A Research Paper on Gear Materials

EMG: 3210

Gear Mechanism

Mr. Ayub Omondi

Gears are essential components in Mechanical engineering and Machine design that transmits

motion and power between rotating bodies such as shafts. They are rotating circular machine

parts with cut teeth that enables meshing and thus transmission of motion between the shafts.

The existence of gears was first seen in China in the 14th century, where they were mainly used

for chariots, and have remarkably undergone numerous improvements in the design and

manufacturing considerations such as size and properties.

Today, Gears are among the top most important components in mechanical devices used

to convey power and motion between moving components, for example in automotive gearbox.

In addition to conveying motion and power, they enable changes in speeds of rotation, direction

and torque from the driving gears to the driven gears. The driver gear is connected to a shaft

which rotates from some source of power such as electrical, mechanical or chemical energy.

The rotating river gear then meshes with the cogs of the driven gear that is connected to a

shaft, and the motion is transmitted to the rest of the parts connected to this shaft, such as the

wheels. There are many factors which determines the speeds and power such as the gear teeth

ratios, cog sizes, ratings of source of power, lubrications and friction among other factors. The

selection and applications of gears depends on many different factors, for example, the

mechanical properties of the gears, types of gears such as helical, spur, bevel, rack and pinion,

and worm gears, shapes and sizes of gears.

In the design and manufacture of gears, it is very critical to select the appropriate and best

materials and the manufacturing processes to ensure that gears have the desired properties in the

respective application. These materials include ceramics, stainless steel, steel alloys, titanium,
nylon, fiber, cast iron, bronze and brass among many others. This paper will focus on the gear

materials, properties, considerations, applications and manufacturing methods for each material.

Gear Materials

As mentioned earlier, there are different materials used in the manufacture of different

types of gears depending on the specific applications, load conditions, operating environment

among other factors. It is therefore paramount for engineers to focus on the material selection for

optimal performance and to achieve the desired properties. Some of the main materials such as

steel alloy, ceramics, titanium among others are extensively discussed below.

Steel Alloy

Steel is an alloy made of iron and carbon with improved strength and fracture resistance

compared to other forms of iron. Iron is the base of steel and it can take body-centered cubic or

face-centered cubic crystalline structures depending on the temperature. Pure iron has little

resistance to atoms slippage making it ductile, soft and formed easily. Adding carbon to iron

gives steel unique properties which include hardness, annealing, yield strength, tensile strength,

tempering behavior, and quenching behavior, and the extent of these properties are controlled by

varying the amount of carbon.

Steel alloy may also contain some additional material contents which gives them different

properties. For example, an addition of about 11% of chromium is incorporated in the iron-

carbon mixture (steel) to make stainless steel, which is resistant to corrosion and oxidation.

Chromium gives stainless steel very high tensile properties and low cost and finds its

applications in buildings, tools, cars, infrastructure, machines, weapons and many others. Such

inclusions are meant to harden and prevent movement of dislocations.

Steel alloy offers high tensile strength providing gears operating in heavy duty

applications with the ability to withstand substantial loads and stresses. In addition, steel alloy

provides good case hardening capabilities allowing for the development of a hard surface layer

through processes like carburizing or nitriding, contributing to wear resistance and durability.

Also, toughness is essential in the manufacture of gears exposed to dynamic load conditions.

Steel alloys are engineered to possess impact resistance ensuring that gears can withstand

sudden shock or impact load without undergoing brittle fracture. Steel alloys also offers wear

resistance to gears which are exposed to high friction environment and thus enhancing the

longevity and performance of these gears. Cyclic loading which leads to fatigue in gears is

overcome by using steel alloy manufacture, thus allowing the gears to endure repetitive loading

without failure.

Steel alloys also provides gears with good machinability properties through processes

such as turning, milling and machining, thus facilitating the production of precise gear profiles.

steel alloys are also subject to effective heat treatment enabling processes such as quenching and

tempering to harden and toughen gears. Corrosion is one of the leading problems that mechanical

components such as gears have to deal with on daily basis of operation.

Thus, it is essential to counter the effects of corrosion to enhance functionality and

increase the durability of the gears. Steel alloy incorporates inclusions such as chromium to

increase corrosion and oxidation resistance through forming stainless steel and thus crucial for

use in the manufacture of gears. Steel alloys have low coefficient of thermal expansion ensuring
good dimensional stability, minimizing changes in size and shape under temperature variations

and therefore ensuring precision and reliability of gears in diverse operating conditions.

Other properties exhibited by steel alloy when used in gears include good formability

allowing manufactures to shape gears using various forming processes such as forging and

casting, weldability properties which allow the fabrication of complex gear assemblies and

economic feasibility balancing performance, availability, and affordability.

Applications

Steel alloy finds extensive application in the manufacture of gears across wide range of

industries due to their versatility and desirable properties. Transmission gears in automotive

industry are manufactured using steel alloys, particularly high strength and wear resistance

grades. These gears endure significant loads and are essential for the smooth functioning of the

transmission system.

Steel alloys having high strength, fatigue resistance, and weight efficiency are employed

in the manufacture of gears for aircraft propulsion systems, landing gears mechanisms, and other

critical aerospace applications. In addition, gears used in heavy machineries, such as those in

cranes, mining equipment and construction are manufactured using robust steel alloys. Gears

used in the power transmission systems are made from steel alloy to provide high tensile strength

and wear resistance ensuring reliability and efficient power transfer.

Gears in railway rolling stock and locomotive systems are made from steel alloys in

railway industry to withstand demand for frequent starts and stops, varying speeds and heavy

loads. In addition, propulsion gears used in ship engines in marine industry are composed from

steel alloys, which provides corrosion resistance in the maritime environment. The machinability
and dimensional stability of steel alloys makes them good in the fabrication of machine tools

gears with high tolerances. Steel alloys with bio compatible properties are used in the

manufacture of gears used in medical equipment such as imaging and surgical instruments.

Moreover, Consumer electronics like printers, cameras and audio equipment contains small gears

which are fabricated from steel alloys.

Manufacturing Methods

Manufacturing of gears using steel alloys involves various manufacturing methods which

are chosen depending on factors such as complexity, design, production volume, precision, and

cost considerations. To begin with, machining is one of the main manufacturing methods used in

the fabrication of gears using steel alloys. It is a subtractive method for example, milling, that

involves the removal of material from the work piece to achieved the desired shape.

Lathe machines, milling machines, among others, are some of the machines used in the

begetting of high precision, versatile, and complex geometry gears especially for low medium

production. Another method used in the synthesis of steel alloy gears is hobbing. It is a gear

cutting process that involves the use of a specialized tool known as a hob to generate the gear

tooth profile. The hob is fed into the rotating workpiece.

This method is mainly used in the manufacture of precise spur, helical, cylindrical and

worm gears. Shaping is another manufacturing method used in the manufacture of steel gears. It

is a process that utilizes a shaper machine, in which the cutter reciprocates vertically, cutting into

the workpiece to produce tooth profile. It is suitable for low and medium production volumes,

simpler and cost-effective gear designs, and is mainly used for making spur and internal gears. In

addition, broaching is also used in the making of steel gears, especially internal, splines and
certain external gears. It a process that uses a broach, a cutting tool with multiple teeth, to

remove material of the workpiece progressively.

Another main method used in the making of steel gears is forging. Steel is heated to very

high temperatures and shaped into gear blanks with desired rough shape using compressive

forces. This method is mostly used for high production volume and there is very little material

wastage. Casting is one of the main methods for manufacturing steel gears for industrial use. It

involves heating steel into molten state and pouring the molten steel into ready premade mold

profiles that have the shapes of gears. Casting is cost effective for intricate shapes and allows

near net shaped production. In addition, powder metallurgy is another method used in the

fabrication of steel gears. It involves compacting metal powders into a desired shapes and

sintering them to create a solid mass.

Ceramics

Ceramics are among the core engineering materials that play a vital role in various

industries, offering unique properties that make them indispensable in specific applications, for

example in the manufacture of gears. Ther are inorganic, non-metallic materials typically made

from compounds between metallic and non-metallic elements. They are mainly composed of

oxides, nitrides, and carbides, for example, alumina, silicon carbide, zirconia and various

refractory compounds.

These compositions give ceramics properties such as hardness, brittleness and high

temperature resistance, which are desired engineering material properties depending on the

applications. The composition s of ceramics forms typically ordered and repetitive structures,

contributing to their unique properties and influencing electrical, other mechanical, and thermal
behavior. Ceramics are usually produced through powder compaction followed by sintering and

slip casting. Ceramics are important in the manufacture of electronics, for example, insulators,

capacitors and piezoelectric devices, medical implants and dental applications and structural

components especially those in high-temperature environments.

Properties

Ceramics offer unique properties that make them increasingly attractive for gear

manufacturing, especially in demanding applications. To begin with ceramics like zirconia and

silicon nitride are exceptional hard materials providing wear resistance which is ideal for gears to

reduce the likelihood of surface wear and extend the lifespan. Ceramics also offer high strength

and fracture toughness compares to metals allowing for thinner gears with the same loas capacity

and thus reducing weight and inertia, improving efficiency and acceleration.

In addition, ceramics retain their strength and stability at much higher temperatures thus

making them ideal for high temperature application gears such as those used in race cars and

aerospace. Ceramics are also largely resistant to corrosion, even in very harsh environmental

conditions with chemicals, lubricants and water, which eliminates the need for corrosion resistant

coatings and reduces maintenance costs.

Ceramics exhibit minimal thermal expansion and contraction compared to metals, leading

to more precise gear profiles and consistent performance across a wider temperature range.

However, ceramics can be brittle and susceptible to chipping or cracking especially if subjected

to sudden impact loads or high stress concentrations, as well as machining difficulty due to their

hardness, and these are some of the drawbacks of using ceramics in the manufacture of gears.

Applications
 Ceramic materials have gained attention and popularity in the industrial manufacturing of

gears due to their unique properties as discussed above. Ceramics have been adopted in the

manufacture of gears used in aerospace industry where high strength, lightweight and resistance

to high temperature is crucial. These gears may include bevel, planetary and spur gears. In

addition, transmission system gears in the automotives are manufactured using ceramics to

improve fuel efficiency and reduce wear.

These gears include planetary, worm and helical gears. Heavy-duty industrial machinery

gears are also being manufactured using ceramics to provide wear resistance and durability

properties. Examples of such gears are spur gears, helical gears and bevel gears. Also, gears used

in high temperature environments, such as in metal processing and kilns, benefit from the

ceramics ability to withstand elevated temperatures.

Such gears include spur gears, worm and bevel gears. Gears in precision instruments such

as robots and optical instruments utilize ceramics due to their dimensional stability, low friction

and minimal backlash. Moreover, in medical technology, ceramic gears are used in joint

replacements, dental implants, and other medical devices due to their wear resistance and

biocompatibility.

Manufacturing Methods

The manufacturing of gears using ceramics involves several specialized methods to

harness the unique properties of ceramic materials. There are various key manufacturing methods

for gears using ceramics as discussed below. Powder metallurgy is one of the manufacturing

methods employed in the manufacture of gears using ceramics. Powder composed of silicon
nitride or alumina, is typically prepared, then compacted using a press, and the green body

undergoes sintering thus enhancing the mechanical properties of the gears.

In addition, in injection molding, ceramics powder is mixed with a binder to create a

feedstock suitable for injection molding. The feedstock is injected into a mold cavity under high

pressure, then subjected to debinding process to remove the binder material and finally

undergoes sintering resulting in a dense ceramic gear. Also, hot Isostatic Pressing is also a

method similar to powder metallurgy in which the ceramics are compacted into a green body.

The green body is then placed to high temperature and pressure in an inert gas

atmosphere which helps eliminate porosity and improve the density and mechanical properties of

the gears. Slip casting is another method for manufacturing ceramic gears. Powder is mixed with

a liquid, poured into a mold and the liquid removed to form a solid green body and finally

sintering to achieve the final gear. Also, Additive manufacturing (3D Printing) such as selective

laser sintering or binder jetting is used to selectively fuse ceramics to create the gear geometry

and then post processing treatments to achieve the desired mechanical properties.

Moreover, ceramics are machined in their green state (pre-sintering) to achieve precise

gear dimensions and then subjected to diamond grinding to achieve high precision and surface

finish. Finally, surface treatment such as coatings for improved wear resistance, is carried to

enhance specific properties.

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