20-03-2014, 12:22 PM
ANALYSIS OF COMPOSITE LEAF SPRING USING FEA FOR LIGHT VEHICLE MINI TRUCK
COMPOSITE LEAF SPRING.pdf (Size: 370.66 KB / Downloads: 107)
ABSTRACT:
The Automobile Industry has shown increase interest for replacement of steel leaf spring with that of
composite leaf spring, since the composite material has high strength to weight ratio, good corrosion resistance
and tailor-able properties. The paper describes static analysis of steel leaf spring and laminated composite Multi
leaf spring. The objective is to compare the load carrying capacity, stiffness and weight savings of composite leaf
spring with that of steel leaf spring. The dimensions of an existing conventional steel leaf spring of a Light design
calculations. Static Analysis of 3-D model of conventional leaf spring is performed using ANSYS 11.0 and hyper
mesh. Same dimensions are used in composite multi leaf spring using carbon/Epoxy and Graphite/Epoxy
unidirectional laminates. The load carrying capacity, and weight of composite leaf spring are compared with that
of steel leaf spring. The design constraints are stresses and deflection. A weight reduction of 79.617 % is achieved
by using composite leaf spring. And if consider Mono leaf spring then Weight reduction is achieved 90.09%.
INTRODUCTION
In order to conserve natural resources and
economize energy, weight reduction has been the
main focus of automobile manufacturer in the
present scenario. Weight reduction can be achieved
primarily by the introduction of better material,
design optimization and better manufacturing
processes. The suspension leaf spring is one of the
potential items for weight reduction in automobile as
it accounts for ten to twenty percent of the unsprung
weight. This helps in achieving the vehicle with
improved riding qualities. It is well known that
springs, are designed to absorb and store energy and
then release it. Hence, the strain energy of the
material becomes a major factor in designing the
springs.
FINITE ELEMENT ANALYSIS OF STEEL
LEAF SPRING
The basic requirements of a leaf spring steel is that
the selected grade of steel must have sufficient
harden ability for the size involved to ensure a full
martenstic structure throughout the entire leaf
section. In general terms higher alloy content is
mandatory to ensure adequate harden ability when
the thick leaf sections are used. The material used
for the experimental work is SUP 9. Its chemical
compositions are given below in Table 1.
CONCLUSION
A Comparison has been made between laminated
composite leaf spring & steel spring having same
design and same load carrying capacity. From that
79.617 % weight reduction in composite material
has been achieved for same number of leaves. If we
consider mono composite leaf spring then weight
reduction achieved up to 90.09%.