Weight Optimization Static and Dynamic Analysis of Connecting Rod with Composite Material

Abstract

Connecting rod is one of the most important part in automotive engine. Connecting rod is the link between piston and crank shaft. Which it converts reciprocating motion of piston into rotary motion of crank shaft. In internal engines connecting rod is mainly made of steel and aluminium alloys (for light weight and absorb high impact loads) or titanium (for higher performance engines and for higher cost) or composite materials , composite materials is a material made from two or more constituent materials with significantly different physical or chemical properties that, when combined, produce a material with characteristics different from the individual components. The individual components remain separate and distinct within the finished structure. The new material may be preferred for many reasons: common examples include materials which are stronger, lighter, or less expensive when compared to traditional materials. As a connecting rod is rigid, it may transmit either a push or a pull and so the rod may rotate the crank through both halves of a revolution, i.e. Piston pushing and piston pulling. Earlier mechanisms, such as chains, could only pull. In a few two-stroke engines, the connecting rod is only required to push. In which it undergoes structural deformations. Thus in this project we are modeling a connecting rod in solid works 2016 design software and doing static structural and modal(dynamic) analysis in ansys work bench 16  software by using advance composite materials.

Thus the part which is modelled is converted into igs file to import in ansys work bench and static structural analysis is carried out at 16MPa of pressure load by applying various materials such as one general material 42Cr2Mo4(special alloy steel), and three composite materials such as Aluminium boron carbide (Al+BC4) , Aluminium Silicon magnesium alloy(Al Si Mg), Aluminum metal matrix (KS1275), materials used in this project. By applying these boundary conditions on connecting rod the unknown variables such as stress, deformation, and strain are found using the FEM Analysis based software (ANSYS).