Glossary of Terms for Gear Failure Analysis

A
AAS. Atomic absorption spectrometry. Analysis of dissolved materials in a gaseous flame. Capable of
identifying elements.
Abrasion. Removal and displacement of tooth surface material due to cutting and plowing in the direction of
sliding by hard particles or hard asperities.
Activation energy. Energy required for starting or maintaining chemical reaction between a lubricant or
lubricant additive and a metal surface.
Active profile. Portion of a gear tooth profile bounded by the tooth tip (determined by chamfer or tip radius)
and the SAP.
Addendum. Height of tooth that lies above the pitchline for external gears, and below the pitchline for internal
gears.
Adhesion. Material transfer between mating tooth surfaces due to microwelding and tearing.
Adsorbed film. Adsorption is the process by which atoms or molecules of a gas or liquid become attached to
a solid surface. Physical adsorption, as in polar attraction of molecules of hydrocarbon lubricant to a steel
surface, involves van der Waals forces, which are relatively weak. Chemical adsorption, as in chemical
reaction between a hydrocarbon lubricant and the oxide layer on steel, involves relatively strong bonds.
Antiscuff additive. Lubricant additive such as sulfur, phosphorus, chlorine, or borate designed to prevent
scuffing in gears.
Antiwear additive. Lubricant additive such as zinc, ZDDP, and tricresyl phosphate designed to prevent wear
in gears.
Approach action. Contact anywhere along the path of contact between the SAP of the driver and the pitch
point. Phase of engagement between a pair of gear teeth during which the point of contact approaches
the line of centers.
Asperity. Peak or ridge in the microscopic topographical irregularities on a solid surface.
Austenite. A solid solution of one or more elements in face-centered cubic iron. Unless otherwise
designated (such as nickel austenite), the solute is generally assumed to be carbon.

B
Bainite. A decomposition product of austenite consisting of an aggregate of ferrite and carbide. Bainite is
generally undesirable in gear teeth because it lowers fatigue resistance.
Beach marks. Stains or ridges along lines of arrest where a fatigue crack stopped because load decreased.
Fine uniformly spaced beach marks indicate slow growth. Beach marks help locate the origin.
Bending fatigue. Cracking due to cyclic bending stresses. Classic bending fatigue occurs in root fillets on
the tensile side of gear teeth, but can occur elsewhere.
Bending stress. In gear teeth, bending stress generally refers to the tensile stress at the critical point on the
root fillet.
Bevel gear. A gear for connecting shafts that intersect, but are non-parallel, and whose pitch surfaces are
cones.
Borate. Antiscuff additive in gear lubricants, usually in the form of finely dispersed potassium borate.

GEARTECH GEAR FAILURE ANALYSIS SEMINAR

Boundary lubrication. The regime of lubrication where elastohydrodynamic (EHL) film thickness is too thin
to solely support the load and significant load is carried by surface asperities. Chemical and physical
properties of the sliding surfaces, lubricant, and lubricant additives determines the level of friction and the
amount of wear.
Brittle fracture. Fracture accompanied by little or no macroscopic plastic deformation. Typically, brittle
fracture occurs by rapid crack propagation with little expenditure of energy.
Bulk temperature. The equilibrium temperature of gear teeth before they mesh. During meshing, they are
subjected to a flash temperature that adds to the bulk temperature to equal the total contact temperature.

C
Carbide. A compound of carbon with one or more elements. Iron carbide (Fe3C), commonly called
cementite, is hard and brittle, and undesirable if it forms networks around grain boundaries.
Carburizing. Heat treatment where gears are heated in a carbon atmosphere causing carbon to diffuse into
surface layers of gear teeth. Gears are hardened by either quenching from the carburizing temperature
or by cooling, reheating, and quenching. Carburizing and quenching is followed by tempering where gears
are reheated to a relatively low temperature and slowly cooled.
Case/core boundary. The transition zone between the hardened case and softer core in case hardened
gear teeth.
Case/core crack origins. Case hardened gears have tensile residual stress near the case/core boundary
that may cause subsurface fatigue cracks at flaws near the case/core boundary.
Case/core separation. Separation of corners, edges, or tips of teeth caused by internal cracks.
Cavitation damage. Deformation and detachment of surface fragments due to collapsing vapor bubbles
within a cavitating lubricant.
Cavitation. Formation and collapse, within a liquid, of cavities or bubbles that contain vapor or gas or both.
Cavities or bubbles form when the pressure decreases. They collapse when pressure increases and
vapor condenses or gas redissolves.
Charpy test. An impact test in which a notched specimen is struck behind the notch by a stricker mounted at
the end of a pendulum. Energy absorbed in fracture is calculated from the height of the striker after
fracture of the specimen compared to original height of the striker.
Chevrons. "V" shaped radial lines that occur on fracture surfaces near free edges of plate-like structures.
May occur on case/core separation fractures or in the case of case hardened teeth. Chevrons indicate
rapid crack growth. They point toward the origin.
Cleanliness. In gear materials, cleanliness is a measure of the number of nonmetallic inclusions. In
lubricants, cleanliness is a measure of the number of solid particles, water, chemicals, and gases.
Cleavage. Crack propagation across a crystallographic plane.
Cold flow. Plastic deformation at temperatures lower than the recrystallization temperature.
Composite surface roughness. Mathematical combination of surface roughnesses of two bodies, used for
elastohydrodynamic calculations of specific film thickness.
Compressive stress. Stress that compresses the metal lattice and tends to decrease the volume or length
of an object.
Contact temperature. The total contact temperature developed between meshing gear teeth due to load,
sliding velocity, friction, and shearing of the oil film. Contact temperature is the sum of the bulk and flash
temperature.
Corrosion. Chemical or electrochemical reaction between a gear and its environment.

GEARTECH GEAR FAILURE ANALYSIS SEMINAR

Cracking. Cracks other than those caused by fatigue, such as those due to mechanical stress, thermal
stress, material flaws, or improper processing. See hardening cracks, grinding cracks, rim and web
cracks, and case/core separation.

D
Decarburization. Carbon loss from the workpiece surface because of heating in a medium that reacts with
carbon at the surface. It occurs above 700 °C when the furnace atmosphere contains decarburizing
agents such as carbon dioxide, water vapor, hydrogen, and oxygen.
Dedendum. Height of tooth that lies below the pitchline for external gears, and above the pitchline for internal
gears.
Ductile fracture. Fracture characterized by tearing and accompanied by appreciable macroscopic plastic
deformation and expenditure of significant energy.
Ductility. Ability of a material to deform plastically before fracture.

E
EAP. End of active profile. Highest point of contact on the driver profile determined by the active tip circle of
the driving gear, or the highest point of contact on the driven profile determined by the active tip circle of
the driven gear.
EDS. Energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy. Chemical analysis of microscopic surface features and
particles in a SEM specimen.
EDX. See EDS.
Effective case depth. In case hardened gears, the distance from the finished tooth surface to a specific
subsurface hardness.
EHL. Elastohydrodynamic lubrication.
Elasticity. Ability of a material to return to its original shape after release of stress.
Elastohydrodynamic film thickness. Elastohydrodynamic (EHL) oil film thickness. Equations are available
for calculating EHL film thickness between gear teeth that take into account load, speed, gear tooth
temperature, gear tooth geometry, and lubricant properties. EHL film thickness influences wear and
Hertzian fatigue life.
Electric discharge. Damage due to electric arc discharge across oil film between tooth surfaces.
EP additive. See antiscuff additive.
Erosion. Removal of surface material due to repeated impact of small, solid particles in a high velocity fluid.
Etch pits. Damage caused by corrosion that leaves pits on the surface of a corroded part. Corrosion on steel
proceeds by first attacking grain boundaries and then by corroding parent grains, until pits are produced.

F
False brinelling. Deterioration of active tooth surface caused by minute vibratory motion. It occurs in gears
not rotating and subjected to structure-borne vibration such as during transport. It is mild adhesive wear
within oxide layers on contacting bodies during the incubation period that precedes fretting corrosion.
Wear debris is black iron oxide Fe3O4 (magnetite).
Fatigue strength. The maximum stress allowable for a specified number of cycles to fatigue failure.

GEARTECH GEAR FAILURE ANALYSIS SEMINAR

Fatigue. Progressive localized permanent structural change in a material subjected to fluctuating stresses
and strains that may culminate in cracks or fracture after a sufficient number of fluctuations.
Ferrite. A solid solution of one or more elements in body-centered cubic iron.
Ferrography. Analytical examination of ferrous wear particles separated from used lubricant by magnetic
precipitation.
Flake macropitting. Progressive macropitting causing thin flakes of material to break out.
Flash temperature. The instantaneous temperature rise occurring between meshing gear teeth, usually
calculated with equations based on Blok’s flash temperature theory.
Fracture toughness. A generic term for resistance to extension of a crack.
Fracture. Crack propagation completely through a specimen and separation of the specimen into two or
more parts.
Fretting corrosion. Deterioration of active tooth surface caused by minute vibratory motion. It occurs in
gears not rotating and subjected to structure-borne vibration such as during transport. Wear debris from
steel is reddish-brown iron oxide α-Fe2O3 (hematite).
Fretting. Deterioration of active tooth surface caused by minute vibratory motion. It occurs in gears not
rotating and subjected to structure-borne vibration such as during transport. Fretting consists of false
brinelling or fretting corrosion or both.
FTIR. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. See infrared spectroscopy.
FZG gears. Test gears used to determine lubricant performance. FZG-A gears are used to determine
scuffing resistance, and FZG-C gears are used to determine micropitting resistance.

G
Gear. The larger of a pair of gears. Also known as wheel.
Grain boundary. An interface separating two grains in which the orientation of the lattice changes from one
grain to the other.
Grain size. A measure of the area or volume of grains in a polycrystalline metal usually expressed as an
average when individual sizes are nearly uniform.
Grease. Gelled oil.
Grind temper. Overheating of gear tooth surfaces due to abusive grinding.
Grinding cracks. Cracking of tooth surfaces during or after grinding.
Grinding. Manufacturing process where final gear tooth shape is produced by grinding.

H
Hardenability. Ability to develop maximum hardness. In ferrous alloys, the property that determines depth
and distribution of hardness induced by quenching.
Hardening cracks. Cracking in gears during or after heat-treating.
Hardness. Characteristic of a solid that expresses its resistance to penetration or abrasion.
Helical gear. Gear having teeth in the form of a helix, or screw, and a cylindrical pitch surface.
Hematite. The main ore of iron (α-Fe2O3) that occurs in vast quantities on earth. It is the reddish-brown
debris from fretting corrosion of ferrous alloys. Particles are small, about 100 nm, hard, abrasive, and the
same composition as jeweler’s rouge.

GEARTECH GEAR FAILURE ANALYSIS SEMINAR

Hertz, Heinrich Rudolph. (1857-1894) His classical paper: “On the contact of elastic solids” (1881),
provided the basis for contact stress and deformation calculations for many tribological contacts including
gear teeth, cams, and rolling element bearings.
Hertzian fatigue. Cracking and detachment of surface fragments due to cyclic Hertzian stresses.
Hertzian stress. Contact stress caused by forcing together two nonconforming bodies with point or line
contact. Heinrich Hertz analyzed elastic contact stresses in 1881.
High-cycle fatigue. Fatigue dominated by elastic strain with failure in more than 10,000 cycles.
Hobbing. Manufacturing process where gear tooth shape is produced by a hob, a milling cutter in the form of
a screw thread, which forms gear teeth by generation.
Honing. Secondary finishing process used to improve surface topography of hobbed, shaved, or ground
gear teeth.
Hot flow. Plastic deformation at temperatures higher than the recrystallization temperature.
HPSTC. Highest point of single tooth pair contact.
HRC. Hardness Rockwell C.
Hydrogen embrittlement. A condition of low ductility or hydrogen-induced cracking in metals caused by
absorption of hydrogen.
Hypoid gear. A gear for connecting non-intersecting, non-parallel, shafts whose pitch surfaces are
hyperboloids.

I
ICP-AES. Inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectroscopy. Analysis of dissolved materials and
small (<10 µm) solid particles by plasma arc. Capable of identifying elements.
Inclusion. A particle of foreign material in a metal matrix. Particles are usually oxides, sulfides, or silicates.
Indentation. Local plastic deformation of active tooth surfaces due to subsurface yielding.
Infrared spectroscopy. Quantitative identification of organic and inorganic molecular components by
measuring their infrared absorption at specific wavelengths. Useful for monitoring lubricants for
contamination, additive depletion, and oxidation.
Intergranular fracture. Brittle fracture with crack propagation between grains or crystals.
Internal oxidation. Formation of isolated particles of corrosion products beneath the metal surface. Called
intergranular oxidation (IGO) when it occurs on carburized gear teeth. Conventional gas carburizing
oxidizes elements in steel such as manganese, chromium, titanium, silicon and aluminum. Oxidation
mainly occurs along grain boundaries at the component’s surface and penetrates to a depth of one or two
grains.

J
Jominy. A test for determining hardenability.

K
KIC. Plane-strain fracture toughness.

GEARTECH GEAR FAILURE ANALYSIS SEMINAR

 L
Low-cycle fatigue. Fatigue dominated by plastic strain with failure in less than 10,000 cycles.
LPSTC. Lowest point of single tooth pair contact.
Lubricity. Ability of a lubricant to reduce friction.

M
Macropitting. Hertzian fatigue that results in craters larger than 1 mm.
Macroscopic. Visible at magnification below 25X.
Magnetic particle inspection. Nondestructive method for detecting cracks or shallow subsurface defects in
ferromagnetic materials. Finely divided magnetic particles, applied to the magnetized part, are attracted
to and outline the pattern of any magnetic-leakage fields created by discontinuities.
Magnetite. Invisible, extremely thin oxide (Fe3O4) layer that exists on all ferrous surfaces in air. The oxide
layer thickness is increased by heating steel above 300 °C. Temper colors form and change as thickness
increases. Magnetite is black wear debris generated during false brinelling.
Martensite. Metastable body-centered phase of iron supersaturated with carbon, produced through a
diffusionless phase change by quenching austenite.
Metallurgical stress concentration. Any geometrical discontinuity such as an inclusion, or abrupt change in
residual stress that acts as an initiation site for fatigue cracks.
Microcracks. Cracks of microscopic proportions that may form in hardened and quenched steels, especially
if they are refrigerated.
Micropitting. Hertzian fatigue that results in cracking and detachment of surface asperities that are typically
less than 1 mm.
Microscopic. Visible only at magnification above 25X.
Microsegregation. Occurs as steel solidifies in ingot molds. Alloying elements segregate as dendrites grow.
Forging distributes microsegregation into bands. Bainite may form in alloy-lean bands and lower fatigue
strength.
Microvoid coalescence. Ductile fracture process where internal voids form around inclusions, material
necks down, and voids expand and join to develop a dimpled fracture surface.
Mixed-film lubrication. Regime of lubrication between boundary and hydrodynamic lubrication, generally in
the EHL regime, where load is borne by both the lubricant film and surface asperites.
Mixed-mode fracture. Fracture by both ductile and brittle mechanisms.
Mohs hardness. Hardness of a body according to a scale proposed by German mineralogist Friedrich Mohs
(1822), based on ten minerals, arranged in order from 1 (talc, softest) to 10 (diamond, hardest). Each
mineral in the scale will scratch all those with smaller numbers.

N
Negative sliding. Kinematic condition where rolling velocity is opposite sliding velocity. In gear teeth, it
occurs in the dedenda.
Network carbides. Carbides outlining grain boundaries. Occurs in carburized gears when the carburizing
atmosphere contains too much carbon.
Nital etch. Nondestructive inspection method for detecting grind temper. Gear tooth surfaces are etched

GEARTECH GEAR FAILURE ANALYSIS SEMINAR

 with nital (3-5% nitric acid in alcohol), which stains the teeth dark in areas of grind temper.
Nitriding. Heat treatment where gears are heated in a nitrogen atmosphere, which causes nitrogen to diffuse
into surface layers of gear teeth and form hard nitrides. Because nitriding is done at low temperature and
there is no quench, distortion is small.
Nonprogressive macropitting. Macropits that arrest after high asperities are removed and load is uniform.
Notch sensitivity. A measure of the reduction in strength of a metal caused by the presence of stress
concentration. Values can be obtained from static, impact, or fatigue tests.

O
Overload. Gear tooth failure either by fracture or plastic deformation.

P
Pearlite. A lamellar aggregate of ferrite and cementite resulting from transformation of austenite above the
bainitic range.
Phosphating. Chemical treatment of steel to form an antiscuff coating.
Pinion. The smaller of a pair of gears.
Pitch point. A fixed point on the line of centers, at which the pitch circles touch. It is established by the
operating center distance and gear ratio. The pitch point is the only point on the path of contact where
pure rolling without sliding occurs.
Pitchline. Line between addendum and dedendum, lying along the pitch surface.
Plastic deformation. Permanent deformation caused by stresses that are greater than the material yield
strength.
Polished fracture surface. If the faces of a fatigue crack open and close under alternating tension and
compression, the surfaces may become polished. Often seen around fatigue origins caused by
inclusions or other flaws.
Polishing. Fine-scale abrasion by fine abrasives and promoted by chemically reactive antiscuff additives.
Porosity. Fine holes or pores within a metal.
Primary failure mode. The failure mode that occurs first and may be responsible for initiating other,
secondary failure modes.
Profile cracks. Cracks on active surfaces of teeth usually caused by high cycle fatigue.
Profile shift. Design feature involving radial movement of gear tooth profiles relative to the pitchline to
improve performance of a gearset.
Progressive macropitting. Macropits that grow in size and number with operation.

Q
Quenching. Rapid cooling of a heat treated component.

R
Radial lines. Fracture surfaces with radial lines indicate rapid crack growth. High strength (low ductility)

GEARTECH GEAR FAILURE ANALYSIS SEMINAR

 materials or conditions that promote brittle behavior usually have fractures with fine radial lines. Radial
lines are coarse under ductile conditions.
Radius of curvature. The instantaneous radius of the involute curve, which varies from zero at the base
radius, to a maximum at the tip of the teeth.
Ratchet marks. High tensile stresses or stress concentrations initiate several fatigue cracks on different
planes. A ratchet mark forms where the cracks join to form a common plane.
Ratio of fatigue/fracture surface area. A large fatigue zone and small fracture zone indicates low nominal
stress and vice versa.
Recess action. Contact anywhere along the path of contact between the pitch point and the SAP of the
driven gear. Phase of engagement between a pair of gear teeth that takes place after the point of contact
has passed the line of centers.
Recrystallization temperature. The approximate minimum temperature at which recrystallization of a cold
worked metal occurs within a specified time.
Recrystallization. The change from one crystal structure to another, as in heating or cooling through a
critical temperature.
Residual stress. Stresses that remain within a body because of thermal or mechanical treatment, or both.
Resonance. Vibration condition where an excitation frequency equals a natural frequency of a structure.
Retained austenite. Metastable austenite retained within quenched microstructure. The amount of retained
austenite depends on carbon content, alloy content, quench severity and subsequent thermal and
mechanical treatments.
Ridging. Pronounced ridges and grooves on active tooth surfaces in direction of sliding caused by scuffing
followed by polishing.
Rim and web cracks. Cracking in the rim or web of the gear body.
Rippling. Periodic, wavelike, plastic deformation on active surfaces of gear teeth transverse to the direction
of sliding.
Rolling. Plastic deformation and displacement of tooth surface material.
Root fillet cracks. High cycle fatigue with cracks in root fillets.
Root fillet yielding. Permanent bending of teeth due to yielding in root fillets.
Root fillet. Portion of a gear tooth joining the rootland and the involute curve.

S
SAP. Start of active profile. Lowest point of contact on the driver profile determined by the active tip circle of
the driven gear, or the lowest point of contact on the driven profile determined by the active tip circle of the
driving gear.
Scoring. See abrasion.
Scuffing resistance. Load capacity of gear teeth depending on the gear tooth contact temperature and
antiscuff properties of the lubricant.
Scuffing. Severe adhesion and transfer of metal between teeth due to welding and tearing.
Secondary failure mode. A failure mode occurring as a consequence of the primary failure mode.
SEM. Scanning electron microscope/microscopy.
Shaving. Manufacturing process where gear teeth are finished with a shaving cutter, a gear-shaped tool with
gashed profiles, that removes fine slices of metal through axial sliding motion.

GEARTECH GEAR FAILURE ANALYSIS SEMINAR

Shear lip. Smooth, dull, fibrous fracture surface usually at 45° to adjacent free boundaries where constraint
is low. Large shear lips indicate ductile behavior.
Shear stress. Stress that distorts the metal lattice. Stress that tends to slide one part of a body upon
another.
Shot peening. Cold working process in which a surface is bombarded with small spherical shot that
plastically deforms the surface in the form of small indentations or dimples. Shot peening imparts
compressive residual stresses in the surface layer and significantly increases fatigue strength.
Size of fatigue zone on adjacent teeth. The first tooth to fail usually has the largest, smoothest fatigue zone
because the tooth unloads as the crack grows; decreasing the stress and growth rate. Adjacent teeth
take on more load and crack sooner. Adjacent teeth may have secondary distress such as macropitting.
Sliding velocity. Difference between the rolling velocities of meshing gear teeth.
S-P additive. An antiscuff additive in gear lubricants containing a mixture of sulfur and phosphorus
compounds.
Spall macropitting. Progressive macropitting with pits that coalesce.
Specific film thickness. Ratio of EHL film thickness to composite surface roughness.
Spectrographic oil analysis. Analytical detection of metals in an oil sample by vaporizing the metal and
capturing the emitted light waves or X-rays. Includes atomic absorption spectrometry (AAS), inductively
coupled plasma atomic emission spectroscopy (ICP-AES), and X-ray spectrometry (fluorescence) (XRS).
Spur gear. Gear for connecting parallel shafts, having teeth parallel to the axis, and a cylindrical pitch
surface.
Stress concentration. A geometric discontinuity that elevates local stress.
Subcase fatigue. Cracking in case hardened gears in the case or in the transition zone between case and
core.
Subsurface strength. Local material strength as a function of subsurface hardness, microstructure, and
residual stress.
Subsurface stress. Local subsurface stress as a function of loads applied at the surface including normal
and tractional forces.

T
Tempering. Reheating hardened steel to a temperature below the transformation range to produce desired
changes in properties.
Tensile stress. Stress that extends the metal lattice. Stress caused by pulling.
Tip relief. Design feature involving removal of small amounts of material near tips of gear teeth to reduce
load locally.
Tip-to-root interference. Interference between tips of one gear and roots of mate.
Tooth end cracks. Cracks at ends of teeth usually caused by high cycle fatigue.
Topland. Portion of the tip surface between opposite flanks of a gear tooth.
Toughness. Ability of a metal to absorb energy and deform plastically before fracturing.
Transgranular fracture. Fracture through crystals or grains of a metal.
Transition temperature. An arbitrarily defined temperature within a range in which ductility changes rapidly
with temperature.
Tribology. The science and technology of interacting surfaces in relative motion, including lubrication,

GEARTECH GEAR FAILURE ANALYSIS SEMINAR

 friction, and wear.

U
Ultimate strength. Maximum stress a material can sustain without fracture, determined by dividing
maximum load by the original cross-sectional area of the specimen.

V
Viscosity. Measure of a fluid’s resistance to flow.

W
Wear. Removal or displacement of material from gear tooth surfaces due to mechanical, chemical, or
electrical action.
Woody fracture. A fracture surface that looks like wood grain. Occurs in gears with pronounced grain flow
caused by prior forging.
Worm gear. Gear in the form of a screw thread, having one or more thread starts.
Wustite. The iron oxide FeO that forms on ferrous metals at temperatures greater than 300 °C in an oxygen
atmosphere.

X
XPS. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. Elemental analysis of surface layers by X-ray excitation. Capable
of identifying oxidation state and valence number.
XRD. X-ray diffraction. Analysis of crystal structures by X-ray diffraction. Capable of identifying composition
of a crystalline compound. Capable of determining residual stress states.
XRS. X-ray spectrometry (fluorescence). Bulk analysis of solids or liquids by X-ray excitation.

Y
Yield strength. Stress at which a material departs from proportionality of stress and strain. An offset of 0.2%
is used for many metals.

Z
ZDDP. Zinc dialkyl dithiophosphate. Antiwear additive in most lubricants including gear lubricants.

GEARTECH GEAR FAILURE ANALYSIS SEMINAR