Open AccessTESTING OF POTENTIAL BEARING MATERIALS IN AN ARGON ATMOSPHERE OF LOW HUMIDITY
Author(s) -
N.J. Carson,
Walter Morris
Publication year - 1959
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Reports
DOI - 10.2172/4206681
Subject(s) - materials science , metallurgy , abrasion (mechanical) , humidity , graphite , rubbing , atmosphere (unit) , muffle furnace , pellets , argon , dry lubricant , lubrication , volume (thermodynamics) , dew point , composite material , calcination , chemistry , biochemistry , physics , organic chemistry , quantum mechanics , meteorology , thermodynamics , catalysis
Bearing materials for use in the Metallurgy Division Sector of the EBR- 11 Fuel Cycle Plant must operate without lubrication in an argon atmosphere of low humidity (dew-point of --50 deg C or less) and high gamma activity. To select suitable materials, a test program, in which samples of materials known to be radiation resistant were tested for wear resistance in an argon atmosphere containing less than 30 ppm water by volume, was initiated. The criterion by which wear resistance was judged is loss in sample weight over a 24-hour abrasion period during which the samples rub along the periphery of a 2 1/2-in. OD wear ring made of SAE 1045 steel. The majority of the samples were tested using a load of 2755 gm and a rubbing vclocity of 109 ft per sec. Contact between the rectangular samples and the wear ring was initially linear. Of the materials tested, Reactor Grade Graphite and some graphite derivatives showed the best bearing qualities. A group of steel samples coated with impregnated plastic also showed desirable properties. While they are not as wear resistant as the best graphitic samples, their supcrior physical properties give them a wider range of application. (auth