Thermomechanical modeling of disc brake contact phenomena

Abstract

In automotive disc brake system, friction heat is not uniformly distributed due to various reasons such as thermal expansion and imperfections in geometry. It is well known that thermo elastic distortion due to frictional heating affects the contact pressure distribution and can lead to thermo elastic instability, where the contact load is concentrated in one or more small regions on the brake disc surface. These regions then take very high temperature and passage of hot spots moving under the brake pads can cause undesirable effects, such as brake fade, thermal cracks, and vibration. The main purpose of this study is to analysis the thermo mechanical behavior of the dry contact between the brake disc and pads during the braking phase. The thermal-structural analyze is then used to determine the deformation and the Von Mises stress established in the disc, the contact pressure distribution in pads. The results are satisfactory, when compared with those of the specialized literature.

Keywords

• brake discs
• heat flux
• heat transfer coefficient
• von mises stress
• contact pressure