Multidimensional Study on the Wear of High-Speed, High-Temperature, Heavy-Load Bearings

The friction and wear performance of high-performance bearings directly affects the accuracy and maneuverability of weapons and equipment. In this study, high-speed, high-temperature, and heavy-load durability experiments of weapon bearings were carried out, and their wear properties (i.e., surface wear, metamorphic layer, scanning electron microscopy/energy-dispersive spectroscopy (SEM/EDS), residual stress, and retained austenite) were analyzed in multiple dimensions. The results showed the following: (1) The experimental temperature of the serviced front-end bearing is always lower than that of the rear bearing. (2) The metamorphic layer of the serviced rear bearing (i.e., inner ring, outer ring, rolling body, and cage) > the metamorphic layer of the serviced front-end bearing > the metamorphic layer of the unserviced bearing. (3) The rolling body of the rear bearing at high experimental temperatures contains not only elemental O, but also elemental P and Sr. (4) In the EDS analysis of the rolling elements, with the migration from the “ball edge” to the “ball center”, the elemental C in the rolling elements of serviced or unserviced bearings decreases slowly, while the elemental Fe content increases slowly.