How to choose the bearing type of a cooling fan?
2025-05-12 16:54:05

When choosing the bearing type of a Cooling Fan, the following aspects need to be considered:

Double ball bearings: The mechanical structure of ball bearings enables them to withstand heavy loads, with a low coefficient of friction and slow wear. They can typically be used for 50,000 to 100,000 hours or even longer, making them suitable for equipment that requires long-term stable operation, such as industrial servers and high-end gaming computers.

Oil-impregnated bearings: They rely on the internal oil-impregnated material to provide lubrication. Over time, the oil will gradually be consumed, leading to bearing wear. Generally, their service life is about 20,000 to 50,000 hours. They are suitable for equipment with low requirements for service life and low replacement costs, such as ordinary household fans.

Magnetic levitation bearings: They use magnetic force to suspend the rotor without mechanical contact. Theoretically, they have extremely low wear and a long service life, which can reach 80,000 to 120,000 hours. They are often used in high-end equipment with extremely high requirements for reliability and service life, such as aerospace and high-performance servers.

Noise level

Oil-impregnated bearings: They operate relatively quietly because the lubricating oil inside can effectively buffer vibrations and reduce friction noise. They are suitable for use in environments with strict noise requirements, such as electronic devices in bedrooms, offices, and other places.

Double ball bearings: During operation, the contact between the balls and the inner and outer rings may generate certain noise, especially at high speeds, the noise will be more obvious. They are not very suitable for environments that are sensitive to noise.

Magnetic levitation bearings: Due to the rotor being suspended, there is no mechanical friction, and the operating noise is very low, providing a quiet heat dissipation environment. They are suitable for precision instruments, medical equipment, and other devices with strict noise requirements.

Rotational Speed and Performance

Double ball bearings: They can withstand high rotational speeds and maintain good stability and heat dissipation performance at high speeds. They can quickly and effectively dissipate heat and are suitable for high-performance devices that require rapid heat dissipation, such as gaming graphics cards and high-power industrial equipment.

Oil-impregnated bearings: The rotational speed is relatively low. At high rotational speeds, insufficient lubrication may occur, affecting the heat dissipation effect. They are often used in equipment with low rotational speed requirements and relatively mild heat dissipation demands.

Magnetic levitation bearings: They can achieve very high rotational speeds with precise speed control, and can be quickly adjusted according to the heat dissipation requirements of the equipment. They have excellent heat dissipation performance and are suitable for high-end equipment with extremely high heat dissipation requirements.

Cost factor

Oil-impregnated bearings: They have low manufacturing costs and are inexpensive, effectively controlling product costs. They are widely used in ordinary consumer electronic products that are sensitive to costs.

Double ball bearings: Due to their complex structure and high manufacturing process requirements, their cost is relatively high. However, they perform well in terms of cost performance in some equipment that has certain requirements for performance and lifespan, such as mid-to-high-end computer mainframes.

Magnetic levitation bearings: They feature high technical content, great production difficulty, and the highest cost. They are generally applied in high-end fields where performance and reliability are highly demanded and cost is not a major concern.

Application environment

Oil-impregnated bearings: They can operate normally in a normal temperature and clean environment. However, in high-temperature, humid or dusty conditions, the lubricating oil is prone to deterioration or contamination, which affects the service life of the bearings. They are suitable for indoor normal temperature and clean environments.

Double ball bearings: They have strong adaptability to the environment and can work in a certain degree of high temperature, humidity or dusty conditions. However, in extremely harsh environments, the balls may also experience problems such as rusting and accelerated wear.

Magnetic levitation bearings: They usually need to operate in a relatively stable and clean environment, as strong magnetic fields, dust or impurities from the outside may interfere with the normal operation of the magnetic levitation system.