Rolling Mill Bearings

Rolling mill bearings are one of the most important parts of a rolling mill. They require careful design and precision manufacturing to minimize wear and tear and provide high performance. These bearings also need to meet several maintenance requirements, such as high continuous load capacity and low coefficient of friction. A variety of designs can be used to achieve these requirements. Some of the more popular bearings include gun metal bearings, slider bearings, and oil film bearings.

Gun metal bearings have excellent bearing properties. These bearings can withstand high loads and can be machined easily. The typical composition of these bearings is a 5 % lead alloy with 85 % copper. Typically, the inner ring is made of an aluminum alloy.

Gun metal bearings are characterized by their low cost and ability to withstand high loads. However, they are susceptible to deterioration due to corrosion, cooling water, and pollutants. In addition, they may experience a low service life. This is because the amount of wear and tear is greater than in other types of bearings.

In order to decrease the chances of experiencing rolling mill bearing burnout, a new type of rolling mill bearing assembly has been introduced. The novel design eliminates the need for separate metal rolling lubricants. It also allows for large thickness reductions without sacrificing roll stiffness. Another advantage of the new bearing design is that it can be built inexpensively and quickly.

The main elements of the new bearing assembly are a radial bearing and a cage holding roller element. The radial bearing extends 180deg around the circumference of the forming roll. Ideally, it is a single element but it can be a combination of elements.

The cage holding roller element holds the roller element in a staggered fashion. There is a spiral groove on the inside of the ring bore. The groove serves as a grease reservoir. Additionally, the inner seal ring reduces inertia and provides corrosion resistance.

To ensure a long service life, the bearing needs to be properly lubricated. Generally, the lubrication needs to be made of a compound calcium sulfonate 3# grease. This grease has a strong adsorption capacity and a high strength oil film. Furthermore, it should be able to form a lubrication film that can be flood lubricated. Lastly, the lubricating oil should be carefully managed. Poor lubrication can lead to increased part surface roughness and wear on the roller unit.

Depending on the application, the bearing may be operated at high temperatures. As the temperature increases, the bearing will eventually burn. The burning of the bearing is a result of problems with the volume and temperature of the lubricating oil. Consequently, the lubricating oil will leak to the outer surface of the bearing. Eventually, the lubricating film will become damaged, resulting in an aggravated wear surface. Fortunately, this process can be avoided by using the right lubrication and a proper adsorption capacity of the grease.

One of the major reasons for the early failure of rolling mill bearings is bad working conditions. This is particularly true for cold-rolling operations. When working with cold-rolled material, the rolling mill must be designed to maximize uptime and energy efficiency. Cold rolling requires stringent material quality and high dimensional consistency.