New structural bearings capable of supporting more than 1600 tonnes of compressive load per set are being introduced by Hercules Engineering for extremely high stressapplications.
The latest Herculon HLD-FF 8000 sliding bearings – which can be used in sets of two – incorporate a sliding layer of globally proven fibre-reinforced and incompressible H-Glide engineering plastic with excellent friction coefficients from 0.05 – 0.1.
Such outstanding sliding characteristics and load-bearing performance – even in compact or wet spaces – are invaluable to infrastructure developers, engineers, architects, and specifiers because lower coefficients of friction will transfer less stress onto the load-bearing structural components as the bearing does its job of protecting them against surrounding movement, says Hercules engineering manager, David Booty.
The new HLD-FF bearings are the largest H-glide bearings the company has ever made, though even-larger capacity bearings can be custom-manufactured for extremely long low-maintenance life spans of up to 100 years typically requested by industry.
“With their incompressible H-Glide sliding layer, these bearings can withstand extreme point pressures of 350-500 megapascals, depending on bearing design and application,” says Booty.
“This remarkable performance – which is up to 40 times greater than conventional water-resistant and non-lubricated fibre-reinforced elastomeric bearing pads – is complemented by the material’s ability to function well in a variety of environments including, but not limited to, damp or underwater applications,” says Booty
Applications range from compact high-stress commercial, industrial and resources applications involving architecture and design, construction, infrastructure, energy, food and beverage, mining, manufacturing, maritime, oil and gas, safety, water and wastewater applications and other uses involving exposure to aggressive environments.