Robust stainless steel linear modules

Extremely robust, corrosion-free and resistant to chemicals

Stainless steel is in demand as a material, particularly where lubricants are not required and machine components may come into contact with food, strong cleaning agents or even chemicals. To minimise maintenance and cleaning work, igus® has developed linear modules and linear axis for precisely these requirements.

• Individually configurable
• Resistant to chemicals
• Extremely robust design
• With corrosion-resistant steel components
• Choice of plain bearings: iglidur® J = standard, iglidur® A180 = FDA-compliant, iglidur® X = high temperature

Hardened stainless steel
Linear axis guidance made of hardened stainless steel is usually offered in combination with recirculating ball bearing systems and roller bearing guides. The metal balls in the guidance system need a strong counterpart to prevent the balls from running in. Hardened stainless steel - such as AISI 420C, AISI 440B, AISI 440C - has a comparatively high carbon content (C content over 0.5 %) to make hardening possible at all. This means that the hardened stainless steel is only corrosion-free to a limited extent. The lubrication required for recirculating ball bearing systems and roller bearing guides means that there is a risk of contamination of the products, which is undesirable in many areas.

Non-hardened stainless steel
Although non-hardened stainless steel has a lower hardness due to its lower carbon content, it is significantly more resistant to corrosion or aggressive cleaning agents and chemicals. However, as recirculating ball bearing systems or roller bearing guides are less suitable for running on non-hardened stainless steel, a so-called plain bearing system is used. The punctual force acting on the rail material is thus converted into a surface force. The load on the linear rail is distributed over a larger area and material wear is avoided.