Low-noise electric motor bearing grease is often also referred to as long-life or Low-wear!

Have you ever wondered why a CD player electric motor runs so quietly? Well in part, it’s due to the use of low-noise electric motor bearing grease?

Greases are composed of a base oil and a thickener, which carries the oil between its lattice-like fibers. Base oils include mineral and other natural oils, and synthetic oils for high-temperature operation. Common thickeners
include polyurea, lithium, calcium and sodium.

What is Low-Noise bearing grease?

Low-noise level greases are those greases that have been purified sufficiently so that there are no, or at least very few, large particles in the grease that could enter into the load zone and cause rotating elements to bump and grind, generating noise in the bearing.

These products were originally constructed for high-precision applications where the rise and fall of the bearing elements over contaminant particles entering the load zone through the bearing grease could damage either the bearing or the driven component.

Where would Low-noise grease be used?

Let's take a look at a few issues surrounding this type of product. First, there are plenty of everyday applications where low-noise grease is highly desirable. The motors that control your stereo electronics, computer drives and other micro-motor applications would clearly benefit from low-noise or high-purity greases.

Why is low-noise electric motor grease quieter than other grease?

One of the causes of “normal” electric motor bearing noise is the inclusion of larger particles in the grease. This noise can be reduced by the removal of particles or contaminants that could cause the bearing element to strike or impact the raceway.

Why would low-noise bearing grease increase the life of the equipment?

It makes sense that if there are contaminants that are large enough to interfere with the element's uniform movement through the load zone, that under the right loading conditions the contaminants could possibly also have an effect on bearing longevity and motor reliability.

This concept is consistent with the idea that particles in fluid systems can enter load zones and compromise load distribution, race and element surfaces, and eventually result in component and machine failure.

Is electric motor bearing grease not supposed to be free of contaminants?

That’s correct, but there are several measures of grease quality.

Grease cleanliness is characterized by the noise the grease produces in a bearing test cell.

Standard off-the-shelf products are only visually checked for contaminants. The conscientious grease manufacturer would buy high-purity and high-quality materials from suppliers who demonstrate consistent quality in this regard.

However, without testing the raw materials and the final product for contaminants, it is impossible to determine just how much solid contaminant is in the final product.

In Conclusion:

There’s a good argument to be made for the use of low-noise grease in large grease-lubricated industrial motors, from a reliability perspective.

It is likely that the improvement in motor bearing life would cover the cost differential for the replenishment with a low-noise bearing grease, assuming that the thickener, oil viscosity and other properties of the grease were acceptable.

Not all equipment will need low-noise electric motor bearing grease; but whatever the requirement, Habot Synthetic Lubricants have high quality products for most applications.