SEAL FOR GREASE/DUST PROTECTION ON BEARING

Scenario

In the aeronautical industry, the landing gear represents one of the essential components for both aircrafts’ taking off and landing operations. Despite it is predominantly employed in the aforementioned scenarios, all its components undergo continual oscillations in temperature. Additionally, when in operation, although for a short period, the speeds involved are extremely high. Consequently, all moving elements are subjected to elevated temperatures.

Challenge

Special high-speed bearings are used in order toset the wheels in motion. These bearings have tobe lubricated and protected from potential infiltrations of dust or other contaminants from the external environment. For this application, ATP has studied a PTFE-based plastic material suitable for working under the mentioned conditions. ATP had to design a seal compatible with the client’s seats and develop a special solution that served a dual purpose: retaining grease and acting as a dust cover for the external part.

Solution

Operational temperatures for this application ranged between -55°C and +85°C. However, for a brief period, they could exceed 150°C, owing to the high speed. The material chosen by ATP for this purpose was Sintek FC, a special PTFE loaded with carbon fibers. This material, in addition to having excellent thermal stability, is particularly resistant to wear. As mentioned earlier, the seal must function to keep grease on the bearing side while preventing external dirt from penetrating inside. As the intrusion of solid particles could potentially could irreparably damage the internal moving parts, ATP devised a solution able to work specifically on the inner ring of the bearing(see scheme), using Sintek FC. This special material is produced within ATP’s PTFE laboratory, providing the customer with complete traceability of the finished component. Moreover, ATP can, upon request, provide a 3.1 certificate for the material used. The tests to compile the certificates are also conducted at ATP. Finally, it’s worth noting that ATP has held ISO 9100 certification in 2020.

Testimony

Thanks to the correct choice of material and the meticulous design, after the conducted tests, we can guarantee the proper functioning and durability of the landing gear. Furthermore, ATP has successfully proposed an effective solution, adapting to the dimensions we provided, thus avoiding the need to modify the entire project that had been previously developed. Well done, ATP!

See our general catalog for recommended materials depending on operating conditions.