Aluminum Alloy Wheel Research Articles

Applying Wireless Transmission for Aluminum Alloy Wheel Cornering Simulation and Testing

This study adopted finite element analysis (FEA) to conduct tests and simulations on the bending moment of truck wheels. Based on the simulated analysis using ANSYS Workbench software, a three-axis strain gauge was attached to locations with substantial stress variations. The strain gauge was converted into voltage. Amplification and filtering circuits were adopted for signal processing, and the processed signals were subsequently entered into the microcontroller unit. Simultaneously, a universal asynchronous receiver/transmitter (UART) communications protocol was applied for communication with the Bluetooth wireless module. The accessed signal was then transmitted to the receiver end through wireless emission. The detection interface at the monitoring end was designed using LabVIEW software, enabling operators to observe the stress and strain for wheels under various test conditions. The acquired data were stored in a computer for future reviews and analysis.

Process Modeling of Low-Pressure Die Casting of Aluminum Alloy Automotive Wheels

Although on initial inspection, the aluminum alloy automotive wheel seems to be a relatively simple component to cast based on its shape, further insight reveals that this is not the case. Automotive wheels are in a select group of cast components that have strict specifications for both mechanical and aesthetic characteristics due to their important structural requirements and their visibility on a vehicle. The modern aluminum alloy automotive wheel continues to experience tightened tolerances relating to defects to improve mechanical performance and/or the physical appearance. Automotive aluminum alloy wheels are assessed against three main criteria: wheel cosmetics, mechanical performance, and air tightness. Failure to achieve the required standards in any one of these categories will lead to the wheel either requiring costly repair or being rejected and remelted. Manufacturers are becoming more reliant on computational process modeling as a design tool for the wheel casting process. This article discusses and details examples of the use of computational process modeling as a predictive tool to optimize the casting process from the standpoint of defect minimization with the emphasis on those defects that lead to failure of aluminum automotive wheels, namely, macroporosity, microporosity, and oxide films. The current state of applied computational process modeling and its limitations with regard to wheel casting are discussed.

Composite Squeeze Casting of Large Parts

The article aims to put forward a kind of mold structure and corresponding composite squeeze casting process for large parts. Example will base on an Aluminum alloy wheel hub of heavy-duty tuck. Author analyzes the manufacturing production workflow of the corresponding equipments and the main parameters of process. The composite squeeze casting process can retain the advantages of direct squeeze casting while reduce the probability of inhale and oxidation of molten metal at the same time. It is especially suitable for producing large parts, and has wide applicability.

Numerical Simulation Analysis of Aluminium Alloy Wheels Casting Defects and Casting Process Optimization

In the low pressure casting process of A356 aluminum alloy wheel hub, casting defects including shrinkage cavity, shrinkage porosity, impurity and pore usually occur inside the casting. These defects affect the mechanical properties of the casting. To solve this problem, we conducted a study based on a cooperation project with a well-known domestic automobile wheel manufacturer. In the present study, uniaxial tensile test of aluminum alloy casting containing defects was simulated and analysed, and the effect of types and number of defects on mechanical properties was studied by finite element analysis software. Statistical analysis of the data was provided by the manufacturer. It has been found that the degassing technology is effective by the quantitative analysis method. Based on the analyses of experimental data and the numerical simulation it is deduced that the tensile strength of casting increases with the increase of the defects due to the presence of impurity. This was confirmed in this research project, it has been observed that the defect rate of the casting sample is reduced from 5%-6% to less than 1%.

Development and Application of Light-Weight Design of the Aluminum Alloy Wheel

In order to implement the optimization design for a forging aluminum wheel, the wheel’s structural optimization design software, i.e. DWheel, was developed in this paper. DWheel was programmed based on C# and ANSYS applying the restrained variable-dimension method. The key data interface commands were introduced first. Subsequently, the software was applied on a forging wheel’s structural optimization design. The optimized wheel passed the practical testings successfully.

Development of a 3D Filling Model of Low-Pressure Die-Cast Aluminum Alloy Wheels

A two-phase computational fluid dynamics model of the low-pressure die-cast process for the production of A356 aluminum alloy wheels has been developed to predict the flow conditions during die filling. The filling model represents a 36-deg section of a production wheel, and was developed within the commercial finite-volume package, ANSYS CFX, assuming isothermal conditions. To fully understand the behavior of the free surface, a novel technique was developed to approximate the vent resistances as they impact on the development of a backpressure within the die cavity. The filling model was first validated against experimental data, and then was used to investigate the effects of venting conditions and pressure curves during die filling. It was found that vent resistance and vent location strongly affected die filling time, free surface topography, and air entrainment for a given pressure fill-curve. With regard to the pressure curve, the model revealed a strong relation between the pressure curve and the flow behavior in the hub, which is an area prone to defect formation.

Structural and Fatigue Analysis of Two Wheeler Lighter Weight Alloy Wheel

Importance of wheel in the automobile is obvious. The vehicle may be towed without the engine but at the same time even that is also not possible without the wheels, the wheels along the tire has to carry the vehicle load, provide cushioning effect and cope with the steering control. Generally wheel spokes are the supports consisting of a radial member of a wheel joining the hub to the rim. The most commonly used materials for making Wheel spokes are with features of excellent lightness, thermal conductivity, corrosion resistance, characteristics of casting, low temperature, high damping property, machine processing and recycling, etc. This metal main advantage is reduced weight, high accuracy and design choices of the wheel. This metal is useful for energy conservation because it is possible to re-cycle. Spokes make vehicles look great but at the same time they require attention in maintenance. To perform their functions best, the spokes must be kept under the right amount of tension. The two main types of motorcycle rims are solid wheels, in which case the rim and spokes are all cast as one unit and the other spoke wheels, where the motorcycle rims are laced with spokes. These types of wheels require unusually high spoke tension, since the load is carried by fewer spokes. If a spoke does break, the wheel generally becomes instantly unridable also the hub may break. Presently, for motor-cycles Aluminium alloy wheels are used, currently now replacing by new magnesium alloy due its better properties than Al-alloy. An important implication of this paper or the problem stated here is to the stress and the displacement distribution comparing the results obtained. In addition, this work extends Proper analysis of the wheel plays an important role for the safety of the rider. This paper deals with the static &fatigue analysis of the wheel. The present work attempts to analyse the safe load of the alloy wheel, which will indicate the safe drive is possible.

Computer-Aided Designs of Die and Thermal Control for Fabrication of A356 Wheels

Horizontal squeeze casting (HSC) is a potential method for casting aluminum alloy wheels. In this study, the process for HSC of an A356 wheel was modeled and simulated. After analysis of the velocity and temperature fields during the casting process, the designs of the die and thermal control were modified and the effects of the design modifications on two key characteristics of HSC were studied: slow filling and squeeze feeding. An increase in the gate size and the use of exhaust slots reduced the tendency for gas to become entrapped. Furthermore, the increase in the gate size and application of thermal control allowed squeeze feeding for the wheel hub to be achieved successfully. Finally, experiments were performed to verify the results of simulation. [doi:10.2320/matertrans.M2013032]

Numerical Simulation of Aluminum Alloy Wheel 13° Impact Test Based on Abaqus

In order to predict the result of impact test in the design phase and reduce the experimental times, which can save cost and shorten development cycle, a finite element model of aluminum alloy wheel 13-degree impact test is established based on Abaqus. All mechanical parts such as the standard impact block, the assembly of the wheel and the tire, the support and bolts are included in the finite element model. The predicted result of finite element analysis and the experimental result agree very well shows the finite element model is correct. The equivalent plastic strain value was also put forward as fracture criterion for the wheel in the impact test which realizes the transition from the qualitative analysis to the quantitative analysis in the development process of aluminum alloy wheel.

Fatigue Analysis of Aluminum Alloy Wheel Under Radial Load

In this paper a detailed “Fatigue Analysis of Aluminum Alloy Wheel under Radial Load”. During the part of project a static and fatigue analysis of aluminum alloy wheel A356.2 was carried out using FEA package. The 3 dimensional model of the wheel was designed using CATIA. Then the 3-D model was imported into ANSYS using the IGES format. The finite element idealization of this modal was then produced using the 10 node tetrahedron solid element. The analysis was performed in a static condition. This is constrained in all degree of freedom at the PCD and hub portion. The pressure is applied on the rim. We find out the total deformation, alternative stress and shear stress by using FEA software. And also we find out the life, safety factor and damage of alloy wheel by using S-N curve. S-N curve is input for a A.356.2 material.

Application of Parametric Modeling in Optimization Design on Aluminum Alloy Wheels

With the development of lightweight car，the applications of aluminum alloy wheels are changed extensively. At present, there are many disadvantages in aluminum alloy wheel profession of my country such as the blindness in design, the long period, material consumption, the high cost and so on. In this paper, the CAD as well as the FEA technology is applied. The parametric three-dimensional model of aluminum alloy wheel is constructed using UG software. Taken the former's thickness and the angle between two formers as variables, the wheels with different sizes and shapes are established. Automobile aluminum alloy wheel hub is built and this is helpful to the development of CAE / CAM in the aluminum alloy wheel design.

Virtual Impact Test for Aluminum-Alloy Wheel Based on Numerical Simulation Method

The mechanical properties of car wheel mast have high reliability requirements. The impact test for trial casting aluminum alloy wheel must be passed, which is one of the bench tests. Based the practical case, the integrated finite-element model for virtual test is established, including impact block, wheel, tire, bracket, rubber pad, the standard test load conditions are imposed, and the entire impact process was simulated by finite-element method, the velocity, displacement and kinetic energy curves of the impact block, the stress distribution and the impact force curve of change were obtained. Moreover, using in a typical case, compared with the physical impact test, the model and procedure of the finite-element numerical simulation was verified. The modeling method and calculation procedure given can guide the virtual design of aluminum-alloy wheel, the blindness of design can be reduced, and the development work efficiency can be increased.

Virtual Impact Test for Aluminum-Alloy Wheel Based on Numerical Simulation Method

The mechanical properties of car wheel mast have high reliability requirements. The impact test for trial casting aluminum alloy wheel must be passed, which is one of the bench tests. Based the practical case, the integrated finite-element model for virtual test is established, including impact block, wheel, tire, bracket, rubber pad, the standard test load conditions are imposed, and the entire impact process was simulated by finite-element method, the velocity, displacement and kinetic energy curves of the impact block, the stress distribution and the impact force curve of change were obtained. Moreover, using in a typical case, compared with the physical impact test, the model and procedure of the finite-element numerical simulation was verified. The modeling method and calculation procedure given can guide the virtual design of aluminum-alloy wheel, the blindness of design can be reduced, and the development work efficiency can be increased.

Fatigue behaviour of A356 aluminium alloy for automotive wheels

The low cycle fatigue (LCF), high cycle fatigue (HCF), microstructure and tensile properties of a low pressure cast A356 aluminium alloy wheel were investigated with T6 heat treatment. The cast microstructure of the alloy significantly influenced the low and high cycle fatigue behaviours. The rim region of the cast aluminium alloy wheel showed higher low and high cycle fatigue strength compared with the spoke region; this difference is thought to be caused by the higher cooling rate of the rim region during casting. The microstructure of the spoke region of the alloy wheel consisted of a dendrite structure with primary α-phase and frequently dispersed large eutectic phases, which led to partial brittle fracture and lower fatigue life with less fatigue plastic strain.

Research on Extrusion Technology and Application for Aluminum Alloy Wheel Rim of Heavy Vehicles

Lightweight can not only save energy,reduce emissions,but also improve the performance of heavy vehicles.In order to promote lightweight process of heavy duty automobile,the forming technology of the aluminum alloy wheel rim originally made in steel are studied.Investigation on influence of deformation temperature and deformation passes on microstructures and mechanical properties of 7A04 alloy,multiple deformations technology to achieve strength-toughness controlling is developed.The good comprehensive mechanical properties are achieved after 4 passes deformation at 480 ℃ for 7A04 alloy.The anti-extrusion from hollow billet to reduce the forming force is developed.The analytical results by slab method show that the forming force decreases enormously with the decrease of contact area and normal stress on the interface.The 20 inch one-piece aluminium alloy wheel rim is manufactured on 12.5 MN vertical hydraulic press.Over 55% structure weight loss can be achieved by replacing steel.The aluminum alloy wheels have been applied in heavy vehicles and provided a new method for reducing weight of equipments.

Simulation Study on Influence of Forming Process Parameters on Backward Extrusion Height of 6061 Aluminum-Alloy Wheel

Backward extrusion process of aluminum-alloy wheel forging is analyzed by the finite element method. The influence of punch speed and forming temperature on the backward extrusion height of 6061 aluminum alloy wheel is discussed. Studies show that the backward extrusion height increases with increasing forming temperature, and with decreasing punch speed at the same deformation load. It is indicated that when the ranges of forming temperature is from 450 to 500°C and the punch speed is 0.5-1 mm/s, the aluminum alloy wheel has the optimal forming quality. The analysis and conclusions in this paper are helpful in developing the hot extrusion technology specification of 6061 aluminum alloy.

Approach to impact analysis of automobile Al alloy wheel in presence of casting shrinkage defect

The objective of the research was to evaluate the effect of casting shrinkage defects on the impact properties of cast aluminium alloy wheel for automobile. Most structure design engineers give the casting parts an overestimated factor of safety, specify extensive quality tests and perform extensive performance testing due to worries about unavoidable defects, such as shrinkages; however, all of these methods do not necessarily guarantee performance, and they are all somewhat costly. In this paper, an approach using computational impact analysis for an Al alloy, where shrinkage defect exists, was proposed to solve the motioned problem. The shrinkage defects were modelled by the shape simplification method. The method reconstructs the shrinkage defects to hollow spheroid primitive based on the shrinkage shape data obtained from industrial computerised tomography. The results of the simulation of wheel with shrinkage defect were compared with the results of ignoring shrinkage. Comparative results showed that when the impact analysis was applied to an Al alloy wheel, a traditional analysis without considering the shrinkage defect estimated the wheel safety; however, the results considering shrinkage defect show that the wheel would fracture under the same test condition.

The Lightweight Design and Improvement of Aluminum Alloy Automobile Wheel

This paper models the auto wheel by UG, and made analysis through ANSYS Workbench software. The result of finite element analysis shows that the maximum stress is much less than the allowable stress of aluminum alloy wheels. So auto wheels can be optimized further. Then structural optimization is made to minimize the weight of the wheel. The static analysis and fatigue analysis to the optimized wheel is made then. The results of equivalent stress, equivalent elastic strain and total deformation are similar with the results that before optimize, but its weight is decreased. It gains the goal of lighting weight, decreasing fuel consumption and reducing pollution.

Study on Defects of A356 Aluminum Alloy Wheel

This paper studied the effects of inclusion and slag on properties of a die cast A356 alloy wheel. The result showed that the rate of defect is important for the mechanical properties. The tensile strength and extension was not dropped but the rate of defect is increased about 2%. The variation trend of tensile strength and extension is linear, while the area of porosity on tensile fracture is between 2% and 6%. However, the tensile strength and extension was dropped with the increasing rate of defect. The variation trend of mechanical properties of the sample with inclusion is stable, but the sample with slag is not stable. The mechanical properties of samples with inclusion are drastically changed, while the rate of defect is increased. The mechanical properties of samples with slag are smoothly. The EDS analysis indicated that the defects consist of Al-Ti-B compound, α-phase (Al12FeSi), β-phase (Al9Fe2Si2) and Al2O3. These oxides form the compact composite oxide film expand into first cracks. The fracture mode of sample with defects is brittle fracture. The values of the Secondary dendrite arm spacing (DAS) in the inclusion and the matrix are the same, while the values of DAS in the slag and the matrix are different.

Defects Analysis and Improvement for Electricmotorcar Aluminum Alloy Wheel by Gravity Casting

Analysis the electricmotorcar aluminum wheels’ hole defect on macroscopic and microscopic, observed that the main defects、concentrated site and the main alloy phase. Combined with the local casting technological parameters, the filling and solidification process of aluminium alloy hub was simulated by using Anycasting software. The results showed that: castings filling smoothly, at the junction of the spoke and the rim and the hub central are easy to produce casting defects. Using the optimized process parameters that is lower pouring temperature, higher pouring height and set the vent to experiment, after comparing the results with the original process known, Shrinkage and porosity defects decreased, but there are still some degree of defects, indicating optimized process parameters have some effect.