Bearings 101

Archived; click post to view.
Excerpt: Turbines use a wide variety of bearings. Large ones include huge 2-m diameter main-shaft bearings with two opposing rows of cylindrical rollers to handle enormous thrust and radial loads. These support the shaft that holds the hub and rotor. Slew bearings mount between nacelles and towers to let …

Spring-like discs now in 250-mm dia.

Archived; click post to view.
Excerpt: Disc Springs look like conically-shaped washers, a shape that lets them take an axial load. They can be used individually or assembled into stacks for a required deflection. Spirol Disc Springs’ performance characteristics are predictable, letting designers calculate a minimum life cycle. They …

Bearing Manufacturer Unveils Plans for U.S. Wind Energy R&D Center

Archived; click post to view.
Excerpt: Massive, precision-engineered bearings and seals like those made by The Timken Company are central to wind power production. The largest of these rolling element bearings weighs more than five tons, with an ID of nearly 2 m. Such large bearings require sophisticated measuring and testing capa …

High-capacity slewing-ring bearings featured in data sheet

Archived; click post to view.
Excerpt: The HS Series slewing ring bearings offer high load and thrust capacity for their size and are featured in a new data sheet from Kaydon Bearings Division. Outside diameters range from 20 to 47 in. (500 to 1,200 mm). Most HS sizes are available from stock and forgings are stocked for the rest. …

A few ideas for solving mechanical motion problems

Archived; click post to view.
Excerpt:   A recent Mechanical Motion Solutions brochure provides an overview of key product features and specs for the Thomson family of mechanical and electromechanical motion equipment. The brochure is available in English, French, German, Italian, Korean, Portuguese, Spanish, Swedish and Turk …

Dry lube bearing says goodbye to grease

Archived; click post to view.
Excerpt: SKF DryLube Bearings eliminates need for grease relubrication while performing reliably and almost maintenance-free over a wide temperature range. These next-generation high-temperature bearings especially suit hostile and extreme-temperature applications. SKF DryLube Bearings are filled with …

Good news for gearboxes: Roller bearing improves reliability

Archived; click post to view.
Excerpt: Separable High-Capacity Cylindrical Roller Bearings support high-speed shafts and high-speed intermediate shafts in wind turbine gearboxes. These reliable bearings have a higher load-carrying capacity and eliminate risks of roller-to-roller smearing and adhesive wear in service. Exchangeability …

Chinese OEM and U.S. bearing manufacturer team up for turbines

Archived; click post to view.
Excerpt: The Timken Company and Xinjiang Goldwind Science & Technology Co., Ltd. have signed a memorandum of long-term strategic collaboration in the United States to cooperate on a range of technical services, products, and aftermarket support for the development, supply and maintenance of advanced …

Special polyurethane improves abrasion resistance

Archived; click post to view.
Excerpt: The Timken UltraWind P1 Seal is a significant wind-turbine bearing seal with a polyurethane design that provides increased resistance to abrasion for longer wind-turbine service life and more reliable performance than most other commonly used sealing materials. “Seals have an integral role in …

Better Bearings for Wind Turbine Reliability

Archived; click post to view.
Excerpt: Replacing failed bearings in wind-power equipment is no easy task. But after 20 years of concentrated effort, bearing manufacturers have devised designs that carry loads that fluctuate with wind gusts and work well in electric fields around generators. Viewers of this Webcast will hear presenter …