Patent ID: 8651810

Claim:
A ball bearing for a cryogenic application comprising: an inner ring; an outer ring positioned around the inner ring; the inner ring and the outer ring defining a raceway therebetween; a plurality of rolling balls disposed in the raceway; a plurality of slug separators, each of the plurality of slug separators having a cylindrical exterior surface extending between a first axial end and a second axial end of the slug separator, the exterior surface having a first recess formed therein and extending circumferentially around the slug ball separator, the first axial end of the slug ball separator has a second recess formed therein and the second axial end of the slug ball separator has a third recess formed therein, the second recess tapers radially and axially inward from a first peripheral circumference of the slug ball separator and defines a first ball receiving surface, the third recess tapers radially and axially inward from a second peripheral circumference of the slug ball separator and defines a second ball receiving surface; wherein at least a portion of said second recess and third recess is planar and perpendicular to said cylindrical exterior surface; one of the plurality of slug separators is disposed in the raceway with a portion of the first ball receiving surface slidingly engaging one of the plurality of rolling balls and the second ball receiving surface slidingly engaging an adjacent one of the plurality of rolling balls; and the first recess is positioned in the raceway and spaced apart from adjacent ones of the plurality of rolling balls for flowing a cryogenic fluid through the first recess.