Common lubrication faults and countermeasures of lubricating grease
The correct selection of lubricating grease is the first step in ensuring the good operation of equipment. It is also crucial to analyze the cause of the malfunction and solve the problem in a timely manner when lubrication components fail. So what are the common faults encountered during the lubrication process, and how should these problems be solved? The main consideration here is the faults caused by lubricating grease. The same fault phenomena that occur due to other reasons will not be discussed here.
Abnormal equipment temperature exceeding the limit
Phenomenon 1: When new or old equipment is replaced with new bearings, the temperature rises rapidly and high at the beginning of operation, but the temperature still exceeds the limit after running in. Fault analysis and countermeasures:
●Excessive amount of lubricating grease filling, generally only 1/2~2/3 of the bearing chamber needs to be filled with lubricating grease;
●If the viscosity of the lubricating grease base oil is too high or the viscosity of the lubricating grease is too high, it is necessary to replace the lubricating grease with a suitable viscosity;
●If the bearing speed factor (Ka × n × dm) is too large, it may be necessary to choose lubricating oil for lubrication;
●The bearing contains mechanical impurities such as particles, please replace the lubricating grease.
Phenomenon 2: The temperature rise of the bearing during normal operation is fast and high.
Fault analysis and countermeasures:
●Failure of lubricating grease in maintenance free bearings, replace with new grease;
●The cycle of adding new grease to non sealed bearings is too long, and the lubricating grease is insufficient;
●The centralized lubrication system pipeline or distributor is blocked, resulting in insufficient grease supply.
Abnormal vibration and sound of equipment
Phenomenon 1: The equipment experiences abnormal vibrations during normal operation.
Fault analysis and countermeasures:
●Insufficient lubricating grease causes micro protrusions on the contact surface to collide with each other, resulting in high-frequency impact pulse vibration, deterioration of lubrication status, and peeling off of the bearing surface;
●Improper selection of lubricating grease, extreme pressure grease and grease with suitable viscosity should be chosen;
●Lubricating grease failure and blockage of the grease supply pipeline result in interruption of grease supply.
Phenomenon 2: Irregular abnormal sounds appear.
Fault analysis and countermeasures:
●If the period and frequency of abnormal noise are irregular, it may be due to the failure of lubricating grease or the entry of impurities, and the lubricating grease should be replaced;
●If there is a certain pattern in the cycle and frequency of abnormal noise, it may be due to local damage to the bearing, and the bearing should be replaced
Damage to the rolling surface of the bearing
Phenomenon 1: Bearing wear.
Fault analysis and countermeasures:
●Excessive equipment operation load or loss of lubricating grease can cause wear on the friction surface due to boundary friction. You can choose products with high viscosity of extreme pressure grease or lubricating grease and base oil.
Phenomenon 2: Micro motion wear.
Fault analysis and countermeasures;
●When bearings are in a slow swinging and stationary state, under strong external vibrations and high loads, small indentations and metal oxide powder are generated at the load-bearing parts of the shaft. You can consider using extreme pressure grease.
Phenomenon 3: Early fatigue pitting and bonding.
Fault analysis and countermeasures:
●Oil film damage leads to early fatigue pitting or bonding. When the oil film of a medium speed running bearing is damaged, early fatigue pitting corrosion occurs under high contact stress and friction force; When the oil film of high-speed running bearings is damaged, it can cause adhesion and tearing of the bearing working surface. Extreme pressure grease or grease with high viscosity should be selected;
●The grease supply pipeline is blocked and the lubricating grease is insufficient.
Phenomenon 4: Corrosion.
Fault analysis and countermeasures:
●Lubricating grease contains metal corrosion components and should be replaced with new grease.
