Design and Failure Analysis of Piston

Abstract

piston is a component of reciprocating engines. The purpose of piston is to transfer force from expanding gas in the cylinder to the crankshaft via a piston rod and a connecting rod. It is one of the most complex components of an automobile. In This project we are describes the structural analysis of five different aluminum alloy pistons, by using finite element method (FEM). The specifications used for designing the piston belong to four stroke single cylinder engine of Bajaj Pulsar 220cc. Modeling of various aluminium alloy piston are done using SOLID EDGE. Static structural, thermal and fatigue analysis is performed by using ANSYS WORKBENCH 2022 R1. The parameters used for the simulation are operating gas pressure, material properties of piston. The results predict the maximum stress and strain on different aluminium alloy pistons using FEA. The best aluminum alloy material is selected based on static structural, thermal and fatigue analysis. The analysis results are used to optimize piston geometry of best aluminum alloy.

Introduction

I. INTRODUCTION

A piston is a component of  reciprocating engines, reciprocating  pumps, gas compressors,  hydraulic cylinders and pneumatic cylinders, among other similar mechanisms. It is the moving component that is contained by a cylinder and is made gas-tight by piston rings. In an engine, its purpose is to transfer force from expanding gas in the cylinder to the crankshaft via a piston rod and/or connecting rod. In a pump, the function is reversed and force is transferred from the crankshaft to the piston for the purpose of compressing or ejecting the fluid in the cylinder. In some engines, the piston also acts as a valve by covering and uncovering ports in the cylinder.

II. LITERATURE REVIEW

The design of the piston is a complex process that involves several factors, such as the engine's operating conditions, performance requirements, material properties, and manufacturing processes. The piston's design must consider the piston's shape, size, weight, and material composition. Several studies have been conducted on the design of piston. "Design and Analysis of an Automotive Piston using Finite Element Method" by Amit Singh Yash Dhamecha and Vaibhav Saptarshi. This paper presents a finite element analysis (FEA) of an automotive piston to evaluate its strength, stiffness, and deformation under various operating conditions.  "A Review of Piston Failure Analysis in Internal Combustion Engines" by Amit Singh Chahar and Ashutosh Kumar. This review paper provides an overview of the causes and mechanisms of piston failures in internal combustion engines. It covers various types of failures, including thermal fatigue, mechanical fatigue, and lubrication-related failures.

Table – 1: Property of Aluminium Alloy

Table – 2: Property of Ti-6A1-4V

III. METHODOLOGY

1. Analytical design of pistons based on design formulae and empirical relations.
2. 3-D piston models are created in SOLID EDGE V20
3. Meshing and analysis of piston is done in ANSYS Workbench 2022R1
4. Various stresses are determined by individually performing structural analysis, thermal analysis and thermos-mechanical analysis.
5. Various zones or regions where chances of damage in piston are possible are analyzed.
6. Comparison is made between the three materials in terms of stresses, deformation, strain, volume, weight, force and factor of safety.

A. Design of Piston

Engine: Bajaj Pulsar 220 cc petrol engine.

Conclusion

The titanium alloy Ti-6Al-4V is widely used in pistons of supercars and this led us to the assumption that if it is used in such high-performance cars, then it’s possible that it can also be used in motorbikes. The material properties of titanium alloy were also suggesting the same but our analysis clearly demonstrates that it isn’t a feasible option. From our analysis results, it is concluded that Ti-6Al-4V is the best material for piston of Bajaj Pulsar 220cc. This is due to the following reasons. 1) Its Factor of Safety (F.O.S.) is maximum amongst the one material. 2) Mass of Aluminum alloy is also least. This result is because of the design of the piston of Bajaj Pulsar 220cc. The piston design of supercars is significantly different from the piston design of motorbikes. To make titanium alloy a feasible option, we need to make a lot of changes in the design of piston which will result in a change in the overall design of the engine which is beyond the scope of this work. Still, there’s a lot that can be done. The same can be done for other motorbikes/vehicles too. Other analyses apart from thermal and structural can also be performed for these materials. Also, these materials can be compared on the basis of cost like cost of manufacturing, cost of machining, etc.

References

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Copyright

Copyright © 2023 Bharath Gowda HR, Gangadhara CS, Nishanth CS, Sudeep A, Anusha G, Lokesh N, Griyanna T. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.