GREASE & GREASING

What is Grease?
The definition of grease issued by the American Society for Testing Materials (ASTM) is:
“A solid to semi-fluid product of dispersion of a thickening agent in a liquid lubricant.
Other ingredients imparting special properties may be included”.

There are three main components of grease:

1. Thickening or gelling agent (i.e. soap, clay or polyurea)
2. Oil which provides the lubrication
3. Additives (i.e. anti-oxidants, corrosion preventative agents, anti-weld EP additives)

Thickening Agent
The thickening agent or soap performs a fairly complex function but simply put, “holds”
the oil until required and then “releases” the oil to lubricate the bearing. The consistency
of grease depends on this thickening agent. Consistencies vary from NLGI 000 through
to NLGI 6. NLGI 000 grease is very soft while NLGI 6 grease is like a solid block.
Typically, motor grease is NLGI 2. For high temperature applications an NLGI 3 grease
is often used.

The oil “held” by the thickening agent performs the lubricating function and is usually
mineral oil but can also be synthetic. The base viscosity of this oil is very important and
is often one of the most commonly overlooked parameters of grease. Grease typically
contains oils from ISO 10 (for arctic duty type grease) through ISO 510 (10 mm2/S – 600
mm2/S at 40OC). Typically motor bearings operate at 40 – 50OC above ambient.
Assuming an ambient of 40OC and an operating temperature of 40OC, the total
temperature is 80OC. This reduces the actual viscosity of the oil such that for example, a
base oil of ISO 99 has a viscosity of 20 mm2/S (centistokes) at 80OC.

Base Oils
The importance of base oils is the most often ignored and yet one of the most important
components of grease. Some manufacturers make grease specifically designed for
motors which contain base oil viscosities in the region of ISO 50 to 100.

Base oils that are too thin may not have enough film strength to maintain an oil film
between the rolling elements and the races. If the film breaks down, contact between
the asperities or irregularities on the surfaces of the races and rolling elements
generates tremendous heat that can cause “welding” to occur. This damages the
surface and leads to premature failure.

Base oils that are too thick may not return back to the rolling element pathway quickly
enough to provide continuous lubrication. In essence, a “rut” is formed along the rolling
element path that is not adequately lubricated which leads to premature bearing failure.
 Viscosity versus Temperature Comparison Graph

Load conditions, bearing size, bearing rotational speed and ambient temperatures all
change the base oil viscosity requirements. The minimum base oil viscosity at operating
temperature for ball and cylindrical roller bearings is 13 mm2/s (centistokes) which is also
referred to as the ISO oil grade. Other bearing types that are not commonly used in
motors include tapered roller or spherical roller bearings that need a minimum of 20
mm2/s and spherical roller thrust bearings that need a minimum of 30 mm2/s. Minimum
oil viscosity requirements (e.g. ISO 13 for ball or cylindrical roll bearings), is at operating
temperature. The above graph shows the relationship between rated oil viscosity (at
40OC) and the actual viscosity at running temperature.

Normally, electric motor bearings operate at a maximum of 45 – 50OC above ambient.

By studying the spreadsheet on the next page, it becomes apparent that one specific
grease is not going to be ideal for all motor sizes and speeds. Since it is typically not
practical to use more than one type of motor grease, a compromise is usually made to
suit the majority of applications. If in doubt, it is better to be slightly higher in viscosity
than the minimum recommended value. (A lower viscosity base oil will theoretically
provide better lubrication for higher speed motors but could compromise the lower speed
motors, especially belt drive applications.)

The chart on the following page can be used as a guideline for temperature versus
speed versus base oil viscosity versus bearing types.
 Bearing temp. & rotational speed versus recommended base oil viscosity

Bearing operating Applicable ISO oil grade

Bearing rotational
O Heavy or Bearing type
temperature range ( C) speed dn (Note 1) Normal load
shock load
-30 to 0 All speeds 18 to 26 All types
15000 38 to 56 83 to 100 All types
80000 32 to 46 56 to 68 All types
All except thrust ball
0 to 60 150000 18 to 26 32 to 38
type
Single row radial ball
500000 10 18 to 26
& cylindrical roller
15000 100 to 120 180 to 220 All types
80000 100 100 to 120 All types
All except thrust ball
60 to 100 150000 46 to 56 83 to 120
type
Single row radial ball
500000 32 46 to 56
& cylindrical roller
100 to 150 All speeds 220 to 320 All types
0 to 60 All speeds 38 to 46 Spherical roller
60 to 100 All speeds 100 to 120 bearings
Note 1: dn = d x n Where:
d = bearing inner diameter in mm (d can be determined by multiplying the last 2 digits of
a bearing’s primary designation number by 5 – e.g. a 6320C3 bearing has an inner
diameter of 5 x 20 = 100mm; an NU324C3 has an inner diameter of 5 x 24 =
120mm. This is applicable only for bearings with the last two digits being 04 or
larger.)
n = RPM

Additives
The most common additives for grease are antioxidants, anti-weld (EP), corrosion-
preventives and dry lubricants.
Anti-oxidants dramatically increase the safe static storage life of packed bearings as
well as the life during operation.
Anti-weld additives (often referred to as Extreme Pressure or EP additives) increase the
load capability of grease. These additives are often sulfur, chlorine or phosphide based.
When two surfaces slide on each other, which is what occurs if the oil film's strength is
exceeded, micro-asperities (surface irregularities) collide and generate tremendous heat.
This heat is enough to weld the surfaces. The EP additives cause a chemical reaction
with the metal surfaces when heated and prevent welding. EP additives are not needed
in motor bearings. EP additives are only necessary in rolling bearings when high sliding
loads occur such as in taper roller roll-neck bearings in steel mills. EP type greases also
typically have high viscosity base oil in the range of ISO 200 – 600 which is also not
ideal for motor bearings. In addition, the EP additives can react with motor insulation
reducing winding life. It is generally considered that EP type greases not be used in
electric motors.
Corrosion-preventive additives are designed to reduce moisture corrosion and fretting
corrosion.
Dry lubricants such as graphite, molybdenum, disulfide, talc, zinc oxide etc. are not
commonly used in motor bearing grease. These are used in special applications only.
GREASE COMPATIBILITY
As discussed previously, there are many types of grease. Some grease types, when
mixed together dramatically change their properties and are not compatible. For
example, polyeurea based grease and calcium based grease are not compatible once
the temperature reaches 95OC. Some greases are deemed to be compatible with each
other such as Lithium Complex grease and Polyuerea grease. It is always prudent to
change the grease entirely when switching from one grease to another. If this is not
possible or practical, it is good practice to check with the supplier of the new grease to
confirm compatibility with the old grease or vice versa. Many grease manufacturers
have already done compatibility studies with other popular competitors’ greases. If not,
a sample can be sent for analysis and compatibility confirmation.

Although some grease manufacturers publish compatibility tables similar to the attached
chart there are no guarantees that a specific manufactuer's grease will be compatible
with another manufacturer’s grease even though the table says it is. Some manufacturers
don’t necessarily agree with others. For example, several grease manufactuers say
that Calcium Complex grease is not compatible with Polyeruea grease while a publication
from at least one manufacturer says that they are compatible. It is always better to
assume that different greases are not compatible until specifically confirmed otherwise.

GREASE LIFE
Grease, just like insulation, ages thermally. A well-accepted rule of thumb is that for
every 15OC. that the lubrication temperature rating is exceeded, the life of the grease is
halved. IEEE RP841 recommends that the maximum bearing temperature rise be
limited to 45OC (50OC for 2 pole motors), based upon an assumed ambient of 40OC. In
short, it is better to run cooler.

The addition of anti-oxidants helps to reduce the thermal aging process.

GREASING INTERVALS
Bearing regreasing interval time is an issue which tends to be as much of an art as it is a
science.

Suggested greasing intervals can be calculated based on bearing size, bearing load
rating, rotational speed and loading. This is great for a controlled environment. In real
applications, however, greasing intervals need to be shortened because of a multitude of
external influences such as vibration, moisture, dust, chemical vapours, high ambient
conditions and load variations such as overtensioned belts. Typically motor
manufacturers mimic the recommendations that bearing manufacturers make. It is
interesting to note that grease manufacturers' regreasing intervals coincide with those
made by bearing manufacturers.

The attached “chart” is an example of what motor manufacturers will provide with their
motors.
If no instructions on greasing intervals are provided the chart below can be used as a
guideline. The amount of grease to be added can be calculated by the equation:
G = 0.005 x D x B
Where:
G is the grease quantity in grams
D is the bearing outside diameter in mm (available from bearing catalogues)
B is the bearing width in mm (available from bearing catalogues)

Regreasing Interval Chart

d = bearing inner diameter in mm (d can be determined by multiplying the last 2 digits of

a bearing’s primary designation number by 5 – e.g. a 6320C3 bearing has an inner
diameter of 5 x 20 = 100mm; an NU324C3 has an inner diameter of 5 x 24 =
120mm. This is applicable only for bearings with the last two digits being 04 or
larger.)

HIGH AND LOW TEMPERATURE GREASE

As discussed previously, when the ambient temperature is either very low or very high,
the viscosity of the base oil in the grease changes. This change may be dramatic
enough that improper lubrication will result. In addition, the properties of the thickening
agent will change as temperature goes down or up. Grease manufacturers make
special greases for low temperature and for high temperature applications. To assure
proper bearing life, it is advisable to follow either the motor manufacturer’s or the grease
manufacturer’s recommendations for the application intended.
GREASE COMPATIBILITY WITH ATMOSPHERE
Often motors are used in areas which expose them to chemical atmospheres. If a motor
will be installed in a potentially harsh environment, it would be wise to check with the
grease manufacturer for compatibility.

AUTO LUBERS
If it is not practical to follow the regreasing recommendations of the motor or bearing
manufacturer, automatic greasing devices can be employed. These devices are
available from several manufacturers. Some are battery powered and some are
powered by a slow chemical reaction which exerts pressure on the grease reservoir and
slowly releases grease into the bearing bracket.

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