Gear micropitting initiation of ground and superfinished gears: Wrought versus pressed and sintered steel

This paper investigates the resistance of micropitting on two materials, using an FZG back-to-back test rig with CPT gears. The materials are wrought steel (16MnCr5) and a commercial powder metallurgical material (AstaloyTM Mo). Two finishing methods were studied: grinding and superfinishing. Experimental results show that the superfinishing prevented micropitting, but led to premature failure due to cracks in the root caused by tip-to-root interference. Micropitting was initiated at a higher load stage for the powder metallurgical steel compared to the ground wrought steel. The failure mechanisms were similar between materials with the same surface finish. The powder metallurgical steel showed subsurface initiated fatigue compared to the wrought ground steel having surface-initiated fatigue. Testing new finishing methods and materials, one has to be aware of the influence of the gear micro geometry.