France: Reliability – Made by Schaeffler: higher reliability for wind turbines

Cost-effective wind turbines need reliable components. As one of the world’s leading rolling bearing manufacturers and development partners to the wind turbine industry, Schaeffler has been producing bearings for wind turbines for over 30 years. With its extensive expertise, Schaeffler offers the right bearing solution for every wind turbine and a comprehensive concept which will further increase the reliability of wind turbines.

Rolling bearings play a key role in wind turbines. Both in on-shore and off-shore wind power, the demands for reliability in the components have increased greatly in recent years. The growth of the systems to multi-megawatt power plants leads to higher forces and torques, which puts stronger and stronger demands on the components. At the same time, downtimes and maintenance work on off-shore systems produce ever higher costs.

Schaeffler Wind Power Standard (WPOS)

With the wind power standard (WPOS), Schaeffler meets the increasing demands for reliability in wind power systems and components. This highest standard for products and processes means Schaeffler is ensuring optimum quality and reliability in wind power and is offering the same high standards of quality as it is already successfully offering in the automotive, aviation, and aerospace industries.

In order to ensure the high standards, Schaeffler relies on coordinated and transparent processes, defined change management, strict quality monitoring, and extensive documentation across the entire process chain in close cooperation with customers and suppliers. Targeted supplier development ensures the highest quality level right from the start, for example in the quality of the steel used. In this way, Schaeffler develops the optimum solution for every bearing position together with the customer. The FAG and INA products in accordance with the Schaeffler Wind Power Standard receive the WPOS label.

“Reliability – Made by Schaeffler” means even more. Along with the Wind Power Standard, Schaeffler offers more measures to increase the reliability of wind turbines.

Optimum design with state-of-the-art calculation and simulation programs

Along with many years of experience and extensive system expertise, the specialists at Schaeffler ensure the optimum design of wind power bearings with especially state-of-the-art calculation and simulation programs. Schaeffler takes the entire system into account, from individual rolling bearings and their components to the adjacent structures and the complete drive train, which is depicted and optimized with multi-body simulation programs developed in-house.

Realistic tests on Schaeffler ASTRAIOS

The calculations are enhanced and validated on powerful test rigs. Bearings up to 3.5 meters in outside diameter can be tested on one of the most state-of-the-art and biggest large-size bearing test rigs in the world. ASTRAIOS simulates the real loads and torques which occur in a wind turbine. Thus, Schaeffler contributes decisively to a faster and more reliable design of wind turbines and increases their cost-effectiveness and safety.

Asymmetric FAG spherical roller bearings for increased axial load carrying capacity

Asymmetric FAG spherical roller bearings feature a larger contact angle on the bearing row subject to axial loads and a smaller contact angle on the bearing row subject primarily to radial loads. The asymmetric contact angles reduce sliding movements in the drive train through an even higher axial rigidity of the bearing. Triondur C, a lamellar, amorphous hydrocarbon coating, additionally provides the bearings with reduced friction and high wear protection under mixed friction conditions.

Innovative solutions against white etching cracks (WEC)

Schaeffler has extensive testing options to create WEC, investigate their causes, and develop solution concepts for reducing the danger of WEC. These could, for example, be an optimized design of the bearing, the selection of a WEC-resistant material, or even an improved lubrication concept. The product solutions recommended by Schaeffler are through-hardened, black oxide coated rolling bearings. Along with other advantages, the Durotect B coating offers increased protection against WEC, which is statistically proven through extensive field experience.

High system availability thanks to condition monitoring

Schaeffler offers comprehensive services and products for condition monitoring, for example remote monitoring and diagnosis, offline measurements, endoscopy, thermography, and torque measurement. In this way, the costs for maintenance measures can be reduced and the availability of wind turbines increased.