q

 Average to maximum pressure ratio P/Pmax

 Position of maximum pressure(in degree) θpmax

 Termination of pressure wave angle (in degree) θp0

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 Dimensionless temperature rise variable ρCΔT/P

A shaft rotating at constant speed is subjected to variable load. The bearings supporting
the shaft are subjected to stationary equivalent radial load of 3 kN for 10 per cent of time, 2
kN for 20 per cent of time, 1 kN for 30 per cent of time and no load for remaining time of
cycle. If the total life expected for the bearing is 20 × 10 revolutions at 95 per cent
reliability, calculate dynamic load rating of the ball bearing.

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Select a single row deep groove ball bearing with the operating cycle listed below, which
will have a life of 15 000 hours.

Assume radial and axial load factors to be 1.0 and 1.5 respectively and inner race rotates.

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A wall bracket supports a plummer block for 80 mm diameter shaft. The length of bearing
is 120 mm. The cap of bearing is fastened by means of four bolts, two on each side of the
shaft. The cap is to withstand a load of 16.5 kN. The distance between the centre lines of the
bolts is 150 mm. Determine the thickness of the bearing cap and the diameter of the bolts.
Assume safe stresses in tension for the material of the cap, which is cast iron, as 15 MPa
and for bolts as 35 MPa. Also check the deflection of the bearing cap taking E = 110
kN/mm.

Selection of Rolling Contact bearings.

Rolling contact bearing Rolling contact bearings are also called anti-friction bearing due to its
low friction characteristics. These bearings are used for radial load, thrust load and combination
of thrust and radial load. These bearings are extensively used due to its relatively lower price,
being almost maintenance free and for its operational ease. However, friction increases at high
speeds for rolling contact bearings and it may be noisy while running. These bearings are of two
types, Ball bearing A typical ball bearing .

The figure shown on the right side, with nomenclature, is the schematic representation of the
actual bearing.

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Spherical Roller Bearing A spherical roller bearing, has self aligning property. It is mainly used
for heavy axial loads. However, considerable amount of loads in either direction can also be
applied.

Taper Roller Bearing

A taper roller bearing and its nomenclature are above. It is generally used for simultaneous heavy
radial load and heavy axial load.

Roller bearings has more contact area than a ball bearing, therefore, they are generally used for
heavier loads than the ball bearings.

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The rolling contact ball bearing are to be selected to support the overhung countershaft.
The shaft speed is 720 r.p.m. The bearings are to have 99% reliability corresponding to a
life of 24 000 hours. The bearing is subjected to an equivalent radial load of 1 kN. Consider
life adjustment factors for operating condition and material as 0.9 and 0.85 respectively.
Find the basic dynamic load rating of the bearing from manufacturer's catalogue, specified
at 90% reliability.

A single row angular contact ball bearing number 310 is used for an axial flow compressor.
The bearing is to carry a radial load of 2500 N and an axial or thrust load of 1500 N.
Assuming light shock load, determine the rating life of the bearing.

A journal bearing is proposed for a steam engine. The load on the journal is 3 kN, diameter
50 mm, length 75 mm, speed 1600 r.p.m., diametral clearance 0.001 mm, ambient
temperature 15.5°C. Oil SAE 10 is used and the film temperature is 60°C. Determine the
heat generated and heat dissipated. Take absolute viscosity of SAE10 at 60°C = 0.014 kg/m-
s.[Ans. 141.3 J/s; 25 J/s]

A 100 mm long and 60 mm diameter journal bearing supports a load of 2500 N at 600
r.p.m. If the room temperature is 20°C, what should be the viscosity of oil to limit the
bearing surface temperature to 60°C? The diametral clearance is 0.06 mm and the energy
dissipation coefficient based on projected area of bearing is 210 W/m /°C.[Ans. 0.0183
kg/m-s]

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Design a suitable journal bearing for a centrifugal pump from the following available data
: Load on the bearing = 13.5 kN; Diameter of the journal = 80 mm; Speed = 1440 r.p.m.;
Bearing characterisitic number at the working temperature (75°C) = 30; Permissible
bearing pressure intensity = 0.7 N/mm to 1.4 N/mm; Average atmospheric temperature =
30°C. Calculate the cooling requirements, if any.

Design a journal bearing for a centrifugal pump running at 1440 r.p.m. The diameter of
the journal is 100 mm and load on each bearing is 20 kN. The factor ZN/p may be taken as
28 for centrifugal pump bearings. The bearing is running at 75°C temperature and the
atmosphere temperaturic is 30°C. The energy dissipation coefficient is 875 W/m /°C. Take
diametral clearance as 0.1 mm.

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