A NOTES ON COUPLING

BASIC FUNCTION OF COUPLING

The three basic functions of a coupling are –

1. To transmit power

2. To accommodate misalignment

3. To compensate for end movement

Type of Couplings

There are two types of couplings

1. The Rigid Coupling

2. The Flexible Coupling

1. Rigid Coupling

Rigid coupling connect two pieces of rotating equipment. They allow for the transfer of
power from one piece of equipment to the other. They also allow equipment that has
different size shafts to be connected. The rigid coupling should be used only when the
equipment has virtually no misalignment and/or when the shafts of the equipment or the
rigid coupling are long and slender enough so that they can flex and accept the forces
and moments produce by the mechanical deflection on these parts due to the
misalignment imposed by the connected equipment.

These are four basic types of rigid couplings

(a) The flanged rigid coupling

(b) The ribbed rigid coupling
(c) The sleeve rigid coupling
(d) The quill shaft rigid coupling
1
(a) Flange Rigid Coupling

This is the most common type of rigid connection used. Rigid coupling are usually
made from carbon steel 1035 to 1050 either from bar stock or from forging. They can
handle large amount of torque for their sizes.

Max. rpm 10000 7400 5900 5000 4300

Torque 8820 22680 44100 75600 132300
(1b-in)
Max. rpm 3900 3500 3200 2900 2700
Torque 189000 299500 409500 576500 756000
(1b-in)
Max. rpm 2500 2200
Torque 1008000 1575000
(1b-in)

The flanged rigid is also available in various materials: Gray iron, malleable iron,
various carbon steel and in alloy steels. The flanged rigid coupling can be used any
place where no misalignment is present or virtually none. Some applications include
pumps (vertical and horizontal) and crane drives.

(b) Ribbed Rigid Coupling

The ribbed rigid coupling is used where ease of assembly and disassembly is
required. The coupling clamps on the shafts. The shafts and the coupling hubs are
usually keyed. The two halves are held together by radial bolts at the split. The
quantity of bolts can vary depending on the size of the coupling; typically four to eight
are used. These couplings are usually made of material having strength compatible
with AISI 1018 steel shafts. These couplings are usually used for low-speed, low-
torque application. These are used on vertical pumps, agitation, winches etc.
Maximum rpm are –
1230, 1365, 1390, 1625, 1775, 1900, 2165,
2315, 2545, 2830, 2965, 3180, 3635, 3965,
4130, 5360

2
 (c) Sleeve Rigid Couplings

This form of a coupling is probably are of the simplest forms of a coupling available.
On small drives (usually fractional horse power) where the equipment shaft are of the
same diameter, a sleeve rigid coupling can be slid on to the shaft of one piece of
equipment, the equipment put in place, and the sleeve rigid coupling slid on to the
other piece of equipment’s shaft. The sleeve is usually locked to the shafts with two
setscrews, one for each piece of equipment. There is no industrial standard for this
type of coupling.

(d) Quill Shaft Rigid Coupling

The quill shaft rigid coupling looks like the quill shafts that go through some large
gears in gearboxes. They are usually long and slender. These rigid do accommodate
for some misalignment. They do this through the flexing of their long slender shafts.
Quill shaft rigid coupling are usually made of high-grade alloy steels. This is because
the stresses imposed on them when they are mis-aligned (flexed) are usually quite
high and they must be designed for the cyclic loads imposed on them when they are
flexed due to mis-alignment. These couplings are usually used as large, high horse
power steam and gas turbine.

2. The Flexible Coupling

The flexible coupling accommodates the three basic requirement of a flexible coupling.
They transmit power, accommodate for misalignment, and compensate for shaft end float.
The coupling in this group obtain their flexibility from loose fitting parts and/or rolling or
sliding of making parts. There are six basic types of coupling in this group.

(a) Gear Coupling

(b) Chain Coupling
(c) Grid Coupling
(d) Universal Coupling
(e) Elastomeric Coupling
(f) Metallic Membrane Coupling

(a) Gear Coupling

Gear Coupling has been applied to bores to 36 inch, misalignment to 7½°, speed to
40,000 rpm, and torque to 40,000,000 in-lb. It is also one of the most difficult to
design and evaluate, the reason being the number of variables that can effect its
successful operation. Some of these variables are –

i) Tooth design

 Straight teeth
 Type of crown and amount of crown
3
  Pressure angle of tooth
 Amount of back lash
 Accuracy of tooth spacing

ii) Material

 Medium – Carbon Steel, Alloy Steel

 Type of core heat treatment, as rolled, normalized, heat treatment
 Type of surface hardening: None, induction, nitrides and carbonized

iii) Lubrication

 Oil
 Grease
 Sealed Lubrication
 Continuous Lubrication

When two shafts are to be connected by this type of coupling a coupling half
(consisting of one hub and its mating sleeve) is keyed to each shaft, the shaft ends
brought together and the sleeve bolted together securely. Since the hubs have
external teeth that mesh with the internal teeth on the sleeves, the connection is in
effect an internal spun gear drive wherein the gear ratio is 1:1.

..
Gear couplings are used on the following types of equipment: Centrifugal pumps,
conveyors, exciters, fans, generations, blowers, mixers, hydraulic pumps,
compressors, steel mills and auxiliary equipment, cranes, hoist, mining machinery.

(b) Chain Coupling

Chain coupling has been applied to bores to 10 inch, misalignment to 2°, speed to
6500 rpm and torque to 1,500,000 inch-lb. The basic chain coupling consists of two
hubs and a length of double width roller chain. The two hubs have sprockets and are
connected by a length of roller chain. Misalignment is compensated by the clearance
between the chain and the sprocket. These couplings have built-in clearance
between –

4
 i) The chain rollers and the sprocket teeth
ii) The chain rollers and the harden bushing
iii) The bushing and the pins
iv) The chain links and the sprocket teeth

All the clearances help to compensate for angular and parallel offset misalignment as
well as shaft end float. Chain couplings are used on the following types of equipment:
Agitators, Conveyors, Pumps, Feeders, Hoist, Mixer, Machine tools.

(c) Grid Coupling

Grid coupling have been applied to bores to 20 inch, misalignment to 1/3°, speed to
4000 rpm and torque to 4,000,000 inch-lb. The basic metallic grid coupling consists
of two hubs that contain slots, which may be straight, tapered on contoured. The two
hubs are connected by a “Serpent” style metallic grid (spring). The metallic grid
coupling has been applied to nearly all types of industrial application, from centrifugal
pumps to steel mill application. Some applications are: Agitators, Blowers,
Compressors, Cranes, Elevators, Fans, Generators, Machine Tools, Mixers, Paper
Mills, Pumps, Rubber Industries, Steel Mills and Auxiliary Equipment and Textile
Industries.

5
(d) Universal Coupling

Universal joints have been applied to bores to 20 inch, misalignment to 20°, speed to
6000 rpm and torque to 25,000,000 inch-lb. It consists of two shaft shapes drilled at
right angles and then connected through a third piece, a cross. These are two basic
types of universal joints.

i) Plain cross and bushing

ii) Bearing and cross design

The plain cross and bushing is used as low-torque manual controls such as steering
columns and on rotating applications that operate at less than 1000 rpm. The bearing
and cross design universal joint is used in application up to 6000 rpm. Universal
joints are used as automobiles, agricultural and locomotive vehicles, horizontal and
vertical pumps, winches, paper processing equipment, conveyors, drilling rigs and
crane.

(e) Elastomeric Coupling

Elastomeric couplings not only handle misalignment and end movement but also
protect equipment from the damaging effects of stock loading and vibration through
resilience. The elastomeric material is the resilient member, made of rubber on
synthetic rubber like material. Elastomeric couplings are basically 6 types –

i) Jaw coupling
ii) Block coupling
6
iii) Pin and bushing coupling
iv) Donut or ring coupling
v) Tire coupling
vi) Bonded coupling

i) Jaw coupling

The Jaw type elastomeric coupling has an elastomer in compression. One-piece

flex members are generally used on low horsepower applications. On higher
horsepower applications, individual elastomeric elements can be used. The
tortional stiffness, torque capacity and overall dimensions can be altered by
decreasing or increasing number of jaws, the jaw width and/or the shape of the
jaw.

ii) Block coupling

Block elastomers are almost incompressible, the cavities are constructed so as to

allow proper deformation of the blocks and are completely filled only under
conditions of extreme overload, combining high load carrying capacity with
maximum resiliency.

iii) Pin and Bushing coupling

All relative movement is accommodated by the controlled internal displacement of

compressed cylindrical rubber blocks having specially shaped end profiles. The
bore of the bushing is steel bonded in to the rubber.

7
iv) Donut or Ring coupling

This coupling was specially developed for connecting high inertia drives to low
inertia drive members, such as diesel engine to hydrostatic pumps. The material
of elastomeric element provides a turtionally stiff coupling. High permissible
rotational speeds are attained and minor misalignment accommodated. The
hardware design allows this coupling to connect directly to flywheels or to connect
using simple flywheel adopter plates.

v) Tyre coupling

This coupling has the reinforced flexible element at the outermost radius of the
configuration, thereby permitting a small ratio of overall length to torque capacity.
The shape factor or cross sectional profile of the elastic member connecting the
hubs is very important if the coupling is to maintain maximum flexibility and
cushioning effect under mis-aligned condition. The heart of the fire shaped
coupling is the resilient connecting member, usually a fabrication of vulcanized
natural rubber and plies of synthetic cord. The plies of cord are crossed
alternately so that regardless of the direction of rotation, half the cord plies will be
working in tension to carry the load. This coupling accommodates angular mis-
alignment to 4°, parallel mis-alignment to 1/8 inch, end float up to 5/16 inch.

8
 vi) Bonded coupling

The basic shear type is elastomeric material bonded between two hubs, used for
low-frequency isolation and accommodation of moderate parallel mis-alignment.

(f) Metallic membrane coupling

The development of metallic membrane couplings came about through derive to

eliminate the problems associated with lubricated couplings. These couplings rely on
the flexure of metallic materials to accommodate for mis-alignment and axial
movement. There are two basic types of metallic membrane couplings –

i) Disc Coupling
ii) Diaphragm Coupling

i) Disc Coupling

The flexible disk coupling is available in a number of forms, but they all have one
thing in common, the driving and driven bolts are on the same bolt circle. The disk
coupling is used from fractional horsepower drives to very large drives (100000
hp). The general-purpose disk couplings torque transmission components are
made from low to medium carbon steels. Flexing disks are usually made of spring
steel, AISI 1050 to 1080, 300 series stainless steel. The high-speed disk
couplings torque transmission components are usually made of alloy steels. The
flexing disk is usually made of corrosion resistant steel. AISI 300 series stainless
steel or high strength nickel alloy disk coupling are used on marine drives,
coupling tower drives, generators, compressors, mill equipment fans, machine
tools, medium horsepower pumps.

The advantages of a thin laminated construction, as opposed to one thick disk will
be obvious in terms of flexibility and forces transmitted due to mis-alignment
lamination thickness ranging from 0.005 to 0.025 inch have been found to be
9
satisfactory. The degree of flexibility required and limits of acceptability bearing
loads determine the number of driving and driven bolts used. This can be an
important factor when selecting a coupling. There are different types of disk
coupling.

 Closed coupled disk coupling

 Floating shaft disk coupling
 Spares disk coupling

VARIOUS TYRES OF DISK SHAPES

CLOSED COUPLE DISK COUPLING

FLOATED SHAFT DISK COUPLING

SPACER DISK COUPLING

10
ii) Diaphragm Coupling

The flexible diaphragm coupling is available in three basic forms. This coupling
obtain its flexibility from the free span between the diaphragm OD & ID. Torque
for these couplings are transmitted between the OD and ID. The diaphragm
element can be of constant or variable thickness, usually with maximum thickness
at the smaller diameter.

 Tapered Contoured Diaphragm

This diaphragm shape is designed for constant shear stress from ID & OD.
The tapered shape greatly increases the coupling’s flexibility capabilities.

 Multiple Straight Diaphragm

By using multiple thin plates rather than one thick plate the flexibility of this
couple is greatly increased compared to that of a single diaphragm. With thin
diaphragm in parallel, the stress is usually lower.

 Multiple Convoluted Diaphragm

This coupling incorporates all the flexibility and has a convoluted shape, which
helps to increase its flexibility in the axial direction and provides linear axial
stiffness.

11
The diaphragm coupling is usually used on high-performed equipment and
therefore must have high reliability. Because of this, the torque transmission
components of these couplings are usually made of high strength alloys such
as AISI 4140 and 4340. Flexible diaphragms are made from high strength
alloys that exhibit good fatigue properties. Tapered contoured diaphragms are
usually made from AISI 4100 or 4300 steels coated for corrosion protection.
Multiple diaphragms are typically made from cold/reduced 300 series stainless
steel.

12