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180 Bass Pro Mills Drive

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Plastic ball bearings used in water generators at a hydropower plant

Application Overview: The customer had a plant for converting wave energy into electric energy by means of floats arranged in a line. Within these floats was a mechanism that converted the up-and-down movement into electrical energy . A cable then transferred the energy to land.

What was needed?
Bearing support that increases service life and eliminates maintenance.

Requirements: Dimensional stability, no lubrication, corrosion resistance
Material: xirodur B180
Industry: Hydropower, Fluid Technology

Success for the customer:
With xiros plastic ball bearings, the encapsulation that would normally have been necessary for metal ball bearings was dispensed with.

xiros® plastic ball bearings in water generators

Problem

Because the system is continuously used in seawater, the customer was looking for a bearing that would increase system service life and eliminate maintenance. Due to waves, high lateral forces, called drift forces act on the float. The floats must be strong, low-friction and use as little lubricant as possible.

Solution

The pivot points outside the float, provide great stability against the drift forces caused by the waves. But this means that the joints are exposed. By switching to xiros polymer ball bearings, the customer was able to eliminate the enclosures necessary in conventional rolling bearings. Seawater flows through the polymer ball bearings and there is no risk of water polluting substances leaking through a bearing enclosure.