Friction and Wear of Sliding Bearing Materials^[1]

A sliding bearing (plain bearing) is a machine element designed to transmit loads or reaction forces to a shaft that rotates relative to the bearing. This article discusses the properties of bearing materials. It provides information on bearing material systems: single-metal systems, bimetal systems, and trimetal systems. The article describes the designations, nominal compositions, mechanical properties, and applications of various sliding bearing alloys: tin-base alloys, lead-base alloys, copper-base alloys, aluminum-base alloys, silver-base alloys, zinc-base alloys, additional metallic materials, nonmetallic materials. It describes casting processes, powder metallurgy processes, and electroplating processes. The article also discusses the selection criteria for bearing materials.