ASTM International (formerly American Society for Testing and Materials; website) is preparing for its Eighth International Symposium on Bearing Steel Technologies: Developments in Rolling Bearing Steels and Testing.

Sponsored by ASTM Committee A01 on Steel, Stainless Steel and Related Alloys, it is set for Thursday and Friday, May 21 - 22, 2009 at the Hyatt Regency Vancouver in Vancouver, B.C., Canada.

If the topics being covered are of any interest at all, now is not the time to be shy. With the first held during the Nixon administration back in 1974, these bearing steel symposia come along less frequently than Presidential elections, and in eBearing's humble opinion are far more interesting.

The program for this Eighth International Symposium is, "one of the best collections of papers on the subject of bearing steel technologies. Representatives of many of the top bearing steel steelmakers, rolling bearing producers, and research and development institutes will present papers. The presenters originate from: eight countries, seven bearing steelmakers, six rolling bearing producers, and seven research and development institutes."

Now finalized, the various Sessions are:

Thursday Session I :
Material and Heat Treatment Design Considerations, including Fracture Mechanics and Structural Strength for Rolling Bearings

* Case Depth and Static Capacity of Surface Induction Hardened Rings
* Measurement of Threshold Stress Intensity Factor Ranges for Shear-mode Fatigue Crack Growth
* Defect Sensitivity and its Implication for Durability of Components
* Microstructure and Fatigue Strength of the Bearing Steel 52100 after Shortened Bainitic Treatment
* Gigacycle Fatigue of Bearing Steels

Thursday Session II :
Microstructure Behavior in Rolling Contact

* Sub-surface Initiated Rolling Contact Fatigue -- Influence of Steel Matrix, Non-metallic Inclusions and Operating Conditions
* Investigation of Microstructural Changes in the Bearing Steel Caused by Subsurface Cracks Formation Under Rolling Contact Fatigue (RCF)
* Initiation and Propagation Behavior of Crack Caused by Non-metallic Inclusion in Rolling Contact Fatigue

Thursday Session III :
Rolling Contact Materials Response Analysis and RCF Testing

* Principles and Applications of XRD Material Response Analysis
* Physically Based Fatigue Damage Model for Hardened Steels
* Analytical Prediction of Plastic Deformation and Residual Stress from the Impact of a Ball at the Edge of a Bearing Spall
* Modeling the Influence of Microstructure in Rolling Contact Fatigue
* Material Response and Introduction of the Normal Stress Hypothesis for Mixed Friction in Rolling - Sliding - Contact

Friday Session IV :
Corrosion Resistant Steel and Hydrogen Effects in Bearing Steels

* The Role of Hydrogen in Rolling Contact Fatigue Response of Ball Bearings
* Corrosion in Aerospace Bearing Materials
* Demanding Applications for Hybrid Bearings with Martenistic Corrosion Resistant Nitrogen Alloyed Rings

Friday Session V :
Micro Cleanliness Quality Assurance in Bearing Steels

* Metallographic Micro-inclusion Assessment Methods for Bearing Steel
* Long Life Fatigue Fracture Induced by Interior Inclusions for High Carbon Chromium Bearing Steels under Rotating Bending
* A New Methodology for Predicting Fatigue Properties of Bearing Steels: From X-Ray Micro-tomography and Ultrasonic Measurements to the Bearing Lives Distribution
* Comparison of Inclusion Assessment Rating Standards in Terms of Results and Reliability by Numerical Simulation
* Bearing Fatigue Life Prediction Using Quantitative Ultrasonic Technique
* SEV - Method Development on 52100 Grade: Harmonization of the Method Between Vallourec, Ascometal and SNR

Friday Session VI :
Bearing Steel Steelmaking and Semi-Finished Product Manufacturing Techniques

* Practical Experience of Gerdau MACSTEEL in Automated NDT Inspection of Commercially Produced Hot Rolled Steel Bar for the Automotive Industry
* A Case Study of Automated Testing of Steel Bearing Rings -- Resonant Inspection Using Advanced Pattern Recognition Software
* Chemical Segregation of A485-3 Through Hardening Steel: Carbide Segregation Band Evolution and Internal Defect Formation During Thermo-mechanical Processing
* Behavior of CaO-Containing Inclusions During Ladle Refining
* Quantitative Relationship Between Degree of Center Segregation and Large Carbide Size in Continuously Cast Bloom of High-Carbon Chromium Bearing Steel
* QFD Application on the Development of 100Cr6 Bearing Tubes
* Development of the Steel Making Process to Drastically Reduce the Inclusion Size Distribution in Low-Sulphur 52100 Type of Steel

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