Investigation of hydrogen generation in rolling and sliding contact with different lubricant formulations Untersuchung der Wasserstoffbildung beim Roll- und Gleitkontakt mit unterschiedlichen Schmierstoffformulierungen

Early failure of rolling bearings and the formation of white etching cracks is still a major problem in many technical applications. It is assumed that hydrogen is generated in tribological contact and leads to embrittlement of the rolling bearings, which fail as a result of the changed material properties. To investigate the hydrogen release of different lubricant formulations, an in-situ measurement method for an oscillating sliding test was developed at Fraunhofer IWM. This setup is based on an electrochemical cell, which detects the hydrogen generated in the tribological contact. This in-situ method allows the detection of hydrogen generation in tribological contact under real conditions.