Product category:
Bearings and guideways - rotary and linear
News Release from: NSK UK | Subject: SPACEA series of bearings
Edited by the Manufacturingtalk Editorial
Team on 06 December 2002
Solid lubricant ups vacuum bearing life
10 times
Two new bearing types for use in vacuum feature solid lubricant technology enabling their use at atmospheric pressures down to 10-10Pa and temperatures up to 350degC.
NSK has continued the development of its high-tech SPACEA series of bearings, with the introduction of two new bearing types for use in vacuum environments at atmospheric pressures down to 10-10Pa and temperatures up to 350degC The bearings use an innovative solid lubricant technology
This article was originally published on Manufacturingtalk on 30 Apr 2004 at 8.00am (UK)
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One design employs a MoS2 (molybdenum disulphide) cage, which extends the operating life in demanding vacuum applications by as much as ten times compared to conventional bearings.
The new SPACEA bearings are available in Self Lubricating Cage and Spacer Joint types.
Both designs offering higher temperature and improved life performance in applications such as robotics, vacuum pumps, sputtering equipment, solar cell manufacturing, robotics, hard disk manufacture, liquid crystal display and semiconductor production.
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The bearings are designed to offer graduated performance in terms of their operating pressure and temperature.
Self-Lubricating cage types are designed to function at temperatures up to 200degC at both normal pressure and vacuum down to 10-7Pa.
Spacer Joint types expand this performance envelope; they operate at extended temperatures up to 350degC and at normal atmospheric pressures down to 10-10Pa.
The specification of the self-lubricating cage design bearings comprises inner and outer rings and balls of high performance martensitic stainless steel, with protective shields in austenitic stainless steel.
The cage material employed, MoS2, is preferred not only for its lubrication performance, but also for its low outgassing volume and the fact that it does not emit high polymer gas.
As a lubrication medium in vacuum it excels.
The material transfers from the cage to the balls, coating the parts in sliding contact.
This action ensures the lowest frictional co-efficient and the highest resistance to wear.
As a result, bearing life is at least ten times longer than that of conventional bearings used in vacuum environments.
For operation in vacuum at even higher temperatures the SPACEA range provides a bearing design that integrates spacer joints positioned between stainless steel balls.
This arrangement overcomes the problems of high temperature environments - as encountered with vacuum deposition and plasma CVD equipment, with the added benefits of extended maintenance-free performance and longer operating life.
The long life performance of the bearings is achieved due to the steady supply of lubricant - a sintered molybdenum disulphide material, provided by the spacer joint.
This ensures added durability in high temperature atmospheric conditions - up to six times longer compared to bearings using solid lubricant paste.
In addition, the lubricant demonstrates minimal outgassing performance, eliminating concerns over pollution when used in sensitive production processes. Request a free brochure from NSK UK ...
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