Yaw drive mechanisms, pitch gearboxes and speed-increasing gearboxes are core transmission components of wind turbines. Output shafts of gearboxes, yaw reducers and pitch support positions operate under harsh working conditions: dynamic alternating combined loads, continuous impact vibration caused by gusts, severe low temperature in winter outdoors, high temperature under direct sunlight in summer, inland sand intrusion, high-concentration salt spray corrosion in coastal areas, frequent load fluctuation with wind speed and long-term intermittent start-stop operation. Wind turbines are mostly installed in mountains, deserts, coastal and offshore areas. Hoisting and maintenance at height or offshore are extremely difficult with high operation costs. Once bearing failure causes shutdown, spare part hoisting and offshore operation take a long time and lead to substantial power generation losses. Ordinary tapered roller bearings cannot adapt to variable extreme outdoor environments for wind power, becoming a common pain point for wind turbine manufacturers and wind farm operators. Wind speed keeps changing, loads transmitted by impellers fluctuate constantly, gusts bring instantaneous impact, and yaw & pitch movements generate continuous axial force. Ordinary bearings have insufficient low-temperature toughness and tend to suffer raceway pitting corrosion and rolling element peeling under long-term alternating loads. Temperatures drop sharply in winter for onshore wind farms in northern regions; conventional grease loses fluidity severely and easily triggers poor lubrication and abnormal temperature rise. Sand in desert and gobi areas continuously penetrates seal gaps, and hard dust mixes with grease and forms abrasive medium to wear contact surfaces. Coastal and offshore units are continuously attacked by salt spray, and water vapor ingress causes metal rust. Repeated temperature alternation day and night makes sealing materials prone to hardening and cracking, resulting in lubricant loss. Disassembly of high-altitude equipment is complicated, and frequent bearing replacement continuously increases wind farm operation costs.

Focusing on transmission supporting field for wind power equipment, Japan NMT specially develops low-temperature impact-resistant tapered roller bearings dedicated for turbine yaw, pitch and gearbox transmission to solve industry pain points of ordinary wind bearings such as insufficient low-temperature toughness, easy sand ingress, fatigue damage induced by gust impact, coastal salt spray corrosion and limited service life under long-term outdoor operation. Taking advantage of bidirectional linear load-bearing structure of tapered rollers, combined with five core upgrades including low-temperature high-toughness special bearing alloy steel, multi-layer labyrinth sand & salt spray resistant composite sealing, deep-hardening super-finishing strengthening technology for raceways, long-term anti-corrosion low-temperature lubrication and precise clearance matching for dynamic wind loads, it fully adapts to harsh conditions of onshore & offshore turbines with extreme temperature variation, sand & salt spray interference and fluctuating impact loads. It fundamentally solves problems including low-temperature lubrication failure of bearings, abrasive wear by sand, salt spray rust and fatigue spalling, stabilizes rotation precision of transmission systems and extends fault-free operation hours of units.

Core Product Advantages

1. Bidirectional dynamic combined load bearing withstands gust impact and pitch axial thrust: Adopting tapered roller linear contact structure, it bears fluctuating radial loads and persistent axial thrust simultaneously with uniform load distribution in contact zones. It effectively buffers instantaneous impact from gusts, balances dynamic eccentric loads generated by yaw steering and blade pitching, restrains local overload wear on unilateral raceways and stably controls axial play of shaft systems to guarantee smooth transmission.

2. Low-temperature high-toughness bearing steel matrix delivers long-term fatigue and corrosion resistance in wide temperature range: Selected high-purity low-temperature tough bearing alloy steel specially for wind power equipment undergoes refined quenching & tempering treatment to optimize low-temperature metallographic structure, greatly improve toughness under extreme sub-zero temperature while maintaining high-temperature temper resistance. It withstands years of alternating impact loads and lowers risks of raceway pitting, rolling element peeling and coastal salt spray pitting corrosion.

3. Multi-layer labyrinth sand & salt spray resistant composite sealing blocks ingress of sand, salt spray and moisture: Equipped with exclusive weather-resistant thickened seal lip & multi-labyrinth protective structure for outdoor wind power conditions. It resists hardening and cracking under wide temperature variation and works stably in inland sandy and offshore salt spray environments. It intercepts sand dust, humid vapor and salt spray particles layer by layer, prevents contaminants from entering housings and contaminating grease, and slows abrasive wear and internal rust.

4. Deep-hardening super-finishing grinding technology for raceways reduces frictional temperature rise and suppresses vibration: Deep hardening treatment plus micron-level super-finishing grinding is applied on contact surfaces of raceways and rollers to optimize contact profile, widen the effective oil film range under high and low temperatures, reduce heat generation under variable loads, slow precision attenuation after years of operation and lower vibration and abnormal noise of transmission systems.

5. Customized clearance for dynamic wind loads & low-temperature salt-spray resistant long-life lubrication system: Internal clearance is precisely matched according to different load characteristics and ambient temperatures of yaw reducers, pitch gearboxes and speed-increasing boxes to avoid seizure under extreme low temperature and thermal expansion seizure under continuous heavy loads. Matched with long-life lubrication formula featuring excellent low-temperature fluidity and salt spray hydrolysis resistance, it adapts to variable environments of inland deserts and coastal seas and extends regular maintenance intervals of wind turbines.

Application Scenarios

Support bearings for wind turbine yaw reducers, input & output bearings for pitch gearboxes, transmission bearings for main speed-increasing gearboxes, transmission components for onshore desert wind turbines, heavy-duty supporting positions for pitch and yaw transmissions of coastal and offshore wind turbines.

Precision Quality Assurance

NMT tapered roller bearings for wind turbines are manufactured strictly in accordance with Japanese wind power equipment component manufacturing standards. Selected special bearing steel with low-temperature high toughness and weather & salt spray resistance undergoes high-low temperature cycle durability test, sand flushing sealing test, long-term neutral salt spray anti-corrosion test, alternating impact fatigue test and long-duration variable load operation test. The products feature stable bidirectional load capacity, outstanding low-temperature toughness and reliable long-term weatherproof sealing performance, fully adapting to years of intermittent operation conditions with wide temperature variation, sand and salt spray for onshore and offshore wind turbines.

Product Range

Heavy-duty tapered roller bearings for wind turbine yaw drives, long-life low-temperature resistant bearings for pitch gearboxes, low-vibration wear-resistant bearings for speed-increasing gearboxes, sand-proof bearings for inland desert wind farms, customized large-size non-standard tapered roller bearings with salt spray resistance for offshore wind power.

Brand Strength

Japan NMT focuses on R&D and manufacturing of bearings for heavy wind power equipment under working conditions of dynamic fluctuating combined loads, instantaneous gust impact, extreme diurnal temperature difference outdoors, inland sand, coastal salt spray corrosion and long-cycle intermittent operation, specializing in core technologies of bidirectional load balance optimization, wide-temperature lubrication stability, weather-resistant sealing protection and alternating fatigue wear prevention. With Japanese heat treatment technology for low-temperature high-toughness steel, exclusive sand & salt spray resistant sealing technology for wind power machinery and strict outdoor wind condition simulation durability testing system, it accurately solves industry pain points of wind bearings such as low-temperature lubrication failure, abrasive wear failure by sand, salt spray rust, fatigue pitting and high maintenance cost at height, supplying high-load, impact-resistant, low-temperature and salt-spray resistant long-life core transmission bearing components for global wind power equipment manufacturers.