Sintered bearings

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Sintered bearings are a variant of plain bearings in which the bearing shell (s) are made of sintered material rather than solid . Sintered bronze is the most common material, but sintered iron is also often used in its manufacture.

Sintered metals are made by pressing metal powder under high pressure. Very high levels of accuracy can be achieved here. Sintered metals are very porous. They consist of 15% to 30% pores, and this is also the reason for the advantage of sintered bearings compared to solid plain bearings, because the pores are filled with lubricants (oil).

On the one hand, a larger oil supply is available than with massive plain bearings. Sintered bearings are therefore also referred to as self-lubricating bearings, which of course can only apply to a limited extent.

On the other hand, the oil can flow within the bearing shell body. It enters the sintered material in areas of high oil pressure and exits again in areas of low pressure. This allows a lubricating film to build up faster.

Thanks to their pores, sintered bearings have excellent emergency running properties . This means that in the event of a lubricant shortage, the bearings can continue to be operated for a certain period of time without major damage. This leaves enough time to identify and remedy the shortage of lubricants.

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