Bearings used for railway vehicles are often suffer from surface damage caused by electrical current, which has not sufficiently been clarified yet. This paper describes an experimental reproduction of the surface damage of plain bearings occurred under the condition of electrical conduction. Experimental results show that the wear of the surface of plain bearing is accelerated when it is subjected electrical current. Electrical pitting is also observed on the plain bearings used for the axles of tankers and hopper cars, which is caused by lubricants contaminated with white metal chips.

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