Search results

The purpose of this paper is to develop a new type of embedded solid self-lubricating thrust ball bearing for conditions where grease lubrication cannot be used and to analyze its tribological performance under different lubrication characteristics (lubrication position, width and filling amount).

Lubrication parameters such as position (a), width (W) and filling amount (Q) were considered. Grooves were made on the raceway with a fiber laser and solid self-lubricating materials were applied through scraping. The frictional behavior of the new bearing was analyzed using a vertical test rig and the bearing’s surface topography was examined with a noncontact profilometer to study wear mechanisms.

The new inlay thrust ball bearings exhibited excellent lubrication effects and effectively controlled the temperature rise of the bearings. When a is 0 degrees, W is 0.5 mm and Q is 16 mg, the bearing experiences the least wear, and the friction coefficient and temperature are the lowest, measuring 0.001 and 41.52 degrees, respectively. Under the same experimental conditions, compared to smooth bearings without solid lubrication, the friction coefficient decreased by 96.88% and the temperature decreased by 59.74%.

This study presents a self-lubricating thrust ball bearing designed for conditions where grease lubrication is not feasible. A comprehensive investigation was conducted on its surface morphology, wear mechanisms and tribological performance. This work provides valuable insights into the research of self-lubricating thrust ball bearings.

The peer review history for this article is available at: https://publons.com/publon/10.1108/ILT-03-2024-0073/

The purpose of this study is to produce a low-cost sheet metal forming mold made from the low melting point Bi58Sn42 (bismuth) alloy by using an open-source desktop-type material extrusion additive manufacturing system and to evaluate the performance of the additively manufactured mold for low volume sheet metal forming. Thus, it was aimed to develop a fast and inexpensive die tooling methodology for low-volume batch production.

Initially, the three-dimensional printing experiments were performed to produce the sheet metal forming mold. The encountered problems during the performed three-dimensional printing experiments were analyzed. Accordingly, both tunings in process parameters (extrusion temperature, extrusion multiplier, printing speed, infill percentage, etc.) and customizations on the extruder head of the available material extrusion additive manufacturing system were made to print the Bi58Sn42 alloy properly. Subsequently, the performance of the additively manufactured mold was evaluated according to the dimensional change that occurred on it during the performed pressing operations.

Results showed that the additively manufactured mold was rigid enough and proved to have sufficient strength in sheet metal forming operations for low-volume production.

Alternative mold production was carried out using open-source material extrusion system for low volume sheet metal part production. Thus, cost effective solution was presented for agile manufacturing.