Belhocine et al. 2014. Int. J. Vehicle Structures & Systems, 6(3), 64-70 International Journal of Vehicle Structures & Systems Available online at www.maftree.org/eja ISSN: 0975-3060 (Print), 0975-3540 (Online) doi: 10.4273/ijvss.6.3.04 © 2014. MechAero Foundation for Technical Research & Education Excellence 64 Dry Contact and Coupled Thermomechanical Analyses of Brake Disc-Pad using Finite Element Simulation Ali Belhocine a , Nouby Mahdi Ghazali b and Oday Ibraheem Abdullah c a Faculty of Mechanical Engg., Oran University of Science & Technology, Algeria. Corresponding Author, Email: al.belhocine@yahoo.fr b Mechanical Engg. Dept., Faculty of Engg., South Valley University, Egypt. Email: nouby.ghazaly@eng.svu.edu.eg c System Technology and Mechanical Design Methodology, Hamburg University of Technology, Germany. Email: oday.abdullah@tu-harburg.de ABSTRACT: The motivation of this work is to identify the thermal effects on the structural and contact behaviour of a disc-pad assembly using a finite element approach. The first analysis is performed on the disc-pad model without the presence of thermal properties. Structural performance of the disc-pad model such as deformation and Von Mises stress is predicted. Next, thermomechanical analysis is performed on the same disc-pad model with the inclusion of convection, adiabatic and heat flux elements. The prediction results of temperature distribution, deformation, stress and contact pressure are presented. Comparison of the structural performance between the mechanical and thermomechanical is also made. Three disc-pad designs are assessed using the developed finite element model. KEYWORDS: Finite element analysis; Braking system; Disc-pad interface; Temperature; Deformation; Stress; Contact pressure CITATION: A. Belhocine, N.M. Ghazali and O.I. Abdullah. 2014. Dry Contact and Coupled Thermomechanical Analyses of Brake Disc-Pad using Finite Element Simulation, Int. J. Vehicle Structures & Systems, 6(3), 64-70. doi:10.4273/ijvss.6.3.04. 1. Introduction In basic working operation, a disc brake system has to reduce wheel speed when a driver desires vehicle deceleration. The kinetic energy generated by a vehicle in terms of wheel speed is converted into heat energy due to the application of the brake. The friction force between disc and brake pad applies friction torque to the wheel in the opposite direction of the car’s movement. This results in a reduction of vehicle speed and heat energy occurring in the brake disc causes a temperature increment in the disc swept area during the brake application. This physical action of the brake disc causes heat conduction to the adjacent braking system components [1]. Lee [2] stated that inconsistent dissipation of heat inside the brake disc could cause deformation of the disc. The disc deformation could also cause friction loss and consequently led to brake fade [3]. High temperature of the brake disc could cause cracking in the brake disc material due to high thermal stresses and vibrations [4, 5]. It is become common in the brake research community to fully utilize finite element (FE) approach in order to identify and predict disc brake structural performance. For instance, Koetniyom [6] performed temperature analysis on brake discs under heavy operating conditions. He found that the physical shape of vehicle brake discs play a significant role in determining the temperature characteristics including the overall brake efficiency. Kamnerdtong et al. [7] attempted to link the interaction between mechanical and thermal effects with disc movements and heat caused by friction. They concluded from FE analysis that the temperature on the disc surface changed at each point over the period, which indicates inconsistent dissipation and temperature differences in each side of the disc. Inconsistent contact between disc and pad could affect material deformation. Akhtar et al. [8] employed FE method to explain the transient thermoelastic phenomena of a dry clutch system. The effect of sliding speed on contact pressure distribution, temperature and heat flux generated along the frictional surfaces was analyzed. Sowjanya and Suresh [9] conducted a static structural analysis of the disc brake with selected composite materials to compare the results obtained such as deflection and stresses. In the research by Reddy et al.[10], thermal and structural coupled analysis was carried out to find the strength of the disc brake. Gnanesh et al. [11] investigated thermal- structural analysis of solid and vented disc brake using FE approach in the case of design with and with out holes in the disc. The materials used in the simulation were cast iron, stainless steel and aluminum metal matrix composites. Manjunath and Suresh [12] performed a