Surface and vibration analysis of spur gear lubricated with palm olein-based grease.

Maintaining effective lubrication on the gear dynamics is essential in extending the life expectancy of a gear. Failure to protect the gear from severe friction during the gear mating will cause surface damage. Furthermore, surface damage on a gear will induce the vibration level as the operating time increases. In this study, two different lubrication conditions (dry and lubricated conditions) were employed to evaluate the effect of palm grease with nano molybdenum disulphide (MoS2) on the improvement of spur gear surface protection. The evaluated parameters were gear mass losses, surface roughness, and the vibration level at the gear mesh frequency (GMF). The lubricated condition was found to perform better in all parameters, indicating that the palm grease with nano MoS2 is suitable and effective for applications in a dynamic gear environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]