Why Triple Ball Bearing?
In typical dual ball bearing turbochargers, the compressor and the turbine side bearings are created equally. However, the forces they experience are far from equal.
The turbine side angular contact bearing will have to handle the radial load of the turbine wheel, extreme vibration from exhaust pulses, extreme heat as well as the bulk of the thrust load in the axial plane. When compared to the turbine side bearing, the compressor side bearing will only deal with a fraction of the heat, vibration, radial & axial load. That being said, it is no surprise that whenever a dual ball bearing turbo fails, it is the turbine side bearing that has either a melted cage, or excessive wear on the bearing races.
Our Solution to this dilemma is to use two bearings on the turbine end of the CHRA, and one on the compressor side. This allows us to do a few things.
The turbine side angular contact bearing will have to handle the radial load of the turbine wheel, extreme vibration from exhaust pulses, extreme heat as well as the bulk of the thrust load in the axial plane. When compared to the turbine side bearing, the compressor side bearing will only deal with a fraction of the heat, vibration, radial & axial load. That being said, it is no surprise that whenever a dual ball bearing turbo fails, it is the turbine side bearing that has either a melted cage, or excessive wear on the bearing races.
Our Solution to this dilemma is to use two bearings on the turbine end of the CHRA, and one on the compressor side. This allows us to do a few things.
- Reduce the overall diameter of the bearings; which drastically reduces angular velocity, lowers friction and increases RPM capability
- Increase thrust load capability
- Increase shaft support which allows wheel to housing clearances to be tighter
- Introduce a level if redundancy that will ensure reliability in the harshest conditions
There's more to it too. To achieve the correct preload on the bearings, a cartridge was developed to house the bearings. This cartridge doubles as a heat sink that wicks heat out of the bearing races, and dissipates it into the surrounding oil and water jackets within the CHRA.
In comparison to traditional dual ball bearing cartridges, our Tri-Bearing system has proven to be more robust and reliable while still achieving low friction characteristics inherent of top ball bearing turbochargers.
In comparison to traditional dual ball bearing cartridges, our Tri-Bearing system has proven to be more robust and reliable while still achieving low friction characteristics inherent of top ball bearing turbochargers.
"Happy bearings = happy turbo = happy owner!"