Subsurface crack propagation under rolling contact fatigue in bearing ring

The influences of subsurface cracks, distributing along the axial direction, on the rolling contact fatigue (RCF) faliure in a bearing ring are investigated. A realistic three-dimensional model of the bearing ring containing three subsurface cracks is used to evaluate the fatigue crack propagation based on stress intensity factor (SIF) calculations. Moreover, the distributions of the subsurface cracks along the axial direction are varied to study their effects on RCF. The results provide valuable guidelines for enhanced understanding of RCF in bearings.