Analysis of skid damage to cylindrical roller bearing of mainshaft of aeroengine

Skid damage to mainshaft bearings on aeroengines severely reduces aircraft reliability. In this study, a batch of cylindrical roller bearings extracted from mainshaft of inservice aeroengines with, skid damage after a certain service period, were collected, and damage features of the bearings were characterized and compared with those of the undamaged bearings and the new ones. Microscopic feature evaluation, elemental analysis as well as the composition distribution of the bearings were conducted using scanning electron microscopy with energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, X-ray diffractometry, X-ray photo-electron spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy and surface profilometry. Analysis results reveal that skidding itself is a very complex process initiated by the action of different mechanisms, and manifest in different wear types. The damage mechanism of skid damaged bearings was the joint consequence of abrasive wear, oxidation wear and delamination wear. All the aforementioned damage and wear led to severe aircraft failures.