Effects of design parameters on carrying capacity of a double-row tapered roller slewing bearing used in wind turbine

Abstract

Mechanical model with detailed design parameters of a rotor slewing bearing with the structure type of double-row tapered roller for supporting the rotor of the wind turbine was presented. The internal geometrical relationships of the rotor slewing bearing were established in the Cartesian coordinate system. The elastic contact deformations between each tapered roller and the raceways were expressed through the geometrical transformation. The mechanical model was established using the equilibrium relations in the rotor slewing bearing. The safety factor and the fatigue life which represents, respectively, the ability of resisting the rolling contact plastic deformation failure and the rolling contact fatigue failure of the rotor slewing bearing were obtained based on the solution of the mechanical model. Effects of the detailed design parameters such as axial clearance, contact angle, and roller semi-cone angle on the carrying capacity of the rotor slewing bearing were analyzed. The results show that right amount of small negative axial clearance, increase in contact angle, and decrease in roller semi-cone angle are advantageous for enhancing the carrying capacity of the rotor slewing bearing. This provides the basis for the reasonable value selection of the design parameters of the double-row tapered roller slewing bearing for supporting the rotor of the wind turbine.