Research on Improving the Tribological Properties of Bearings under Cryogenic Conditions

Bearings, as one of the most central components of rotating equipment, are widely used both in servo steering gear, aerospace and other fields. However, for extremely cryogenic conditions, the life of bearings is low, so it is necessary to carry out the tribological design of bearings to improve its cryogenic performance. In this paper, four kinds of optimized and improved plain bearings are designed. The tribological tests of these four bearings under extreme cryogenic working conditions were carried out using the developed bearing simulation test rig. The results show that under the same load and rotational speed conditions, the preparation of micro-weave structure on the surface of the shaft tile or the preparation of composite coating on the surface of the journal can improve the friction and wear performance of the bearings to a certain extent. When both methods are used at the same time, the friction reduction and anti-friction wear effect of the sliding bearing is better. This study not only provides theoretical guidance and technical support for improving the cryogenic tribological performance of bearings, but also has important practical significance for the future development of rotating equipment in the low-temperature field.