2009
ASME Internal Combustion Engine Division 2009 Fall Technical Conference
SLIDE BEARING TYPES FOR COMBUSTION ENGINES DESIGNED FOR
UPCOMING EMISSION REGULATIONS
Falko Langbein / Miba Gleitlager GmbH
Alexander Eberhard / Miba Gleitlager GmbH
ABSTRACT
Intelligent handling of our limited energy resources and
the demand to reduce emissions are today the main drivers for
developing efficient combustion engines. Therefore slide
bearings and also other parts of the powertrain are facing
major challenges caused by: Significantly increased operating
pressure, temperature and sliding speed as well as the use of
new lubricants and fuels. Furthermore, a ban of hazardous
elements (e.g. lead, cadmium) in the applied materials is
looming.
With respect to above mentioned facts, the mechanical and
tribological boundary conditions for bearings in future engines
are subjected to change immensely. These changes can only be
met by new lining materials and bearing types.
From the standpoint of strength, the main critical factors
are the soft phases - mainly tin and lead - added to both
aluminum and copper based bearing alloys to obtain the
necessary tribological behavior. Soft phases are limited in their
temperature stability and in addition, lead is an environmental
critical element and is restricted.
For upcoming engine generations even novel aluminum-
tin alloys will reach their performance limits and the classical
leaded-bronze material as basis for tri-metal and sputter
coatings can no longer cope with the life-time expectations. In
addition, corrosion issues will come up due to new oil additives
in truck and high speed engines.
The present paper proposes, for the application in high
speed and truck engines, new slide bearing types with
appropriate characteristics and the desired performance
required by engine designers: A high strength, thermally stable
aluminum alloy with excellent mechanical properties by using
September 27-30, 2009, Lucerne, Switzerland
ICEF2009-14054
Matthias Loidl / Miba Gleitlager GmbH
Robert Mergen / Miba Gleitlager GmbH
re-crystallization inhibition mechanisms; a series of new
solutions on the basis of a lead-free bronze linings having
brilliant thermo-mechanical process capabilities resulting in
high strength properties. Adequate tribological behavior is
gained by combination of the new lining alloys with different
surface layers.
Fundamental working principles, development work and
first application results of the new bearing types are presented
in relation to existing solutions.
INTRODUCTION
To meet more and more stringent engine emission
regulations worldwide, the engine bearing manufacturers are
working on new concepts to fulfill the current and upcoming
requirements of the automotive and heavy duty truck engine
builders. The new emission regulations consequently lead to
changed work conditions for the bearings including higher
mechanical loads, increased temperatures and new chemical
environments caused by alternative fuels and gases [1-4].
Beside the supplemented requirement profile the bearing
manufactures are confronted with a strict ban of hazardous
elements such as lead for the new bearing materials.
Most aluminum based bearing alloys are already lead-free.
The tribological active soft phase, lead, has been replaced by
tin providing a similar seizure performance. The latest
developments on the aluminum-tin area were focused on
combining a higher tin content up to 25 wt.% for improved
tribological behavior with adequate strength for improved
fatigue lifetime [5]. Even these developments of aluminum-tin
bearing materials will no longer work properly due to limited
high-temperature strength and corrosion resistance caused by
tin. A new development approach shows promising results in
1 Copyright © 2009 by ASME
which tin-free aluminum based alloys exhibit increased
thermo-mechanical properties achieved by a re-crystallization
inhibition mechanism. In combination with new coatings, such
as the polymer based running layer Synthec® a sufficient
tribological performance has been obtained.
More demanding performance goals of engine
manufacturers and environmental regulations which came into
effect the last few years forced engine builders and sub
suppliers all over the world to overcome the use of hazardous
elements such as lead, cadmium, etc. This strongly affects the
slide bearing industry where copper-lead based alloys are
widely used in higher loaded engines because of their positive
influence on their tribological features such as seizure
resistance. To overcome the discrepancy in achieving good
tribological behaviors without using lead in copper, new alloys
on the basis of brass and bronze are being developed. These
materials can achieve a wide range of hardness requirements
via specifically tailored post processing routines and can
therefore be used either in highly loaded bushings applications
or half shells.
NOMENCLATURE
LM = Light microscope
SEM = Scanning electron microscope
AlSn+ = Latest developed serial Aluminum-tin
based bearing alloy
AlSn20Cu = Standard 20 wt.% tin Al-base alloy for
bi-metal bearings
AlSn40 = Standard 40 wt.% tin Al-base alloy for
bi-metal bearings
PbBz = High leaded 22 wt.% Pb standard
bronze for tri-metal bearings
AlZn4,5 = Standard 7000 series alloy for bearing
applications
Al-HIPO = Newly developed high strength
aluminum based bearing alloy
Rp0,2 = Yield strength
Rm = Tensile strength
A5 Elongation
HT = Heat treatment
CuPb22Sn2 = Copper, 22 wt% lead and 2 wt% tin
CuSn4Zn1 = Copper, 4wt% tin and 1 wt% zinc
CuSn8Zn1 = Copper, 8 wt% tin, 1 wt% zinc
CuSn5Zn1+ = Copper, 5 wt% tin, 1 wt% zinc plus
special trace elements
TEST PROCEDURES
State of the art laboratory testing facilities e.g. chemical
and metallographic analysis (LM and SEM), hardness and
tensile testing have been used. Advanced bearing material
developments require the use of special test equipment for
performance evaluation before the first field test is done. The
following tests are adapted to the needs of a bearing
manufacturer:
Fatigue resistance
The alternate bending test measures the quantities of load
cycles and thus the time until the sample fails by a given
bending force (see Figure 1). It is a very appropriate method to
determine the fatigue properties of flat samples consisting of a
laminar metallic compound structure as it is common for
multilayer bearings.
Technical requirements
• Identifications of alternate fatigue strength on
bearing material to DIN 50142 at room temperature
Design features
•Number of test equipments: 8
•Sample dimensions: L/W/H = 90/17,5/≤10mm
•Maximum bending moment: ± 15 Nm
•Maximum swinging angle: ± 12°
•Test frequency: 25Hz
[+σwb ]
Tension
0 Cycles
Compression
[-σwb]
Figure 1: Test arrangement for alternate bending tests
Seizure resistance
Tribological properties are generally the response of a
sliding system on a variety of influencing quantities such as
loads, speeds, oil temperatures etc. and are difficult to measure
as a whole. For bearing materials, the determination of the
seizure load has proven to give a good evaluation base for the
tribological capability of systems under mixed friction
conditions.
For the specific purpose of the seizure measurements, the
load cycles always start with a running-in period which either
can be done static but also dynamic; the seizure limit is then
attained by stepwise increasing the load. Besides the seizure
resistance the test programs also acquires fatigue and wear
properties. Test data is continuously recorded for full
evaluation after the test is complete. Figure 2 shows the
bearing test bench including the general performance ranges
and conditions.
To gain statistical results, a minimum of four test runs are
performed with each material variant.
2 Copyright © 2009 by ASME
 required. Second, to improve the bonding, thermally activated
Bearing Diameter 48 mm diffusion processes far above the re-crystallization temperature
Bearing Width 12 mm
Clearance 1,6 ‰
of today’s aluminum bearing alloys are performed. This leads
Back temperature 140°C to a significant loss of mechanical strength of the lining alloy
Oil SAE10 due to re-crystallization and recovery processes.
Inlet temperature 110°C
Speed 12,56 m/s
Load static The commonly used alloy strengthening by age-hardening
dynamic is not applicable after the steel-aluminum compound is formed.
Frequency 100 Hz
Needed solution heat treatment temperatures are above the
thermodynamic formation temperature of the brittle inter-
base testing intermediate
plate agency shaft with clutch drive metallic Al3Fe phase which verifiably weakens the bonding
strength [6]. Furthermore the high tin contents forbid high
temperature treatments due to distinctive liquidation during
the process and consequently a depletion of tin in the lining
material.

Therefore production wise the development of new high

hydraulics
Figure 2: Bearing test rig
ALUMINIUM BASED BEARING MATERIALS
CURRENT RESTRICTIONS AND NEW CHANGES
In the last years new high strength aluminum based alloys
have been developed covering a wide range of applications.
Thus engine builders have now the ability to use these new
aluminum alloys to replace heavy steel parts.
Comparable high strength aluminum alloys for slide
bearings were until now not available. For several
technological reasons those lining materials have a restricted
potential concerning their performance. The major constraints
are caused by the casting processes implemented and the
subsequent roll-bonding processes.
strength aluminum based bearing alloys has to consider two
major determining factors; compound formation by roll-
bonding and subsequently the diffusion heat treatment to gain
a sufficient bonding strength. To fulfill these conditions the
authors extended the metallurgical workspace by using micro
alloying systems with rare earth elements and abstained from
the use of low melting point elements as tribological active soft
phase.
From the tribological point of view, this would usually
result in a decreased seizure performance of the lining.
Surprisingly first tests showed only a minor deterioration of
the tribology in terms of seizure of the new bearing materials.
Besides the fundamental seizure performance of lining alloys,
characteristics such as embeddability of dirt particles,
emergency running capabilities and adaptability are essential.
The authors thereby propose to combine the new linings with
different surface layers to gain adequate tribological behavior.
DEVELOPMENT TARGETS

In terms of the casting process, the main limiting factor is
the required high deformation degrees of the as cast material
during subsequent post processing. As the final lining
thickness is normally only a few tenth of a millimeter, the post
processing is based on strong mechanical thickness reductions
by cold-rolling. Cold-rolling is a consequence of the high
contents of low-melting point soft phases such as tin. The
metallurgical process window is limited by means of useable
cooling and solidification rates and common casting
thicknesses vary between 8 to 20 mm.
To fulfill the future demands of the engine builders in the
area of high performance steel-aluminum bearings, Miba
decided to start comprehensive development work in the field
of new 7000 series alloys. Major attention has been turned on
rising the re-crystallization temperature and thus the strength
of the lining material by using matrix hardening and lowering
or eliminating all together the soft phase constituents.
To keep up with the tribological performance, the
introduction of new combinations of surface coatings with the
new linings is being approached.

Steel-Aluminum roll-bonding processes have two

significant constraints. To achieve a compound with optimum
bonding strength, high rolling-forces and thus a high
deformation degree and a sufficient plasticity of the material is

3 Copyright © 2009 by ASME

 150 aluminum alloy Al-HIPO. All alloys are in the same heat
140
Target area 'N ew high strength aluminum bearing alloy' treated condition which is normally used before roll-bonding.
Fatigue Strength at 2*10^6 LC [MPa]

130

120
Table 1: Tensile properties
110
Alloy Tensile properties
100
Rp0,2 Rm A5
[MPa] [MPa] [%]
90
AlSn20 56 100 30
80
AlSn+
AlSn+ 106 146 16
70
AlSn20Cu AlZn4,5 72 155 24
60 AlSn40
PbBz Al-HIPO 259 293 14
50
20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100
Min. Seizure Load [MPa] Optical micrographs of the AlZn4,5 and the Al-HIPO
prefab materials are shown in figures 4a and 4b. The standard
Figure 3: Performance target alloy is fully re-crystallized and its microstructure shows
equiaxial grains, while after the same treatment, the re-
Figure 3 shows the performance target area of the new crystallization of the Al-HIPO has not started and a cold-
aluminum bearing alloy considering fatigue strength and worked microstructure still remains. This clearly emphasizes
seizure load. As a result of the demanding situation to ban the outstanding tensile properties of the new alloy.
hazardous elements respectively lead, a high leaded low
strength copper based bronze alloy was taken as benchmark for
the fatigue strength. The latest developed serial aluminum-tin
based alloy was considered for the minimum seizure
performance benchmark.
To quantify the lining performance solely, the presented
diagram only reflects the bi-metal versions of the bearings.
Additional coatings are not considered.
Figure 4a: AlZn4,5 Figure 4b: Al-HIPO
DEVELOPMENT PROCESS
Beside the strength properties, aluminum based prefab
The development processes were carried out after material needs a sufficient elongation level prior to roll-
substantial theoretical investigations and were partly made at bonding onto steel. Otherwise, the high deformation degrees
partner companies and own industrial production equipment. during the compound formation with steel are not feasible and
This is of great advantage when implementing new materials consequently a high bonding-strength cannot be achieved.
on existing production equipment at industrial scale. Compared to the standard materials the new developed alloy
shows an adequate elongation value which is around the latest
On the basis of earlier developments with new alloy types, developed aluminum-tin bearing alloy (see also table 1,
profound theoretical investigations [7-9] have been done and AlSn+).
finally showed up the high potential of rare earth elements in
combination with Zirconium micro alloying especially with From the prefab material Al-HIPO, a large number of bi-
regard to mechanical strength and thermal stability. After metal strips have been produced under various industrial scale
using mechanical properties as a first performance criterion, process parameters including different roll-bonding settings
the alloy test matrix was limited for subsequent seizure load and diffusion heat treatments. Using industrial scale
testing, which continuously reduced the number of alloy production equipment gives the opportunity to check
variants. For improved tribological properties finally a variety consequently the machine capability while processing new
of surface coatings were taken into account. materials. Figure 5 shows the compound material of the final
variant.
RESULTS

Material tests performed with the so called prefab material

(lining alloy prior to roll-bonding onto steel) revealed the
possibilities of rare earth additions to aluminum alloys. Table 1
shows the tensile properties of serial aluminum based prefab
materials compared to the newly developed high strength

4 Copyright © 2009 by ASME

 150

140

130
Bearing alloy

STRESS [M Pa]
120

Steel
110

Interface
Al-HIPO
100
AlZn4,5
Figure 5: Al-HIPO as finished bi-metal compound AlSn+
CuPb
90
Figure 6 shows the results of the final diffusion heat 1E+5 1E+6 1E+7 1E+8
treatment tests of the compounds in comparison to the LOAD CYCLES TO RUPTURE
aluminum benchmark alloys related to hardness changes. The
Figure 7: Alternate bending fatigue test results
major disadvantage of standard aluminum based bearing
alloys, namely the softening by re-crystallization after the final
The authors see here a rising influence of the bonding
annealing has been overcome. The hardness decrease of the
strength between steel and lining alloy. In contrast to the
Al-HIPO bearing alloy is by factor 5 to 10 smaller compared
hardness testing the bending test also load the bonding
the other alloys.
interface. The influences on the bonding strength of roll-
bonded steel-aluminum compounds are still not completely
55-60 HV1 65-70 HV1 90-95 HV1
100%
understood [11]. Besides rolling parameters such as rolling
force, speed, temperature and the surface activation processes,
80%
material parameters e.g. different longitudinal elongation
(steel / lining alloy) during roll-bonding affect the bonding
60%
strength. The Miba experience showed, that aluminum linings
After Roll-bonding
After diffusion HT with high hardness values prior to roll-bonding resulted in a
40%
small difference in longitudinal elongation and consequently in
a slightly reduced bonding strength. It is assumed that this is
20%
caused by a decreased relative movement of the surfaces
instantly prior to the compound formation.
0%
AlSn+ AlZn4,5 Al-HIPO
Nevertheless it is quite exceptional for the new Al-HIPO
Final hardness [%] material to achieve such high fatigue strength values which
can compete with high leaded bronze lining alloys.
Figure 6: Decrease of hardness after final diffusion heat
treatment 150
Target area 'New high strength
140
aluminum based bearing alloy'
It is well know, that there is more or less a linear
Fatigue Strength at 2*10^6 LC [MPa]

130
dependence between the hardness of aluminum-tin lining
120
alloys and the tin content [10], the higher the tin content the
110
lower the lining hardness. This dependency is also valid for the
100
alternate bending fatigue strength. For the Al-HIPO lining this
relation has not been found. Although the lining hardness is 90

nearly twice that of the standard AlZn4,5 alloy the fatigue 80 AlSn+
AlSn20Cu
strength shows around 15% performance increase at 2*106 70
PbBz
load cycles (see figure 7). 60 Al-HIPO bi-metal
Al-HIPO + coating
50
20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100
Min. Seizure Load [MPa]

Figure 8: Seizure vs. fatigue diagram for Al-HIPO

5 Copyright © 2009 by ASME

 Taking also the seizure performance of the bi-metal
version of Al-HIPO into account, the findings were pretty
astonishing which can be seen in figure 8. It is commonly
known, that soft phases e.g. tin works excellent as solid
lubricant under mixed friction resulting in higher seizure load
limits. The tribological tests revealed that the new soft phase
free Al-HIPO almost reaches the level of the latest developed
aluminum-tin lining alloy. The authors understanding is, that
at increasing load level the solid lubricant function provided by
soft phases is not as influential to the tribo-system as
previously assumed.
MIBA BEARINGS ON THE BASIS OF ALUMINUM-HIPO
LINING MATERIAL
To further improve the tribological performance of the
new alloy, the authors proposed to combine the Al-HIPO lining
with several Miba developed coatings. At the time of
publication, the tests with the polymer-based Synthec® coating
were already finished. In figure 8 it can be seen, that the
additional coating improved the minimum seizure performance
of the bi-metal by 25 percent. Figure 9 shows the new Miba
Al-HIPO bearing build.
Synthec®
Al-HIPO lining
Steel
Figure 9: New Al-HIPO Bearing with Synthec® coating
Tests with new Synthec®-based coatings as well as new
galvanic layers that are currently under development are still
in progress. The authors expect to further improve the
tribological performance of the new aluminum alloy.
CONCLUSIONS
Comprehensive development work has been done by the
authors on the field of aluminum based lining materials with
the objective to provide a new aluminum bearing type that can
cope with the demands of future generations of engines.
By using a combined rare earth and zirconium micro-
alloying system the critical re-crystallization barrier was
increased and consequently the softening of the lining during
the inevitable final diffusion heat treatment has been inhibited
successfully. The resulting fatigue strength showed values in
the range of standard high-leaded bronze alloys.
In combination with new coatings, such as Synthec®, a
polymer based running layer, the required tribological behavior
has been achieved. The new Miba Al-HIPO bearing build is
currently under introduction of pre-series production for first
customer field tests.
In the future, the authors will continually improve the
newly developed high strength Al-HIPO bearing material as
aluminum based bearings are an important part of the Miba
product portfolio.
LEAD FREE BRONZE BASED BEARING MATERIALS
Environmental regulations imposed by the European
Union are not only limiting the emissions standards but also in
prohibiting the use of potential hazardous and non ecological
elements. These regulations strongly affect the automotive
industry and therefore also MIBA with its growing truck
bearing business. This means that formerly used leaded bronze
alloys for higher loaded engines have to be substituted by lead
free alloys which must also have higher load carrying
capabilities due to increasing firing pressures in the engines
and so forth.
First approaches in developing lead free copper based
alloys were made by Walker et. al. [5]. This development was
done by screening already available lead free alloys with
regard to their suitability on tribological issues such as seizure
resistance and also fatigue load. The development goal was
then to achieve a minimum seizure load comparable to leaded
alloys and fatigue load capabilities higher than standard leaded
alloys.
Numerous small scale casting trials were performed in
close cooperation with the Austrian Foundry Institute (ÖGI) as
well as on an industrial scale. In addition a small experimental
casting device, the so called Micro Plant was developed and
eventually installed at the ÖGI to simulate the casting
condition (especially quenching and compound formation) of
the big scale production routine. The focus of this work was
mainly on bronze rather than on brass materials.
DEVELOPMENT PROCESS
First developments were done under the premise to reach a
minimum seizure resistance of standard leaded bronze and a
fatigue limit required for the demand of the engine builders of
6 Copyright © 2009 by ASME
high service life times in heavy duty truck engines. In other Alternate Bend Fatigue Testing
Steel backed Cu - Lead free Lining Material
words a minimum seizure load of 20 MPa (which is
comparable to standard leaded bronze CuPb22Sn2) and a 200

fatigue load of 150 MPa were set as the goals to reach. 190

After extensive screening, alloy variants of CuSn4Zn1, 180

CuSn5Zn1 and CuSn8Zn1 were thoroughly tested on MIBA’s 170

STRESS [MPa]
CuSn5Zn1
bearing test rigs. The results of the different variants in respect CuSn4Zn1
160
to their seizure and fatigue properties can be seen in the CuSn8Zn1

following graphs. 150

CuPb10Sn10
140
Seizure Load Testing
Bi-Metal Bearings with Lining Material of Cu-Basis 130
Test program FN095.12.01: Load step program with statistic load
Bearing d/w = 48 / 21 mm; Clearance 1,4 o/oo; Speed 12,6 m/s; Oil type SAE10 / 120°C / 1,1 l/min
CuPb22Sn2
120
100 92 1E+5 1E+6 1E+7 1E+8
88
90 LOAD CYCLES TO RUPTURE
79
80 76
Figure 11: Comparison of different CuSnZn based alloys in
Seizure Load ( MPa )

70
70
60 58
58 58
terms of fatigue properties
51
50 43 47
40
40 37 38 38

30 30 28
34
CURRENT RESTRICTIONS AND NEW CHANGES
20 24 24 24
21 21 20 21
18 19
10
Full scale development testing was performed at MIBA’s
0
Strip casting plant on the basis of the material family defined
CuSn4Zn1_PP1

CuSn4Zn1_PP2

CuSn4Zn1_PP3

CuSn8Zn1_PP1

CuSn8Zn1_PP2

CuSn8Zn1_PP3

CuSn5Zn1_PP1

CuSn5Zn1_PP2

CuSn5Zn1_PP3

as CuSn5Zn1+. The production line where the tests have been

carried out was originally designed for leaded material, which
means that certain challenges had to be overcome in order to
achieve good castability. First of all due to the fact that
Figure 10: Comparison of different CuSnZn based alloys in normally leaded alloys are cast on the line, it had to be de-
terms of seizure resistance leaded before casting lead free material. Secondly, higher
temperatures are needed to ensure good casting results and this
It can be seen in Figure 10 that the seizure properties of also means furthermore the evaporation of zinc and tin over
the alloys tested (CuSn4Zn1 over CuSn5Zn1 to CuSn8Zn1 time (due to their low melting points). Last but not least the
with different post processing parameters (PP)) are mainly considerable wide solidification range of these alloys bears a
over the limit which was defined as 20MPa. Even though the certain risk when trying to create a dense and uniform cast
scattering of the individual values is quite big, the CuSn5Zn1 structure.
material has the highest mean value.
Not only a lot of work was done on optimizing the casting
In Figure 11, the results of the alternate bending tests are process together with adapting the chemistry in terms of trace
depicted. Again CuSn5Zn1 shows good properties when being elements (e.g. P influences the Oxygen content and alters the
compared to the other two bronze materials, mentioned above. viscosity) but also on finding the optimum post processing
As a reference also the standard lead bronze alloys are shown parameters for potential bearing and/or bushing applications.
in this graph describing again the suitability of lead free alloys
in highly loaded engines. Another key feature of the CuSn5Zn1+ family which was
For maintaining the comparability between the variants not mentioned yet is its superior cold formability up to 65%
tested, comparable thermo mechanical post processing even without prior solution heat treatment. After rolling the
parameters were applied onto the different materials. material is annealed to achieve either partly or fully
recrystallized microstructure. Figure 12 shows the typical
perfectly dense and recrystallized structure of the CuSn5Zn1+
Using the various test results gathered as a basis for lead free alloy.
determining the best variant for further investigations, it was
decided to focus on the CuSn5Zn1+ family. Both in the seizure
testing and when looking at the fatigue properties, it showed
the best results of all materials benchmarked.

7 Copyright © 2009 by ASME


Figure 12: Microstructure of final annealed CuSn5Zn1+
With the subsequent heat treatments the material can be
tailored to virtually any hardness needed, whether its final
application is in bushings or bearings. Fig. 13 shows a re-
crystallization diagram of CuSn5Zn1+ where the above
mentioned is described in a single diagram.
Hardnessdevelopment over Rolling Degree and Temperature
rolled
400
450
500
Temperature [°C] 550
35
17
9 Rolling degree [%]
cast
80-100
160-180
100-120
180-200
120-140
Figure 13: Re-crystallization diagram of CuSn5Zn1+
MIBA BEARINGS ON THE BASIS OF LEAD FREE
BRONZE
Lead free bronze materials typically do not show good
adaptability or outstanding embeddability. This led to the
development of functional layers which are applied on a
bearing via electro plating or sputtering. The latter process
revealed to be the better one in respect to the highly loaded
engine design. Additionally, a synthetic layer can be applied on
top of the sputter layer or also right away on the bronze
material itself. The so called Synthec® layer acts as a break-in
layer during the first operating phase of a new engine.
For lead free applications the most suitable composition of
the sputter layer showed to be AlSn20Cu whereas the synthetic
layer consists of poly-amide-imide with graphite and
molybdenum disulfides.
Details of the two material combinations which seem to
suit best for the demand in heavy duty truck engines and high
speed engines can be seen in the following two pictures.
Figure 14: Steel backed CuSn5Zn1+ with sputter layer
200
180
160
Hardness [HB
140
2,5/62,5/10]
120
100
80
59
55
50
43
140-160 Figure 15: Steel backed CuSn5Zn1+ with sputter layer and
Synthec® coating
CONCLUSION AND OUTLOOK
Even though, a lot of work has been performed on
developing the existing generation of lead free alloys, the still
relatively low seizure resistance of bronze hinders this bearing
material to penetrate new markets where seizure resistance is a
knock-out criterion such as it is in medium speed engines.
On the basis of the CuSnZn family a new alloy is under
development with the goal to achieve a minimum seizure load
of 40 MPa. The fatigue limit is targeted to be in the same
range, namely min. 160 MPa. This work is being carried in
close collaboration with the University of Leoben were
experimental casting and tribological measurements are
performed. Application oriented tests to verify the required
properties are also carried out on MIBA’s internal test rigs.
8 Copyright © 2009 by ASME
 [10] U. Ederer, R. Mergen “Development of an Aluminum
alloy for crankshaft bearings combining high strength
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
and high Tin content” 22nd Int. Congress on
Combustion Engines – CIMAC Kopenhagen (1998)
The authors would like to thank the Austrian Forschungs-
Förderungs-Gesellschaft (FFG) for supporting this work and
[11] M. Buchner “Bestimmung der Einflussfaktoren auf
the collegues from the Austrian Foundry Institute (ÖGI) and
the Hydro Aluminum Deutschland GmbH for their die Haftfestigkeit von Aluminium-Stahl-
contributions. Verbundblechen” PhD Thesis, University of Leoben
(2008)

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9 Copyright © 2009 by ASME