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The Study of Rolling Element Bearing Faults Using Vibration Analysis
The Study of Rolling Element Bearing Faults Using Vibration Analysis
Sarawak Campus
Faculty of Engineering, Computing and
Sciences
Bachelor of Engineering
(Mechanical)
May/ 2017
Abstract
Rolling element bearings are abundant and crucial in many machines, they play an
important role in rotating machines. However, bearing failure is one of the main
reasons that cause the breakdown of rotating machines. In most cases, the cost of
bearings themselves is not significant, but the presence of faults in bearings may
result in serious catastrophic consequences which will lead to costly downtime.
Therefore, it is important to detect and identify the bearing faults in advance to avoid
any unnecessary downtime cost. This project addresses the study of diagnosing
rolling element bearing faults using vibration analysis. In this project, different types
of faults are created artificially onto the rolling element bearings and then put to the
test with Fast Fourier Transform (FFT). Analyzation of the vibration spectrums given
by the bearings is shown in this report.
i
Acknowledgement
First of all, I would like to express my deepest gratitude to everyone who has been
providing me support in completing this report. Special appreciation to Dr. Ha How
Ung who has been patiently guiding, assisting and encouraging me throughout the
time of writing this report.
Other than that I would like to thank the lab assistance, Mr Thomas, who gave me
the permission to use all the required materials and equipment to complete the report.
ii
Declaration
I hereby declare that this report entitled “The Study of Rolling Element Bearing
Faults using Vibration Analysis” is the result of my own project work except for
quotations and citations which have been duly acknowledged. I also declare that it
has not been previously or concurrently submitted by any other degree at Swinburne
University of Technology (Sarawak Campus).
ID: 7434243
iii
Table of Contents
List of Figures ............................................................................................................. vi
List of Tables.............................................................................................................. vii
1. Introduction........................................................................................................... 1
1.1 Background ................................................................................................... 1
iv
2.5.2 Ball Pass Frequency Outer Race (BPFO) ............................................. 16
2.5.3 Fundamental Train Frequency (FTF) ................................................... 16
2.5.4 Ball Spin Frequency (BSF) ................................................................... 16
2.7 Previous Research ....................................................................................... 17
3 Methodology ....................................................................................................... 19
3.1 Methodology Description ............................................................................ 19
3.3.1 Bruel & Kjaer Lan I/F 3560C 4CH 25kHZ Sound Vibration Acoustic
FFT Analyzer ...................................................................................................... 22
3.3.2 Bruel & Kjaer Accelerometer (Type 4508 B 001) ............................... 22
3.3.3 Bruel & Kjaer AO-0038-D-030 Cable.................................................. 23
3.3.4 Single motor test rig (Gunt TM170 Balancing Apparatus) .................. 23
3.3.5 NTN 127 Bearings ................................................................................ 24
3.4 Experimental Setup ..................................................................................... 25
5. Conclusion .......................................................................................................... 32
6. Recommendations for Future Work ................................................................... 33
References .................................................................................................................. 34
Gantt Chart ................................................................................................................. 36
v
List of Figures
Figure 1: Percent film vs lambda ratio (Λ) (S.J. Lacey, 2008) .................................... 9
Figure 2: Vibration caused by the wavy raceway (T. Momono et.al, 1999).............. 10
Figure 5: The effect of bearing raceway defect on the positions of bearing ball (J. Liu
et.al, 2012).................................................................................................................. 12
Figure 6: Amplitude modulation around the defective area (S.J. Lacey, 2008) ........ 12
Figure 18: Vibration Spectrum of Bearing with Cracked Inner Race ........................ 29
Figure 19: Vibration Spectrum of Bearing with Cracked Outer Race ....................... 30
vi
List of Tables
vii
1. Introduction
1.1 Background
Many bearings fail prematurely due to several factors that contribute in bearing
malfunction. It is usually not easy to determine the exact cause but most likely they
are due to the presence of foreign matter such as dirt in bearings, improper mounting,
bearing misalignment, bearing corrosion or improper bearing lubrication. All these
factors bring in issues to machinery like loud noise and vibration.
In today’s world, noise and vibration have become a critical aspect in all types of
machinery and equipment, it is well received that quiet stable running is synonymous
with quality (Lacey 2008). Many bearing manufacturers have utilized vibration
analysis as a method for determining the quality of bearings.
Condition monitoring of rolling element bearings can be divided into three main
stages, detection, diagnosis and prognosis (Howard, I.M 1994). Detection is simply
determining that there is a fault or mechanical change that occurs in a bearing.
Diagnosis is to determine the location of bearing faults and the type of faults.
Prognosis on the other hand involves in estimating the remaining life of the faulty
bearings.
In the project, a discussion will be made based on the study of rolling element
bearing faults using vibration analysis which includes the mode of bearing failures,
1
how the bearing faults influence bearing dynamics, the measurement of vibration and
the detection of bearing faults from the vibration characteristics.
Rolling element bearings are among the most critical machine components that can
be found in different industries. Throughout the years, bearings have been
undergoing different kinds of improvement either in their design, materials and
lubrication technology, as a result, bearings have proven to be long lasting and
reliable when properly utilised.
However, bearings do fail at some point of a time, and its failure is always associated
with significant damage to machine parts and can be considered as one the main
reasons that causes the breakdown of machines. To avoid this from happening,
condition monitoring philosophy of bearings using vibration analysis method has
been gaining wide acceptance throughout every industry. The problem in condition
of bearing is that bearings are usually located very deep inside a machine and are
quite inaccessible. Besides that, bearings are also not built to be taken apart for visual
inspection, thus making it even harder to identify the bearings’ condition. Hence, an
alternative method is needed for the purpose.
The aim of this research is to study the faults of rolling element bearings using
vibration analysis.
2
2. To detect and diagnose rolling element bearings faults using vibration analysis
method.
1.5 Hypothesis
The research is carried out to determine bearing faults using vibration analysis and to
study how the faults in the bearing can affect the vibration spectrum of a bearing.
This research project will focus mainly on the detection of different types of bearings
faults using vibration analysis method. As bearing faults are often the main
contributors to machine failure, therefore investigation of bearing failures is done to
avoid any catastrophic damage to rotating machines. There are several questions that
need to be considered:
3
• What machine or software?
4. What are the factors that might affect the outcome of the experiment?
In the research, literature review will be done to study more about the relationship
between the bearing faults and its vibration spectrum.
Vibration analysis will be done on several of NTN 627 bearings. Different faults will
be created artificially to the bearings for the purpose.
4
2 Literature Review
5
in the bearings to minimize the friction between the rolling elements and the contact
surfaces during their operation. Therefore, it is crucial to determine the right amount
of lubricants in the bearings, the viscosity, the type and the grade of the lubricants.
There are four types of damages that can be caused by inadequate lubrication:
- Discolouration
o Caused by the insufficient lubricants in the bearings, which lead to
excessive high temperature of bearings due to the presence of friction.
- Scoring and Peeling
o Caused by inadequate amount of lubricant which can results in
immediate alteration in temperature and operating conditions.
- Excessive roller end heat
o Damages at the ends of the rollers with excessively high temperature
because of improper lubricant
- Total bearing lockup
o Change in the bearing’s initial geometry and all of the elements in the
bearings due to localized high heat
o Some of the examples of the damages are destructions of bearing
cages, skewing of rollers and in worst case scenario, jam in the whole
bearing.
6
Chipping or spalling in bearings may be caused by the weakening of bearing
materials. Normally the failures of bearing races and rolling elements start as a small
fracture and gradually become more severe until the particles of the metal eventually
flake away. This may lead to the increase of roughness to the surface of the bearings
races and introduce the presence of loosen metal particles within the bearings.
A.B Kufman expressed that condition monitoring of machine has proved to reduce
maintenance costs, improve productivity and increase the availability of the machine.
Thus, great amounts of monitoring instruments have emerged throughout the years.
These instruments have the ability to ceaselessly analyse flaws present in the
machines as well as keeping the records of all the data.
There have been various studies conducted to research the Acoustic Emission (AE)
response generated by faulty bearings. AE is the phenomenon by which transient
elastic wave generation in materials under tension or stress. The study led by T.
Yoshioka and T. Fujiwara in 1984 demonstrated that AE parameters, like ringdown
checks and peak amplitude of signal are capable of detecting faults before they
appear in vibration acceleration range and are able to identify the possible area of
where AE was generated during a loaded ball bearing fatigue test. In 1992, T.
Yoshioka proposed a system to spot where the vibration was originating from, and
two years later, the system was improved by implementing two AE sensors in the
system to determine the difference of arrival times for acoustic emission at the
sensors. Acoustic Emission signal has been shown to distinguish small deformities
such as fine scratch on the inner race of a rolling element bearing at low speed
7
(Smith, 1982). In 1990, a study conducted by N. Tandon and B.C. Nakra showed that
Acoustic Emission parameters for instance, peak amplitude and counts are capable of
detecting defect in radially loaded rolling element bearing at low to medium speed.
The peak amplitude and counts are also utilized to inspect the quality of bearings (V.
Bansal et al, 1990).
The degree of surface asperity is measured using lambda ratio (Λ). It is a proportion
of thickness of lubricant to harshness of surface. Lambda ratio can be written as 𝛬𝛬 =
ℎ(𝜎𝜎𝑏𝑏2 + 𝜎𝜎𝑟𝑟2 )0.5.
Figure 1 above shows the relationship between percent film and the lambda ratio. We
are able to see that lambda ratio increases with percent film. As the lambda ratio is
less than 0, then the bearing is likely to fail prematurely.
2.3.2 Waviness
Waviness in bearing can also be one of the factors that cause vibration and noise in
bearings. According to T. Momono et. al in 1999, waviness in bearing can never be
eliminated even with today’s advanced manufacturing technology, it can only be
reduced to a certain degree. However waviness in bearings is regularly considered
negligible. But as the waviness becomes more severe, the vibration caused by it may
bring in more problems. Waviness in bearing has the tendency of providing
frequencies three hundred times more than rotational speed however it is generally
strongest when it is less than sixty times of that rotational speed.
In 1962, Gustafsson conducted a study to test the effect of bearing waviness on the
vibration of bearings. The surface waviness of inner and outer races of a bearing
were considered and he was able to determine the number of peaks on the wavy
surface that created vibration and its frequency by solving the force balance within
the components of the bearings and compute the vibration caused by the waviness.
The figure below shows how waviness and their peaks in bearing surface can cause
9
vibration in bearings. Gustafsson’s analysis in his study has been confirmed by
numerous researchers.
Figure 2: Vibration caused by the wavy raceway (T. Momono et.al, 1999)
10
Figure 3: Vibration Signal of a healthy bearing (S.J. Lacey, 2008)
From figures 3 and 4 above, we can see the comparison of vibration signal between a
healthy and a faulty bearing. It was shown that the fault in the bearing has produced a
significantly high peak in its vibration signal. The RMS in faulty bearing is also
several times greater than in healthy bearing.
11
Figure 5: The effect of bearing raceway defect on the positions of bearing ball (J. Liu et.al, 2012)
Figure 6: Amplitude modulation around the defective area (S.J. Lacey, 2008)
Although the faults in outer and inner races of a bearing are likely to possess the
same behaviour, the amplitude of spectrum caused by inner race defect may seem to
be much smaller than outer race. It could be caused by the reason that the inner
raceway only enters a load zone one time in one rotation of the bearing, and its signal
has to travel through multiple interfaces such as lubricants, rolling elements and
outer races in order to reach the transducer. This can also be one of the reasons why
faults in inner bearing are more difficult to detect (S.J. Lacey 2008).
In 1972, P.A.Boto et al. suggested that good rolling element bearings tend to have a
greater amplitude ratio of low to high frequency signals. Defects such as crack on the
bearing race or spalling can cause the ratio to reduce remarkably. Thus, at the early
phase of bearing failure, high vibration frequency can better provide the sign of
bearing condition. The generation impulsive force due to the flawed bearing surface
can result in vibration which consequently can be monitored and to signify the
presence of defect. Although the defects can be tiny in size, the impulsive force may
13
oscillate and further destroy the components of the machine if the issue is not
managed properly.
The interaction between the local defect on a bearing element and its mating
components creates an impulsive force that lasts for a very short duration. This
impact results in vibration which can be analysed and examined for the presence of
defect. In 1979, K. Nishio et al stated that there are two techniques to investigate the
mechanism of bearing failure. The first technique is by running a brand new healthy
bearing on a rotating shaft of a working machine until it fails. The vibration signal is
monitored and plotted a graph against time whereby any differences in the graph can
be further analysed for the defects (T.Williams et al, 2001). To execute this, the
failure can be sped up by overloading, over speeding or removing of lubricant in the
bearings (B.V.A. Rao et al, 1986). The second technique is by mimicking defects on
the bearing. In this technique, faults are created intentionally on brand new
undamaged bearing components. This can be done through scratching, laser, carving
or simply through mechanical indentation. The vibration signals of the bearing with
simulated defect can be compared with the results produced good bearing (D. Dryer
et al, 1972). By simulating defects on bearing, it is much quicker to analyse bearing
faults rather than having to wait for the bearing to fail by itself. However, special
tools are needed for simulating the defects on bearing and it can be different as real
life failure.
14
bearing resonance indicators (HFNBRIs). HFNBRIs can detect frequencies ranging
from 3 kHz to 50 kHz which are can be both sonic (<20 kHz) and ultrasonic (>20
kHz). Archambault, 2009 stated that shock or friction can produce these frequencies
and HFNBRI method is an effective way in identifying these frequencies and show
early indication of bearing faults.
In 2011, Brian Graney and Ken Starry stated that conditions of bearings diagnosed
by HFNBRI and discrete frequency indicators can be established with FFT and time-
waveform analysis. FFT spectrum analysis comprises of harmonic families, their
individual origins and magnitude, meanwhile time-waveform analysis includes
identification of pattern, the magnitude and crest factor. Crest factor can be
represented as ratio of peak amplitude to root-mean-square the value of waveform.
Crest factor can surpass the value of 5 during the earliest stage of wear and will
eventually be reduced to 2.5 at the later stage.
15
These frequencies will be generated while bearings operate, and they vary with the
geometry of bearings. According to a journal by Baldor Dodge in 2007, there are
four types of frequencies, each of them is related to a particular part of a rolling
element bearing, namely:
𝑁𝑁𝑏𝑏 𝐵𝐵𝑑𝑑
𝐵𝐵𝐵𝐵𝐵𝐵𝐵𝐵 𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝 𝑓𝑓𝑓𝑓𝑓𝑓𝑓𝑓𝑓𝑓𝑓𝑓𝑓𝑓𝑓𝑓𝑓𝑓 𝑜𝑜𝑜𝑜 𝑖𝑖𝑖𝑖𝑖𝑖𝑖𝑖𝑖𝑖 𝑟𝑟𝑟𝑟𝑟𝑟𝑟𝑟 , 𝐵𝐵𝐵𝐵𝐵𝐵𝐵𝐵 = 𝑓𝑓𝑠𝑠 (1 + 𝑐𝑐𝑜𝑜𝑜𝑜𝑜𝑜)
2 𝑃𝑃𝑑𝑑
𝑁𝑁𝑏𝑏 𝐵𝐵𝑑𝑑
𝐵𝐵𝐵𝐵𝐵𝐵𝐵𝐵 𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝 𝑓𝑓𝑓𝑓𝑓𝑓𝑓𝑓𝑓𝑓𝑓𝑓𝑓𝑓𝑓𝑓𝑓𝑓 𝑜𝑜𝑜𝑜 𝑜𝑜𝑜𝑜𝑜𝑜𝑜𝑜𝑜𝑜 𝑟𝑟𝑟𝑟𝑟𝑟𝑟𝑟 , 𝐵𝐵𝐵𝐵𝐵𝐵𝐵𝐵 = 𝑓𝑓𝑠𝑠 (1 − 𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐)
2 𝑃𝑃𝑑𝑑
𝑓𝑓𝑠𝑠 𝐵𝐵𝑑𝑑
𝐹𝐹𝐹𝐹𝐹𝐹𝐹𝐹𝐹𝐹𝐹𝐹𝐹𝐹𝐹𝐹𝐹𝐹𝐹𝐹𝐹𝐹 𝑇𝑇𝑇𝑇𝑇𝑇𝑇𝑇𝑇𝑇 𝐹𝐹𝐹𝐹𝐹𝐹𝐹𝐹𝐹𝐹𝐹𝐹𝐹𝐹𝐹𝐹𝐹𝐹 , 𝐹𝐹𝐹𝐹𝐹𝐹 = (1 − 𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐)
2𝑑𝑑 𝑃𝑃𝑑𝑑
𝑃𝑃𝑑𝑑 𝐵𝐵𝑑𝑑2
𝐵𝐵𝐵𝐵𝐵𝐵𝐵𝐵 𝑠𝑠𝑠𝑠𝑠𝑠𝑠𝑠 𝑓𝑓𝑓𝑓𝑓𝑓𝑓𝑓𝑓𝑓𝑓𝑓𝑓𝑓𝑓𝑓𝑓𝑓, 𝐵𝐵𝐵𝐵𝐵𝐵 = 𝑓𝑓𝑠𝑠 (1 − 𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐 2 𝛷𝛷)
2𝐵𝐵𝑑𝑑 𝑃𝑃𝑑𝑑2
16
𝑁𝑁𝑏𝑏 = 𝑛𝑛𝑛𝑛𝑛𝑛𝑛𝑛𝑛𝑛𝑛𝑛 𝑜𝑜𝑜𝑜 𝑏𝑏𝑏𝑏𝑏𝑏𝑏𝑏𝑏𝑏
ø = 𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐 𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎
In the year 2002, Nikolaou N.G., et al came out with a technique to present bearing
faults using wavelet packets (WPT). In this method, a time-frequency decomposition
of vibration signals collected from experiment and simulation is analysed, and only
those signal components that are having important information are chosen for further
investigation with the use of PCMIA DAQ Card-1200 data acquisition card.
According to Nikolaou N.G., instead of using other methods, filters or WPT will
provide the added benefits in terms of flexibility and efficient computational
implementation.
In the journal published by V.K.Rai and A.R. Mohanty in 2007, a discussion was
made regarding the utilization of Fourier Transform (FFT) of intrinsic mode
functions in Hilbert-Huang Transform (HHT) to find bearing faults. Conventional
data acquisition card was used for measuring vibration data and they were able to
calculate characteristic defect frequencies (CDFs) analytically. By comparing the
17
readings for brand new flawless bearings and the flawed bearings with inner and
outer races faults, HHT technique was able to provide multiple resolutions in distinct
frequency scales and take the variation of frequencies into consideration. Through
this comparative analysis, V.K.Rai and A.R. Mohanty have demonstrated the
existence of amplitude regulations and were able to get hold of the frequencies of
defect accurately.
Tuncay Karacay et al. in 2009 conducted an experiment by installing two brand new
rolling element bearings onto a test rig and the bearings let to operate nonstop
throughout their entire lifespan under consistent rotating velocity and load. The
development of defects was measured regularly at 15 minutes interval and the
parameters that were collected are the vibrations’ peak-to-peak amplitude and its root
mean square (RMS). Meanwhile, the bearings’ crest factor and kurtosis number were
also determined to predict the condition of the bearings. From the experiment, they
have discovered that the first defect formed in the bearings is at the inner race caused
by the slight defect found in bearing balls. As experiment went on, the defects on
both inner race and balls developed, and finally followed by the outer race.
Meanwhile in the same year, Kankar P.K. et al. have discussed about using response
surface method to diagnose of bearing faults. Unlike what Tuncay Karacay et al.
have mentioned earlier, dispersed damage like waviness of bearing races and internal
radial clearance are put into consideration. According to them, these factors are
important for designing reliable bearings with high capability. They have utilized
Hertzian theory for elastic deformation elastic contact deformation theory and have
drawn to a conclusion that nonlinear dynamic responses are the main reason behind
the excessively huge inner radial clearance of bearings and are often linked to
distributed bearings defects. On top of that, their findings also showed that even a
small variation in ball waviness and internal radial clearance may cause significant
behavioural changes of the bearing systems.
18
3 Methodology
Bearings are abundant in many types of machines, especially the ones that exhibit
rotational movements. Bearings reduce friction as component in a machine rotates,
thus providing smoother and quiet spin. Indirectly, bearings also prevent heat
generation caused by friction. However, bearings may be damaged at some point of
the time. Several factors, such as misalignment, rust, excessive loading or the
presence of foreign particles can cause bearings to be faulty. When bearings are
damaged, rotation will be rough, thus creating vibration and unpleasing sound. This
condition will certainly be very unfavourable for machineries as vibration can causes
looseness in other parts of machineries and in a worst case scenario, the entire
machinery may face a catastrophic failure.
Bearings are usually located very deep inside a machinery, thus making it to be very
inaccessible, especially when one has to take apart many different machine
components first, in order to reach the bearing. To make the matter worse, bearings
are normally not designed to be taken apart, therefore, visual inspection method of
diagnosing bearing condition can be literally impractical. One alternative way for
condition monitoring of bearings is through their vibrations while they are spinning.
From the vibration signal of the bearings, it is possible to detect the mode of bearing
failure.
In this research project, vibration analysis was conducted to detect bearing faults
using FFT analysis. Artificial defects were done to bearings at different locations to
mimic real life bearing conditions. Conditions that were created were healthy bearing
(brand new out of the box), defect on the inner race, defect on the outer race and
defect on the ball. For the test, a variable speed single rotor test rig was used as the
apparatus. As the bearings were loaded onto the test rig and set to rotate at a constant
speed of 17Hz, the FFT analyzer was used to collect the vibration signals of the
rotating bearings. The FFT analyser then displayed the vibration signals into the form
of graph, acceleration (m/s2) vs frequency (Hz), this was when the analyzation took
place. From the vibration graph, we were able to determine the location of defects in
bearings. This was done by checking whether there were any amplitude spikes at
19
specific characteristic defect frequencies. This was based on the journal by Baldor
Dodge stated earlier in the literature review section, where it indicated that each
component in the bearing will have their own specific frequencies. Ball spin
frequency of inner race (BPFI) for the inner race, ball spin frequency of outer race
(BPFO) for outer race, Ball Spin Frequency (BSF) and Fundamental Train
Frequency (FTF) for the cage. At any location of the bearing where defect was
present, amplitude spike would show up at their respective frequencies.
Characteristic defect frequencies were obtained through a series of calculation
according to the bearings’ dimension and the rotational speed.
20
3.2 Flow Chart
Selection of Bearings
Conclusion
21
3.3 Apparatus and Materials
3.3.1 Bruel & Kjaer Lan I/F 3560C 4CH 25kHZ Sound Vibration Acoustic FFT
Analyzer
Bruel and Kjaer FFT analyser is a versatile, noise and vibration analysis system. It
contains input and output channels for microphone and accelerometers and is capable
of performing real-time measurement for signal and system analysis. The FFT
analyser collects vibration signals through accelerometer and displays them in a form
of readable graphs or spectrums. This apparatus is connected to a desktop computer
and can only be accessed through its software, called “PULSE”.
22
3.3.3 Bruel & Kjaer AO-0038-D-030 Cable
This cable acts as a connector that links the accelerometer and FFT analyser together.
This cable is designed to eliminate mechanically induced noise, thus giving a more
accurate result.
23
3.3.5 NTN 127 Bearings
Few bearings of this type will be used in this research report. The dimension or
specifications of the bearings given are as follow:
24
3.4 Experimental Setup
25
3.4.2 Experimental Platform Configuration
There are two supports for the shaft on the test rig as shown in Figure 15. The shaft is
held in place with two bearings. For the experiment, bearing on one end of the shaft
was replaced with test bearings created earlier while another end was left unaltered.
As the bearings are loaded to a test rig, they were set to rotate at a constant speed of
17HZ. At the same time, an accelerometer is used to pick up the vibration signals of
the test bearings, in this case, it was situated right on top of the test bearing as shown
in Figure 16 for better capturing of vibration signal. The signals are then sent to FFT
analyzer, where vibration spectrums for each of the bearings are produced for
analyzation.
26
bearings, namely the number of balls, pitch diameter of bearings, diameter of bearing
balls and the contact angle.
Calculations were done to determine characteristic defect frequency for NTN 627
bearings. Based on the specifications and dimensions of the bearings shown in
section 3.3.5, the defect frequencies are shown in Table 2 below. Theoretically, as
the bearing was loaded onto the test rig, FFT analyzer will produce a vibration
spectrum. Any faults within the bearing either at the outer ring, inner ring or the ball,
will cause a rise of amplitude at their respective frequencies.
Where,
Nb = number of balls = 7
ø = contact angle = 0˚
27
4 Results and Discussion
Figure 17 above shows the vibration spectrum of healthy bearing produced by FFT
analyzer. The graph was set to be in acceleration root mean square (RMS) versus
frequency in HZ. From the figure above, a peak could be observed at 17HZ as the
bearing is set to run at the constant speed of 17HZ. There were some vibrations in the
vibration spectrum, however there was no real peak at characteristic defect
frequencies. Those spikes appeared to be in random pattern and they are non-
harmonic. Those vibration bumps were caused by noise signals, which were not
related to the condition of the bearing. This could be due to the misalignment of
bearings or the vibrations that came from other external sources, such as the motor
from the test rig itself or the surrounding. The accelerometer used could be very
sensitive that it could pick up signals not only from the test bearing but also from
other sources. The purpose of the test was to test the condition of bearing, thus
vibrations that were caused by external factors could be ignored. From the vibration
spectrum, it can be concluded that this is a healthy bearing with no defects.
28
4.2 Bearing with Cracked Inner Race
Figure 18 shows the vibration of bearing with cracked inner race. From the vibration
spectrum, it can be observed that the vibration is greater than healthy bearing. A peak
can be observed at 17HZ as the bearing was rotating at 17HZ. The crack in inner race
gave an amplitude rise of 0.03m/s2 at ball pass frequency of inner race (BPFI)
calculated earlier which is at 75.6HZ. The harmonic frequency, at 151HZ also
showed a spike. The vibration was repeating, therefore it was concluded that the
crack in bearing’s inner race was causing this type of vibration characteristic. Any
other peak amplitudes besides the characteristic defect frequency and its harmonics,
were irregular and non-repeating, they may be caused by other factors that are not
related to the bearing and its defect.
29
4.3 Bearing with Cracked Outer Race
Figure 19 shows the spectrum by bearing with damaged outer race. There was an
amplitude of vibration at 17HZ as this was the speed that the bearing was spinning.
Vibration can be seen at 43.3HZ with an amplitude of 0.045m/s2 as shown in the
figure above, which was essentially the ball pass frequency of outer race (BPFO),
indicating that there was a defect on the outer race of the bearing. Harmonics were
also present at 86.6HZ, 130HZ and 173.2HZ respectively. The vibration amplitude at
BPFO is relatively higher than the vibration at BPFI shown in Figure 18. As like
what S.J. Lacey has mentioned in 2008, this might be due to the location of outer
race, which is nearer to the accelerometer. For inner race, the vibration signal had to
travel through multiple layers of bearing components such as lubricants, rolling
elements and outer race, in order to reach the accelerometer, dampening of signal
might happen during the process.
30
4.4 Bearing with Damaged Ball
Figure 20 shows the vibration of bearing with defected ball. Similarly, there was an
amplitude rise at 17HZ because of the constant speed that the bearing was rotating.
Vibrations could be seen clearly in Figure 20. Peak amplitude at 0.032m/s2 can be
observed at ball spin frequency (BSF), at 28.9HZ, along with its harmonic due to the
defect at the ball.
31
5. Conclusion
In this paper, the vibration characteristics of different types of bearings are being
compared. FFT analyzer was used to generate the vibration spectrum for bearings
with different conditions, namely healthy bearing, bearing with defected ball, bearing
with cracked inner race and bearing with cracked outer race. From the results
obtained, the vibration of healthy bearing was clearly lower than the defected ones.
For bearings with defects, peak amplitude will show up at the characteristic defect
frequencies, which is calculated according to the dimensions of bearing. FFT
analysis has proven to be an effective way to diagnose rolling element bearing faults
without having to disassemble it. It can be concluded that different types of bearing
defects will affect the vibration characteristic in a certain way:
• Defected outer race - rise in amplitude at ball pass frequency of outer race
(BPFO)
• Defected inner race – rise in amplitude at ball pass frequency of inner race
(BPFI)
• Defected ball – rise in amplitude at ball spin frequency (BSF)
With the successful implementation of this project, the key deliverables that we have
achieved are:
32
6. Recommendations for Future Work
From the results obtained, noise is present in every situation. Noise is random and
very unpredictable. Although not significant, these random signals can spike to a
higher amplitude in a way that it can even causes confusion while analysing the
vibration graph. Noise cannot be totally eliminated, as the accelerometer is very
sensitive, not only to bearing’s vibration, but also to the test rig and other sources
that cause vibration. However, it can be reduced to some extend through the
following recommendations:
There are some other recommendations that can be done to further study bearing
faults using vibration analysis. These will benefit us in understanding deeper the
relationship between bearing defects and its vibration characteristics. They are:
The research is deemed a success, thereby, defects in any other bearing types can
also be tested with the same methodology. Nevertheless, some other techniques
involving simulation technologies such as the utilization of Finite Element Analysis
(FEA) or Matlab can be developed for vibration analysis to save time and effort.
33
References
34
16) Tandon, N & Nakra, B 1990, Defect detection in rolling element bearings by
acoustic emission method, J. Acoustic Emission, vol. 9, pp. 25-88.
17) Gustafsson, O & Tallaron, T 1962, Detection of damage in assembled rolling
element bearing, American Society of Lubricant Engineer, vol. 5, pp. 197-209.
18) Yoshioka, T & Fujiwara, T 1982, A new acoustic emission source locating
system for the study of rolling contact fatigue, Wear, vol. 81, pp 183-186.
19) Yoshioka, T & Fujiwara, T 1984, Application of acoustic emission techique to
detection of rolling element bearing failure, Acoustic emission monitoring and
analysis in manufacturing, ASME, pp. 55-75.
20) Bansal, V Gupta, B Prakash, A & Eshwar, Y 1990, Quality in inspection of
rolling element bearing using emission technique, J. Acoustic Emission, vol. 9,pp
142-146.
21) Boto, P & Fernlund, I 1972, Shock Pulse measurement of bearings, Wear, vol.19,
pp.367-371
22) Igarashi, T & Hamada, H 1982, Studies on the vibration and Sound of defective
rolling Bearings, Bulletin of JSME, vol.25, pp. 994-997.
23) Nishio, K Hoshiya, S & Miyachi, T 1979, An Investigation of the early detection
of defects in ball bearings by the vibration monitoring, ASME Paper 79-DET-45
ASME, New York.
24) Williams, T, Ribadeneria, X & Billingtons, S 2001, Rolling Element bearing
diagnostics is tun-to-failure lifetime testing, Mechanical System and Signaling
Processing, vol.15, pp.979-993.
25) Rao, B Swarnamani, S & Varghese, G 1986, Studies on a test rig to check
defective and spurious ball and roller bearings, Proceedings of the national
conference on Industrial Tribology, Bombay, India, pp 1.1-1.10.
26) Tatsunobu, M & Banda ,N 1999, Sound and Vibration in Rolling Bearings,
Motion & Control, vol.9, pp.29-37.
27) Jing, L Yimin, S Teik C, L 2012, Vibration analysis of ball bearings with a
localized defect applying piecewise response function, Mechanism and Machine
Theory, Elsevier, vol. 56, pp. 156-169.
28) 2009, Timken Bearing Damage Analysis with Lubrication Reference Guide, 1st
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<http://www.bell.si/pdfji/1.%20LE%C5%BDAJI/3.%20TIMKEN/ORODJA/BD
ABrochure5892.pdf>
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Gantt Chart
No Task Week
FYRP1 FYRP2
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14
1 Topic Registration
2 Literature Review
3 Research and Discussion
4 Research Plan
5 Methodology
6 Design Testing Method
7 Materials Selection
8 Progress Report Preparation
9 Oral Presentation Preparation
10 Oral Presentation
11 Acquiring of Materials
11 Set-up Testing
12 Conduct Experiment
13 Data Analysis
14 Discussion of the Result
15 Research Paper Submission
15 Final Report Documentation
16 Final Presentation Preparation
17 Final Presentation
18 Ongoing Assessment
FYRP 2 Assessment 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14
1 A1_Research Paper
2 A2_Presentation
3 A3_Workbook Assessment
4 A4_Final Report
36