The primary purpose of Air Cooled Heat Exchangers in a gear box is the lubrication of the mechanical moving parts, gears, bearings, bushes. Adequate lubrication ensures that wear & tear is minimized. As oil heats up, its viscosity gets reduced & its ability to lubricate is compromised. As a result the temperature keeps rising. Resulting in reduced lubrication & further heat generation. Eventually leading to increased wear & tear and reduced equipment life.
The rate of progressive wear and tear will increase rapidly. As wear and tear takes place, mechanical efficiency drops & more heat starts getting produced. Also as a result, the efficiency drops and the power required to drive the gearbox increases. This is a silent killer because we don’t even come to know that it’s drawing more power and adding to our electricity bills. Read More