___"Micropitting FAST"___

Study the mechanisms of pitting and micropitting in roll slide contacts

To reduce energy losses, the viscosity of lubricants in gears and bearings decreases.  This leads to very thin EHL films and an increased risk of pitting and micropitting, especially in fast moving and high loaded contacts.

This research centre provides dedicated testing facilities and know-how to support industry in solving these challenges. 

MPR micropitting rig PCS

This instrument provides a state of the art simulation of rolling-sliding contacts by rotating an inner roller between three larger rings.

The lubricated contact is loaded, and a programmable roll-slip ratio is applied.  In a few hours, millions of cycles can be realised, making it possible to generate pitting (macro) or micropitting damage in a reasonable time.

By combining this instrument with fast wear and pitting visualisation and measurement techniques, we can very time efficiently study effects of surface fatigue that lead to pitting and micropitting damage, and how to mitigate these effects by lubricant formulation or surface treatments.

Keyence VR 6000 Profiler

This modern optical profiler, with rotary stage, allows for very fast imaging or circular specimens, just like the rollers in the Micro Pitting Rig (above).  Thanks to programmable inspection routines, the downtime of the MPR is minimized, since the progress of micropitting wear damage can be measured in a few minutes with a resolution of a few micrometer.

Micropitting evolution can be plotted easily.