Modeling of Rolling Contact Friction of Ball Bearings at Elevated Temperature

In order to predict the rolling friction coefficient and analyze the effects of material compatibility on the friction coefficient at elevated temperature(from room temperature to 600℃),a theoretic computation model was developed based on bearing’s elastic contact hysteresis and related material characteristic parameters.Some examples were carried out to verify the feasibility of the model.The research results show that the material compatibility has significant effects on rolling friction coefficient,especially the modulus of elasticity and the expansion coefficient of material,and results also show the rolling friction coefficient of the matched pair between GCr15 and Si3N4 is the smallest comparing with that between GCr15 and M50(or ASP-23,or GCr15) when making GCr15,M50,ASP-23,and Si3N4 materials as bearing’s rolling balls and GCr15 material as bearing’s inner and outer rings.Further research indicates that the working temperature also has played an important role in the rolling friction coefficient of the ball bearing,moreover,the friction coefficient of the matched pair of M50 and Si3N4 behaves most stably at elevated temperature.