Why hydrodynamic slide bearings are the best choice for gearboxes

Gearboxes are critical to the performance of many machines, from vehicles to wind turbines. Hydrodynamic slide bearings in gearboxes improve this performance by minimizing friction, extending service life and significantly increasing power density.

 

Find out how Miba slide bearings in gearboxes can achieve this.

What challenges do gearboxes have to overcome in demanding applications?

Gearboxes must function reliably in many applications under extreme conditions. Hydrodynamic slide bearings can increase the performance of gearboxes and extend the application limits in a wide range of industries.

  • Wind turbines: The main gearbox in modern wind turbines, especially in higher power classes from 3 MW, plays a decisive role in the transmission of energy from the rotor to the generator unit. These main gearboxes are equipped with planetary sets. By using Mibas slide bearings in gearboxes as planetary bearings, the installation space can be reduced and thus the power density significantly increased. 
  • Aircraft turbofans: They place high demands on the bearings installed in the gearboxes, as they have to withstand extreme temperatures and high speeds. In order to maximize the performance of the engine and minimize fuel consumption, it is therefore crucial to keep the weight of the gearbox as low as possible.
  • Turbomachinery: The biggest challenge is to effectively dampen vibrations and enable high speeds. Uncontrolled vibrations can not only impair performance but also cause considerable damage.
  • Off-Highway Vehicles: As the demands on the speed and load capacity of off-highway vehicles increase, so do the technical challenges for the bearings systems. Vehicles must transport increasingly higher loads and work faster and more efficiently in order to meet the requirements of construction, agriculture and mining. In these applications, hydrodynamic slide bearings help to enable higher loads and reduce the installation space.

What does the solution look like?

Miba relies on slide bearing technology for gearboxes. They work hydrodynamically. A lubricating film between the bearing and shaft separates the two surfaces. This reduces friction and extends the service life. You can find out more about our plain bearings on our axial and radial plain bearings product pages.

 

Wind turbines

For planetary gearsets in main gearboxes, Miba develops flexible solutions made of steel backing, bearing metal and coating. This reduces the installation space of the hydrodynamic slide bearings in the gearbox to just a few millimeters and enables higher power densities.

Aircraft turbofans

Bearing metals that can withstand the high temperatures and requirements can be applied directly to the friction surface (inner diameter of the gear wheel) by means of sputter coating. This can reduce the overall weight. 

Turbomachinery

This application utilizes Miba slide bearings in the gearboxes, which ensure high speeds, effective vibration damping and rigidity. Depending on the requirements, the bearings can be designed with tilting pads.

Off-Highway Vehicles

With the flexible bearing solution consisting of steel backing, bearing metal and coating, the installation space can be reduced to just a few millimeters, thereby achieving higher power densities.

What results do hydrodynamic slide bearings deliver in gearboxes?

The use of Miba slide bearings in various gearbox applications has achieved impressive results.

  • Wind turbines: A milestone was reached in 2019 when hydrodynamic slide bearings were successfully validated in turbine tests. Since then, they have been used in the main gearboxes of wind turbines, particularly in planetary stages of higher power classes from 3 MW. The slide bearings in gearboxes minimize the installation space, which enables smaller planetary stages and reduces the overall weight. This technology makes it possible to increase the input torque and achieve power classes of up to 20 MW, thereby reducing energy production costs.
  • Aircraft turbofans: The hydrodynamic slide bearings in the gearboxes reduce the overall weight (bearing metal applied by sputtering). This has a positive effect on fuel consumption. The coating enables a special turbine design that reduces the noise level. This allows airplanes to land at airports for longer in the evening, as the reduced noise development leads to a noticeable reduction in noise levels.
  • Turbomachinery: The use of Miba slide bearings enables peripheral speeds of up to 120 m/s. Depending on the application, the damping function and simultaneous rigidity of the bearings can lead to a significant increase in the reliability and performance of the machines.
  • Off-Highway Vehicle: Hydrodynamic slide bearing technology makes it possible to build more powerful vehicles with the same or even more compact transmission dimensions. The limits of the transmission can be shifted with little effort.

 

Overall, it can be stated that, depending on the application, hydrodynamic slide bearings can increase the performance and reliability of the systems.

Thanks to the hydrodynamic mode of operation, the bearing also enables low-maintenance use and a long service life.

 

The future of gearboxes lies in hydrodynamic slide bearing technology

Hydrodynamic slide bearings are an enormous benefit for gearbox applications in wind turbines, aircraft turbofans, turbomachinery and off-highway vehicles.

 

  • They have a long service life,
  •  reduce maintenance costs and
  •  and increase power density.

 

Thanks to their space-saving design and flexible design options, hydrodynamic slide bearings help to reduce energy costs and increase machine performance. 

 

Would you like to find out more about the advantages of our slide bearings in gearboxes? Get in touch with us. We will be happy to advise you on our flexible solutions.

Contact us now!