Thermo-Mechanical Behavior of Aluminum Matrix Nano-Composite Automobile Disc Brake Rotor Using Finite Element Method

Analysis of mechanical and thermal behaviors during braking has become an increasingly important issue in many transport sectors for different modes of transportation. Brake failure generated during braking is a complex phenomenon confronting automobile manufacturers and designers. During braking, kinetic energy is transferred to thermal energy, resulting in the intense heating of disc brake rotors that increases proportionally with vehicle speed, mass, and braking frequency. It is essential to look into and improve strategies to make versatile, thermally resistant, lightweight, high-performance discs. As a result, this study uses the finite element method to conduct a thermo-mechanical analysis of aluminum alloy and aluminum matrix nano-composite disc brake rotors to address the abovementioned issues. The FEA method is used for the thermo-mechanical analysis of AMNCs for vented disc brake rotor during emergency braking at 70 km/h. From the results obtained, aluminum base metal matrix nano-composites have an excellent strength-to-weight ratio when used as disc brake rotor materials, significantly improving the discs’ thermal and mechanical performance. From the result of transient thermal analysis, the maximum value of heat flux obtained for aluminum alloy disc is about 8 W/mm(2), whereas for AMNCs, the value is increased to 16.28 W/mm(2). The result from static analysis shows that the maximum deformation observed is 0.19 mm for aluminum alloy disc and 0.05 mm for AMNCs disc. In addition, the maximum von Mises stress value of AMNC disc is about 184 MPa. The maximum von Mises stress value of aluminum alloy disc is about 180 MPa. Therefore, according to the results, the proposed aluminum base metal matrix nano-composites are valid for replacing existing materials for disc brake rotor applications.