COMPARATIVE EVALUATION OF CLEANING METHODS FOR AVIATION MINIATURE ROLLING BEARINGS

Abstract

The results of the granulometric and chemical composition of the removed contaminant particles from ball bearings by the non-separable pulse-magnetic turbulent and ultrasonic methods are presented. The removed contaminants from aircraft ball bearings of two standard sizes 24×12×6 mm and 28×12×7 mm, were studied using a laser scanning microscope and a scanning electron microscope REM-106I. The analysis of the microparticles from the rolling path of the ball bearings showed contaminants such as non-metallic particles, steel chips and dust, copper alloy chips, organic fibres, and lubricant residues. The particle size analysis showed that particles of less than 1 micron to 50 microns were removed from the rolling path. Comparative experiments have shown that the magnetic turbulence method allows for more efficient removal of contaminant particles much larger than 1–2 microns. The ultrasonic method showed the highest efficiency on the smallest contaminants.