Wear 208 (1997) 177–183

A fracture mechanics model for the wear of gear flanks by pitting

S. Glodež a, H. Winter b, H.P. Stüwe c
a
University of Maribor, Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Maribor, Slovenia
b
Technical University of Munich, Laboratory for Machine Elements, Munich, Germany
c
University of Leoben, Institute of Metal Physics, Leoben, Austria

Received 14 August 1996; accepted 7 January 1997

Abstract

A new model for determination the pitting resistance of gear teeth flanks is presented. The theory of short cracks is utilised for computational
simulation of the fatigue process leading to pitting. The stress field in the contact area of meshing spur gears and functional relationship
between the stress intensity factor and the crack length are determined by the finite element method using an equivalent model of two cylinders.
The equivalent cylinders have the same radii as the curvature radii of gear teeth flanks in the inner point of a single teeth pair engagement,
which represents the worst loading case. Based on computational results and with consideration of some particular material parameters the
service life of gear flanks can then be determined from a number of stress cycles required for crack propagation from the initial to the critical
crack length, when surface pitting can be expected.
The model is applied to a real spur gear pair, which is also experimentally tested. The comparison of numerical and experimental results
shows a good agreement. Further theoretical and experimental investigations are necessary to develop a reliable method for the estimation of
gear life with a fracture mechanic model. q Elsevier Science S.A.
Keywords: Gears; Pitting; Fracture mechanics; Contact problems; Numerical methods; Experiments

1. Introduction

Surface pitting of gear teeth flanks is one of the most

common causes of gear operational failure [1,2]. The exam-
ination of real gear teeth indicates that surface pitting is usu-
ally restricted to a particular region of a gear tooth surface,
see Fig. 1. The damaged region spans roughly from the line
corresponding to the initial point of a single teeth pair contact
to the line defined by the pitch circle of the gear. In this region
the gear tooth surface is subjected to the highest contact
forces, dynamic effects and the damaging action of opposite
sliding and rolling velocities. When both engaging gears are
made of the same material, the pitting is expected to occur
first on the smaller gear, which has the higher number of
revolutions and hence the higher number of relative teeth Fig. 1. Pitting phenomenon on gear teeth flanks.
contacts per gear. Experimental evidence suggests that the
pitting is usually initiated at machining marks on the surface
or at material inclusions under the surface in the area of complete process leading to surface pitting. The model is also
maximum contact stresses [3]. capable of life expectancy estimation of gear teeth surfaces
Most techniques used for pitting prediction in gear design in regard to the damage caused by surface pitting.
today are based on empirical results, which are collated in the The complete fatigue process leading to pitting can be split
standardised procedures DIN, ISO and AGMA [4–6]. In this into the period required for the fatigue crack initiation and
paper an attempt is made to present an alternative model, the period needed for the fatigue crack propagation from the
based on fracture mechanics, which is able to describe the initial to the critical crack length, when part of the surface
0043-1648/97/$17.00 q 1997 Elsevier Science S.A. All rights reserved
PII S0043-1648(97)00008-2

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178 S. Glodež et al. / Wear 208 (1997) 177–183

layer is expected to break away. The resulting void is a surface E1E2

pit. EUs (3)
E2(1yv1)qE1(1yv22)
2

In single crystals the crack initiation phase can take up a

considerable part of the fatigue life, and failure is almost
instantaneous thereafter. In contrast, in polycrystalline mate-
rials the cracks can be initiated almost immediately upon load
application owing to their imperfect structure. In these mate-
rials many possible stress concentrations exist on or under
the contact surfaces; grain boundaries, triple points, machin-
ing marks, inclusions and large notches, which canseparately,
or in a variety of combinations initiate a fatigue crack. Such
a crack will propagate in a certain predictable manner until it
is either decelerated by a microstructural barrier or a reducing
stress-field, or until it is extended to the critical length when
its growth becomes uncontrolled [7].
2. Simulation of contact problems in gears
For the purpose of easier consideration of gear contact
parameters in numerical computations it is beneficial to
replace the complicated gear pair contact geometry with an
equivalent model of two contacting cylinders, see Fig. 2. The
equivalent cylinders have the same curvature radii as the gear
teeth flanks in any chosen point on the engagement line. This
permits the use of the Hertz contact theory, where the contact
pressure distribution in the contact area of two cylinders can
be analytically described with [8]
2P
p(x)s 2xb2yx2 (1)
pb
in which P is the normal force per unit length of equivalent
cylinders (gear width) and b is the half-width of the contact
area, which is given as [8]
4PR
bs y (2)
pEU
where R and E are the equivalent radius and Young’s mod-
U
Rs
R1R2
(4)
R1qR2
The normal force P is a function of the maximum contact
pressure p0sp(xs0), which is given by
2P PEU
p0s s y (5)
pb pR
Utilising the Coulomb friction law the tangential loading
q(x) due to sliding of gear teeth flanks can be easily deter-
mined from the normal loading p(x) and the coefficient of
friction m with
q(x)smp(x) (6)
If it is assumed, that external loading conditions of rolling
and sliding contact between meshing gear teeth can be accu-
rately described with Eqs. (1)–(6) one can then conven-
iently analyse the contacting gear teeth by using any general
purpose finite element code, without the need for any special
algorithms needed for solving contact problems.
3. Fatigue crack propagation under contact loading
By considering small crack lengths in the contact area of
meshing gears, the short crack theory can be used for the
description of crack propagation from the initial to the critical
crack length, when the pits occur on the surface. The short
crack growth is characterised by a successive blocking of the
persistent slip bands with grain boundaries, which implies
the discontinuous character of the crack growth process. The
crack growth rate da/dN is assumed to be given by the crack
tip plastic displacement dpl [9,10]
da
sC dm 0
(7)
dN 0 pl

ulus, respectively, defined as where C0 and m0 are material constants that are determined
experimentally. In view of the numerical simulation it is
beneficial to express the crack tip plastic displacement dpl in
terms of the stress intensity factor K. This relationship has
been provided in the form [9]
2k x1yn x 2
dpls K a (8)
Gxp n

where G is the shear modulus, and ks1 or 1yn depending

Fig. 2. (a) Contact model of two gear flanks and (b) equivalent model of
two cylinders [5].
on whether screw or edge dislocations are being considered,
with n being Poisson’s ratio. Parameter n describes the rela-
tive position of the crack tip to the grain boundary (see
Fig. 3). The number of stress cycles required for a crack to
propagate through each crystal grain is obtained with inte-
gration of Eq. (7)

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 S. Glodež et al. / Wear 208 (1997) 177–183
Fig. 3. Schematic representation of the short crack growth.
aj
Njs | Cdda m0
0 pl
js1, 2, 3, «, z
ajy1
in which z is the number of grains transversed by the crack
(zsa/D).
Integration limits ajy1 and aj in Eq. (9) are in each grain
determined in relation to the critical value of parameter n.
When n reaches the critical value nsnc, the slip band extends
to the next grain. The critical parameter nc is given by [9]
K p Kth
ncscos ≥ y ž 1y xnc /¥
2s y cnc K 4.1. Numerical determination of service life of gear pair
where s y is the yield stress and Kth is the threshold stress
intensity factor. This equation can be solved iteratively by
Newton’s method in three or four iterations by taking ncs1
as the initial value. The total number of stress cycles N
required for a short crack to propagate from the initial crack
length a0 to any crack length a can then be determined as
z
Ns 8 Nj
js1
To find the solution to Eq. (8) the relationship between
the stress intensity factor and the crack length Ksf(a) must
be known. Here, the virtual crack extension method (VCE)
is used in the framework of the finite element analysis for
determination of the stress intensity factor at the crack tip
[11]. The VCE method is based on the criteria of released
elastic energy, which serves as a basis for determination of
the stress intensity factor. Using the VCE method the stress
intensity factor is determined in several different possible
crack extension directions and the crack is actually extended
in the direction of the maximum stress intensity factor. Crack
extensions are incremental, where the size of the crack incre-
ment is prescribed in advance. The incremental procedure is
stopped when the stress intensity factor reaches the critical
value KIc, i.e. when uncontrolled crack growth occurs and
full fracture is expected. That way one can numerically deter-
mine the functional relationship Ksf(a) and the critical
crack length ac [12].
4. Practical example
The model presented is applied to a real spur gear pair with
the basic data given in Table 1. The gear pair is subjected to
179
Table 1
Basic data of spur gear pair
Parameter Pinion Gear
Normal module mns4.5 mm
Number of teeth z1s16 z2s24
Pressure angle on pitch circle ans208
Coefficient of profile shift x1s0.182 x2s0.171
Centre distance es91.5 mm
Face width b1sb2s14 mm
(9) the operational torque Ts183.4 Nm. The gears are made of
flame hardened steel 42CrMo4 (see [5]) with the average
prior austenite grain diameter Ds0.05 mm and the surface
hardness f55 HRc [13]. It is difficult to characterise the
internal defect structure of a colony of martensitelathsformed
within one grain of austenite. Current work is being devoted
to this problem. Until a better solution is available the present
model treats the martensite as a continuum with only the
austenite boundaries acting as effective barriers.
(10)
For the purpose of easier consideration of gear contact
parameters in numerical computations the complicated gear
pair geometry is replaced with the equivalent model of two
cylinders (see Fig. 2). The equivalent cylinders have the
same radii as the curvature radii R1 and R2 of the gear teeth
flanks in the inner point of a single pair engagement, which
represents the worst loading case. These curvature radii are
(11)
R1s10.270 mm for the pinion and R2s24.655 mm for the
gear [13]. Such substitution permits the use of the Hertz
theory for determination of contact load distribution over the
contact area, see Section 2. The maximum contact pressure
p0s1406 N mmy2, which is required for determination of
normal force P in Eq. (5) has been determined according to
the standard procedure DIN 3990 [4]. The normal and tan-
gential contact load distributions p(x) and q(x) are calcu-
lated according to Eqs. (1) and (6). Since only smooth
surfaces with good lubrication are considered, the recom-
mended value for the coefficient of friction ms0.04 is used
[14]. The maximum equivalent stress and its position have
been determined by using the finite element model shown
in Fig. 4. The finite element analysis of the discretised
equivalent model subjected to contact loading conditions
provided the value of the maximum equivalent stress
Fig. 4. Numerical model for determination of (s EM)max and H.
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180 S. Glodež et al. / Wear 208 (1997) 177–183

1/2
2(1yn ) 2
dpls xc ya2 2801.9y5811.1 a
≥ ž /
Gxp mm
a
sq8608.9 žmm/¥ N mm y2
(13)

where Gs8=104 N mmy2 is the shear modulus and n s0.3

is Poisson’s ratio. To find the solution to Eq. (10) the yield
Fig. 5. Numerical simulation of the fatigue crack growth. stress of the material s y and threshold SIF Kth are needed. In
our case it is assumed that the recommended values
(s EM)maxs798 N mmy2 and its position at a depth s ys900 N mmy2 and Kths269 N mmy3/2 [15] for the
Hs0.126 mm under the contact surface. basic material can be used (the values for the surface layer
The equivalent model shown in Fig. 4 is also used for are not known). Using experimentally determined material
numerical simulations of fatigue crack propagation. In the constants C0f120 mmy2 cycley1 and m0f3 [15] the num-
model it is assumed that the embryonic crack is initiated in ber of stress cycles required for crack propagation through
the middle of the grain positioned at the point of maximum all six grains can then be determined using Eqs. (9) and (11).
equivalent stress. The local finite element discretisation The results are summarised in Table 2.
around the initial crack is shown in Fig. 5 (Step 1), where
the special fracture finite elements are used around the crack 4.2. Experimental testing
tip. During the finite element analysis using the VCE method
the computed stress intensity factor is very small at the begin-
ning but later increases as the crack propagates through the Experimental testing of the spur gear pair has been per-
material in the direction of the tangential contact loading (see formed on the FZG-test rig shown in Fig. 6 [13]. The test
Fig. 4). Numerical simulations have shown that at the rig for the FZG-pitting test is a back-to-back spur gear rig
moment when the crack reaches the contact surface the stress (91.5 mm centre distance) with a closed power circuit. The
intensity factor in the other crack tip (left) usually exceeds standard lubrication is temperature controlled dip lubrication.
the critical value KIc of most metallic materials. This implies The gears have been subjected to the operational loading
that when the crack reaches the contact surface the corre- torque and the number of revolutions of the pinion
sponding crack length as0.3 mm can be taken as the critical n1s2175 miny1. Four test runs have been performed on four
crack length ac. The number of grains transversed by the crack equal gear pairs, always with a new lubricant of the same
is then zsac/Ds6. type (INA-EPOL SP 220 with kinematic viscosity
On the basis of discrete numerical results the functional n 40s220 mm2 sy1 and n 100s17.9 mm2 sy1 [13]). The test
relationship between the stress intensity factor K and thecrack runs have been interrupted at certain load cycle intervals and
length a can then be determined by using the least square gears have been inspected with regard to any occurrence of
method, which results in pitting on gear teeth flanks. When pits of the size about
0.5 mm have been observed on any tooth flank, the test run
a
1/2
a was stopped and the corresponding number of loading cycles
≥
Ks 2801.9 žmm/ žmm/
y5811.1 was recorded (see Table 3). Experimental results in Table 3
have then been subjected to statistical analysis.
For statistical representation of experimental results it is
3/2
a
q8608.9 žmm/ ¥ N mm y3/2
(12) assumed that Ni (is1 to n) is the number of loading cycles
required for pits to occur on gear teeth flanks, where n is the
By combining Eqs. (8) and (12) the crack tip plastic dis- number of samples. One can determine the mean value N# and
placement can be expressed as a function of the crack length the standard deviation s 2 with standard statistical equations
a in the following manner [16]
Table 2
Numerical results of the crack growth simulation
Grain j Index i The critical value of parameter n Integration limits ajy1 and aj (mm) Stress cycles Nj
1 1 0.89 a0/2s0.0125 a1s0.0223 2.831=106
2 3 0.78 a1s0.0223 a2s0.0585 3.562=105
3 5 0.76 a2s0.0585 a3s0.0950 1.013=105
4 7 0.85 a3s0.0950 a4s0.1487 7.134=104
5 9 0.92 a4s0.1487 a5s0.2070 5.373=104
6 11 0.95 a5s0.2070 a6s0.2612 3.757=104
NsN1qN2qN3qN4qN5qN6s3.451=106

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 S. Glodež et al. / Wear 208 (1997) 177–183 181

Fig. 6. FZG back-to-back test rig: 1, pinion; 2, test gear; 3, loading gear; 4, load application coupling; 5, blocking bolts; 6, load adjustment handle; 7, torque
measuring coupling; 8, oil temperature measuring device; 9, test gear case; 10, pinion shaft; 11, gear shaft; 12, EM.
n
# 1 Ni
Ns (14)
8
nis1

1 n # 2
s 2s 8 (NiyN) (15)
nis1
The chosen frequency function f(N), used for the deter-
mination of interval [N1, N2] in which pitting will occur on
teeth flanks with the probability P(N), should satisfy the
following conditions [16]:
1. f(N)G0 for every N (16a)
q`

2. | f(N) dNs1 (16b)

y`

N2

3. | f(N) dNsP(N -N ) 1 2 (16c)

N1

Practical considerations of the fatigue crack propagation

process show that the Weibull and lognormal distributions Fig. 7. The load cycle interval [N1, N2] in which the pitting will occur with
are best suited for this type of problem. In this paper the probability P(N).
lognormal distribution is utilised. For this type of distribution,
the variable (the number of loading cycles N) can take values with
in the interval [0, q`), which is applicable to the fatigue #2
N
process of gear teeth flanks. The frequency function is defined # Usln
N (18)
as [16] xs qN#
2 2

1 1 ln NyN #U
f(N)s U exp y ≥ ž /¥ (17) s2
(s U)2sln 1q # 2 (19)
Ns x2p 2 U
s N ž /
Table 3 The interval [N1, N2] in which pitting will occur on teeth
Experimental results of FZG—pitting test flanks with the probability P(N) can then be estimated by
Experiment Number of load cycles Ni required for using Eqs. (16) and (17). The results are shown in Fig. 7.
No. occurrence of pitting on teeth flanks
4.3. Comparison of numerical and experimental results
1 3.262=106 (25 h)
2 3.915=106 (30 h) Comparing the numerically estimated total number of
3 3.001=106 (23 h) stress cycles required for the occurrence of pitting,
4 2.610=106 (20 h)
Ns3.451=106, with the statistical representation of the

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182 S. Glodež et al. / Wear 208 (1997) 177–183

Fig. 8. Comparison of (a) numerically and (b)–(e) experimentally obtained pit shapes on the contact surfaces.

experimentally determined number of stress cycles Table 4

(Table 4), e.g. Ns2.629=106 to 3.765=106 stress cycles Comparison of numerical and experimental results
with 90% probability, one can observe a reasonable agree- Numerical Experiment
ment of results. The comparison of pit shapes on the contact model
surfaces is even more convincing, see Fig. 8. N (cycles) Probability N (cycles)
P(N) in
(%)

5. Conclusions 3.451=106 50 2.900=106 to 3.494=106

A new model for determining the pitting resistance of gear
teeth flanks is presented in this paper. In the model the theory
of short crack growth is used to describe the fatigue process
in the contact area of spur gears. An equivalent model of two
cylinders with radii equal to the appropriate curvature radii
of gear flanks in any point on the engagement line is used to
study the fatigue process in the contact area. The stress field
in the contact area and dependence of stress intensity factor
on the crack length are determined by the finite element
method where the required functional relationship between
the stress intensity factor at the crack tip and the crack length
is determined using the VCE method. On the basis of numer-
ical results, and with consideration of some particular mate-
rial parameters, the service life of gear teeth flanks is then
determined from the number of stress cycles required for a
crack to propagate from the initial to the critical crack length,
when the crack reaches the surface and pitting occurs. The
model is used for determining the pitting resistance of a real
spur gear pair that has been experimentally tested. The com-
parison of numerical and experimental results shows a rea-
sonable agreement.
70 2.771=106 to 3.622=106
90 2.629=106 to 3.765=106
95 2.590=106 to 3.803=106
99 2.558=106 to 3.835=106
The model developed combines different theoretical mod-
els for the simulation of various phases of the fatigue process
of gear teeth flanks. Thus, the model is in principle able to
predict the service life of a gear, since it accounts for a com-
plete fatigue process leading to the occurrence of pitting.
However, the model must be further improved with additional
theoretical, numerical and especially experimental research,
since it relies mostly on experimentally determined material
parameters. Moreover it must be investigated to what extend
the model can be applied to loads and dimensions other than
considered here.
Final remark: In future investigations other hypotheses
concerning the origin of the initial crack must be investigated
and the influence of inclusions, technical surfaces (rough-
ness), lubricant pressure (EHL) and chemical reactions(EP-
lubricants) must be considered as well.

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