Vesconite Bearings has created a cold-tolerance webpage (https://www.vesconite.com/solutions/vesconite-in-extreme-cold/) to explain how its bearing materials can cope with temperatures as low as -40ºC.
This webpage was motivated, in part, by the freezing weather that has affected the northern hemisphere lately.
Vesconite Bearings informs that Vesconite does not become brittle in cold temperatures. Testing shows that impact strength declines slightly between 20°C (68°F) and 0°C (32°F) but below this temperature is unaffected down to -30°C (-22°F). Based on generic data, impact strength is expected to remain similar down to -50ºC (-60ºF).
This information should reassure clients who experience major winter storms, blowing snow, freezing rain and howling winds, and have industrial applications that need to operate in these freezing conditions. A substantial advantage is that no special extreme cold greases are required because Vesconite products are self-lubricating.
Equally, while those in cold-affected industries may not be impacted by these unexpectedly harsh conditions, those with intermittent cold applications will also appreciate Vesconite Bearings’ experience with cold applications.
Vesconite Bearings has, for instance, had achievements in food-processing with a range of trolley and castor wheels that do not crack when exposed to alternating freezing cold in cold rooms and ambient-temperature warehouses.
Forklifts and materials-handling equipment in food processing plants and cold storage warehouses have similar results. Vesconite wear components cope well even where temperatures fluctuate widely during operation. Applications include axle bearings and thrust washers, mast bushings and forklift slides.
