Surface strength of silicon nitride in relation to rolling contact performance

Silicon nitride material has been traditionally used as bearing material due to its superior performance against bearing steel. Its successful application as a bearing element has led to the development of rolling contact applications in turbomachinery and automotive industries. In the case of latter, this is especially true for the engine manufacturing industry where its excellent rolling contact performance can make significant savings on warranty cost for engine manufactures. In spite of these advantages, the remaining limitation for their broader application is the high component machining cost. Further understanding of rolling contact performance of silicon nitride in relation to its surface integrity will enable engine manufacturers to produce components that meet the design requirements while at the same time reduce the machining cost. In the present study, the relationship between the C-sphere strength of a silicon nitride and its rolling contact fatigue life is investigated. The C-sphere test is used here to compare the strengths of three batches of sintered reaction-bonded silicon nitride (SRBSN) specimens with different subsurface quality induced by variation of machining parameters. In parallel, the rolling contact fatigue (RCF) performance of those machining conditions is studied on a modified four-ball tester. The results show that the most aggressively machined specimens have the weakest C-sphere strength and the shortest RCF life. This positive relationship can give component manufacturers a valuable reference when they make selections of candidate material and finishing standards.