Wear, 87 (1983) 287 - 296 287

MECHANICS AND BEHAVIO~R OF HOLLOW CYLINDRICAL

MEMBERS IN ROLLING CONTACT

C. S. CHANDRASEKARA MURTHY and A. RAMAMOHANA RAO

~echa~~ca~ engineering Department, Indjan institute of Teahn~lagy, Madras 600036
{India)
(Received July 27, 1982; in revised form November 12, 1982)

Summary

The mechanics of contact of hollow cylindrical elements were studied.

The maximum contact stress is less for a hollow cylinder than for a solid
cylinder. A simple numerical method is proposed to estimate the reduced
contact stress by finding an equivalent modulus of elasticity for the hollow
cylinder for use in the contact stress equation.
Rolling contact fatigue experiments conducted on hollow and solid
cylindrical specimens of the same material and same external dimensions
revealed that the hollow specimens performed much better than the solid
specimens, a result which can be attributed to the lower contact stress in
hollow specimens. Pitting was the mode of failure for all the tested and
failed specimens. Microscopic studies revealed that in many of the pitted
hollow specimens flexural fatigue cracks had initiated at the inner surface.

1. Introduction

Advances in technology involve continuously increasing operating

speeds in transportation equipment. When ball and roller bearings are
operated at high speeds high centrifugal forces are produced by the rolling
elements. The increased contact stresses at the outer race contacts caused by
the centrifugal forces can reduce bearing fatigue life [ 11. Low mass rolling
elements improve the operating conditions of high speed bearings because
the reduction in centrifugal loading reduces the outer race loads and stresses.
The problem of reducing the mass of rolling elements has been tackled
in different ways. Hollow steel balls and rollers, solid balls and rollers of low
density ceramic material and balls of composite materials have been
investigated [2 - 61. Problems associated with low mass rolling elements
include stress concentration in the weld area of electron beam welded hollow
balls and non-uniform wall thickness. The high elastic modulus of ceramics
causes higher Hertz stresses in the steel races and failure initiation at the bore
of the hollow elements. However, low mass rolling elements are potentially
attractive because of their inherent advantages.

0043-1648/83/0000-0000/$03.00 @ Eisevier Sequoia/Pri~ted in The Netherlands

288

The objectives of the present work were to determine whether the

application of ordinary contact stress equations for hollow cylindrical
members is justified and to evaluate experimentally the performance of
hollow cylindrical specimens.

2. Mechanics of contact of hollow cylindrical elements

The contact stresses in hollow members are often calculated by using

the same equations and procedures as for solid specimens. This approach
seems to be incorrect. The hertzian theory of contact is based on several
assumptions. One is that the profiles of the two bodies are continuous and
can be represented to good approximation by a polynomial of second
degree. Hertzian theory does not take into account a situation where the
cross sections of either or both of the bodies in contact are multiply
connected.
Figure 1 shows solid and hollow cylinders of the same outside diameter
compressed between two platens and subjected to a load F. The diametral
compression for the hollow cylinder will be greater than that for the solid
cylinder. The cylinder surface in contact with the platens will be a rectangle
and its width for the hollow cylinder will be greater than that for the solid
cylinder. This is shown schematically in Fig. 1. It can be predicted a priori
that the maximum contact stress is less for a hollow cylinder than for a solid
cylinder. The setting-up of mathematics expressions and derivation of a
closed-form generalized solution for the reduced contact stress in a hollow
cylinder is a formidable problem. Thus a simple numerical method has been
used to estimate the reduced contact stress in hollow cylindrical rolling
elements. The basis of the method is that an equivalent modulus of elasticity
(E,,) is found for the hollow cylinder which is used with hertzian equations
for solid cylinders to estimate the contact stresses in hollow cylinders.
Figure 2 shows the cross section of a cylindrical hollow rolling element
made of steel having an outer radius R, = 5.25 mm and an inner radius
Ri = 2 mm. The width L of the element on which compressive loads are
applied is taken as 5 mm. The equation for diametral compression is [ 71

TFR nFR 0.3FR3

6,=-+- +---p (1)
2EA 2GA EI
where Ah (mm) is the diametral compression of the hollow cylindrical
element, F (N) is the load, R = (R, + Ri)/2= 3.62mm is the mean radius,
E=2X105N mme2 is the modulus of elasticity of the material of the
element, G = 0.77 X lo5 N mme2 is the modulus of rigidity of the material
of the element, A = L(R,,- Ri)= 16.25 mm2 is the area of the cross section
and I= (R, - Ri)L3/12= 33.85 mm4 is the moment of inertia of the cross
section. Substituting the above values in eqn. (1) and simplifying, we obtain
6, = 8.24 X 10b6Fmm (2)
 289

(a) F (b) F
Fig. 1. (a) Solid and (b) hollow cylinders under compression.

rolling element.

The diametral compression of a solid element of the same outer diam-

eter as the hollow element is given by the expression [8]

(3)

where 6, (mm) is the diametral compression of the solid rolling element,

K = (1 - p*)/nE is a constant and /.I= 0.3 is Poisson’s ratio. In eqn. (3), b is
an auxiliary parameter defined by the equation
b = {8(F/L)KR,,)0.5 (4)
and the other quantities F, L, E and R, have the same meanings and magni-
tudes as indicated earlier. Substituting the values of F, L, X and R, in eqn.
(4), we obtain
b = 1.56(F/E)“.S

Further substitution of b in eqn. (3) and simplification gives

6, = 0.232 ;[$ + log+3.46(;i”‘ll (5)

Equations (2) and (5) are graphically presented in Fig. 3. It can be seen from
Fig. 3 that for a given load the hollow element exhibits considerably more
deformation (diametral compression) than the solid element. Also, the load-
deflection curve for the hollow element is a perfect straight line whereas for
the solid it is almost a straight line.
One set of F-6 values from Fig. 3, e.g. F = 560 N and 6 = 4.6 pm,
pertaining to the hollow element are substituted in eqn. (5) which applies to
the solid element. Equation (5) simplifies to
log, E = 7.0812 X 10-sE + 0.46108 (6)
 0 5cxl 1200 1800 2400 3000
Load F,N

Fig. 3. Deformation of solid and hollow elements.

Fig. 4. Graphical solution of eqn. (6). The ordinate shows the scale for both the left-hand
side and the right-hand side of the equation.

which is a transcendental equation and cannot be solved directly for E.

Equation (6) is solved graphically by plotting the left-hand side and right-
hand side as shown in Fig. 4. The intersection point gives the equivalent
modulus of elasticity which is 1.630 X 10S N mm-*. The equivalent modulus
does not have a constant value and hence has to be calculated on the basis of
the above procedure for different contact loads. For a particular contact
load the corresponding value of E,, is used to calculate the actual contact
stress in the hollow cylindrical element using the hertzian equation for solid
elements. Table 1 gives contact stresses in solid and hollow rolling elements,
of the dimensions shown in Fig. 2, for different contact loads and also gives
the equivalent moduli of elasticity. The contact stresses in solid and hollow
rolling elements are plotted against the contact load in Fig. 5. The value of
the equivalent modulus indicated in the table is applicable only to the

TABLE 1
Stresses in solid and hollow elements

contactloud (N) 560 750 850 1200 1620 1960

Contact stress (N mm-‘) for 900 1040 1100 1310 1520 1680
a solid element

Contact stress (N mme2) for 604 692 730 861 991 1087
a hollow element

Tangential stress (N mm-*) for 108 144 164 231 312 377
a hollow element

Equj~alent modulus (105N mm-2) 1,63 1.58 1.53 1.48 1.44 1.42
of elasticity for a hollow element
 291

hollow cylindrical rolling elements of the dimensions indicated in Fig. 2. By

using the above method the value of E,, for hollow rolling elements of any
other dimensions can be estimated.

3. Experimental details

Solid and hollow cylindrical specimens were tested in a nutcracker type

of contact fatigue tester under pure rolling conditions. Although the main
objective of tests was to investigate the surface integrity of the specimens in
rolling contact, the experiments on hollow specimens involved flexural
fatigue owing to the tangential stresses at the inner fibres.
Figure 6 shows the dimensions of the hollow cylindrical specimen used.
The dimensions of the cross section of the specimen were the same as those
of the hollow element illustrated in Fig. 2. The dimensions of the solid test
specimens were the same as those of the hollow specimens except for the
absence of the hole 4 mm in diameter at the centre. In the test a specimen of
outside diameter 10.5 mm was compressed between two rollers 120 mm in
diameter with a contact width of 5 mm. This contact width is the same as
the width of the element shown in Fig. 2.
The drive roller, driven by an electric motor through a V-belt, drives the
test specimen which in turn drives the driven roller. Details of the test rig
were presented earlier [ 91. Figure 7 shows the driving and driven rollers and
the specimen. The rolling contact surfaces were lubricated with a Tellus oil
of viscosity 0.0577 Pa s at 38 “C through a needle valve which controlled the
flow from a tank. The load on the specimen was applied through the driven
roller by placing weights on the pan at the end of a lever. The speed of the
electric motor which rotated the drive roller was 960 rev min-‘. For each
revolution the test specimen was subjected to two stress cycles and the
number of cycles per minute was about 22 000.
The test specimens, drive roller and load rollers were made from 0.2% C
steel. The rolling contact surfaces were finished by grinding to a surface

TANGENTIAL STRESS
0 i---*---------3
400 800 lml 1600 Pm0
t- 135
Contc~ct load, N

Fig. 5. Stresses in solid and hollow elements.

Fig. 6. Details of hollow cylindrical specimen.

 Specimen

Fig. 7. Close-up view of the test rig

roughness of 0.20 - 0.30 pm centre-line average. The specimens and rollers

were salt bath treated by the Tufftride TFl [lo] process, Information
regarding melting down, aeration, chemicaI control, titration, replenishment,
safety precautions and other details of the TFl bath are given elsewhere
[lOI.
Untreated solid specimens failed by excessive plastic deformation in
rolling contact in the range of contact loads applied in the present tests. The
results are discussed elsewhere [ 111.

4. Results and discussion

4.1. Con tat t stresses

Rolling contact fatigue tests were conducted under contact loads of
560,750,850,1200,1620 and 1960 N. These loads lead to contact stress
values of 900,1040,1100,1310,1520 and 1680 N mrne2 (Table 1). These
stresses were calculated on the basis of hertzian equations [ ‘71 by using the
standard value (2 X 10” N mme2) of the modulus of elasticity for steel. These
stresses are thus applicable to solid specimens.
For the hollow ring elements represented in Fig. 2, contact stresses
calculated on the basis of the equivalent modulus of elasticity are given in
Table 1 and Fig. 5. The reduction in the contact stresses is significant. How-
ever, because of the sideways constraints hollow members of large axial
dimensions (135 mm; see Fig. 6) such as specimens used here are expected to
yield much lower deformations than the ring elements of small widths
(5 mm; see Fig. 2). However, these deformations are still large compared
with those for solid specimens. This implies that a hollow specimen will have
a lower contact stress than a solid specimen, but not as low as that of a ring.

4.2. S-N curves

Pitting was the failure mode of solid specimens. The noise level
increased as soon as the pits formed on the surface of the specimen. In
rolling contact fatigue tests two criteria have been adopted to determine the
number of cycles to failure. Dawson [ 121 defines pitting life as the time to
 293

the formation of the first pit. Fujita and Yoshida [13] considered that
pitting failure occurs when the pitted area is 2% - 3% of the total area of
contact. Of the two criteria Dawson’s approach is simple and is adopted by
more research workers. In the present investigation Dawson’s method was
used.
Results of the experiments on solid cylindrical specimens are shown in
Fig. 8. The vertical axis represents the contact stress S. The horizontal axis
represents the contact fatigue life or pitting life N which is the life in cycles
before the formation of the first pit. From the S-N curve the pitting fatigue
limit, which is the stress corresponding to the horizontal portion of the
curve, is 900 N mme2,
Rolling contact fatigue tests were conducted on hollow specimens
under the same contact loads as tests on solid specimens. In addition to the
contact stresses at the outer contact zone, the hollow specimens are
subjected to tangential stresses whose values are at a maximum on the inner
fibre. Failure of the test specimen could be due to either pitting fatigue or
flexural fatigue. The critical stress for failure due to flexural fatigue is the
tangential stress beneath the point of load application (Fig. 2, points a). This
stress is tensile in nature and changes sign, becoming compressive at points b.
These stresses can be evaluated using available equations [7]. Tangential
stress values at points a are indicated in Table 1 and Fig. 5.
Results of the tests conducted on hollow specimens are also plotted in
Fig. 8. In calculating the contact stresses for this plot, the conventional
approach, i.e. that there is no difference between the deformations of the
solid and the hollow specimens is assumed and E = 2 X lo5 N mmP2, is used.
The S-N curve for hollow specimens is above the S-N curve for solid
specimens, indicating that the performance of the former is superior to that
of the latter. The pitting limit for hollow specimens is 1300 N mme2 whereas
for solid specimens it is 900 N mm-*. Thus there is nearly a 50% improve-
ment in the pitting limit for hollow specimens. The contact stress in the
hollow specimens is lower than in solid specimens and this leads to their
better performance.

Life tn cycles, N(Lcg)

Fig. 8. S-N curves for solid and hollow specimens in rolling contact.
29-l

4.3. Failure analysis

Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and optical microscopy studies
were carried out to investigate the nature of failures. Figure 9 shows the
cross section of a solid specimen which has been polished and etched. The
area shown is in a zone which has not failed by pitting. Rotation of the
surface layer relative to the centre can be observed. Figure 10 shows the
cross section of a pit and Fig. 11 the etched cross section of the pit shown in
Fig. IO. From Fig. 11 it can be seen that the subsurface cracks are located in
the zone where forward flow of material has occurred. It is probable that
this is a vulnerable zone for the propagation of subsurface pitting cracks.
Figure 12 shows an SEM photograph of a pit. The specimen was cut through
the pit and the circular cross section (Fig. 12, zone a) was polished. The
polished surface shows a subsurface crack. Numerous micropits are seen on
the cylindrical surface indicated in zone b. It is probable that these micropits
were formed by asperity interactions on the surface.
For hollow cylindrical specimens, except for run-out tests, failure was
always due to pitting. Some of the specimens were cut and the cross sections

Fig. 9. Micrograph of a solid specimen showing the forward flow of material

Fig, 10. Cross section of a pit in a solid specimen showing subsurface cracks

Fig. 11. Photograph of the etched cross section of the pit shown in Fig. 10.

Fig. 12. SEM photograph of a pit in a solid specimen showing a subsurface crack on the
cylindrical surface.
 295

Fig. 13. SEM photograph of the cross section of a hollow specimen showing a flexural
fatigue crack and a pit.

Fig. 14. Magnified view of the fatigue crack shown in Fig. 13.

polished and examined. In most cases flexural fatigue cracks had started
from the inner boundary. Figure 13 shows an SEM photograph of one such
crack and a pit at the outer boundary. The crack is shown at a higher magni-
fication in Fig. 14. None of the hollow rolling specimens failed completely
by flexural fatigue,
Thus, for hollow rolling elements, the two competing modes of failure
are pitting fatigue and flexural fatigue. Which type of failure occurs first
depends on the material, wall thickness of the hollow element and surface
treatment. The wall thickness and Tufftride treatment seem to prevent
failure by flexural fatigue. The role of the Tufftride treatment in improving
the contact fatigue and bending fatigue strengths is well known [9, 14, 151.

5. Conclusions

An analysis of the mechanics of contact of hollow cylindrical elements

indicates that the contact stresses calculated in the traditional way do not
give correct values. A simple numerical method has been proposed to
estimate the reduced contact stresses by finding an equivalent modulus of
elasticity for the hollow elements and using it in the contact stress equation.
The primary importance of this method is that not only a qualitative but
also a quantitative solution has been provided for a complicated physical
problem. In any further work it is of primary importance to obtain a
generalized mathematical expression for the contact stress in a hollow
member.
Rolling contact fatigue experiments conducted on hollow and solid
cylindrical specimens of the same material and same external dimensions
revealed that the hollow specimens performed much better than the solid
specimens. This is attributed to the lower contact stresses in hollow speci-
mens compared with solid specimens.
296

The failure of a hollow rolling element may be due to pitting at the

outer surface or flexural fatigue failure originating at the inner surface. For
Tufftrided hollow rolling specimens of 0.2% C steel with a ratio of outer
diameter to inner diameter of 2.6 the failure was always due to pitting.
Nevertheless, microscopic studies revealed that in some specimens flexural
fatigue cracks had started from the inner surface.

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