STRUCTURAL AND TRANSIENT
THERMAL ANALYSIS OF PISTON
USING ANSYS
ABSTRACT
The aim of this work is to determine the structural and thermal stress distribution of piston rings
using CATIA and ANSYS. The structural and thermal analysis were also done on the piston and
piston rings model using, Aluminium Alloy, Al 4032, ALSic. Composite materials are chosen as
per the requirement of the piston and Structural and Transient thermal analysis are performed to
study the performance of piston. The piston material needs to have great fatigue resistance and
good heat transfer properties with low weight⁵. The results of structural and thermal calculations
using finite element analysis are compared.
INTRODUCTION
Piston is a crucial component in mechanical engineering and finds wide applications in various
mechanical systems such as IC Engine, Pneumatic cylinders, Hydraulic cylinders, etc. This paper
aims to design a piston for automobile applications. The function of a piston in an IC engine is to
transfer the gases produced in the cylinder to the crankshaft. The piston designed for IC Engines
should possess good strength, thermal properties, and minimum weight. Weight reduction of the
piston increases fuel efficiency and composite materials are the best materials for the weight
reduction of the piston. The main reasons why a piston gets damaged are due to wear and fatigue
but more importantly, the failure of the piston is due to Mechanical and Thermal Stresses. A fourstroke petrol engine’s piston model is designed in CATIAV5 R20 and Simulation software Ansys
2021 R1 is used to study the performance of the piston. In Static Structural Analysis of the piston,
pressure is applied on the top of the piston to study deformation and stresses. Transient Thermal
analysis is performed on the piston to study thermal effects on the piston. Three different
composites that have suitable characteristics have been identified, analyzed and compared with
standard material.
PROBLEM DESCRIPTION
The main aim of this project is to design a model of piston and test it for Structural and Thermal
analysis using FEA software (ANSYS 2021 R1) to determine the sustainability of the material
under various conditions.
MATERIALS SELECTED
1.
2.
3.
4.
Al Alloy
AL Alloy 4032
ALSic
Ti-6-AL-4V
1. Properties of Al Alloy
SYMBOL
VALUE
UNITS
Young’s Modulus of
Elasticity
Poisson’s ratio
PROPERTY
E
71000
MPa
µ
0.33
Density
Tensile Yield Strength
Ρ
2700
280
kg/m3
MPa
𝜎𝑇
2.
Properties of AL Alloy 4032
SYMBOL
VALUE
UNITS
Young’s Modulus of
Elasticity
Poisson’s ratio
PROPERTY
E
79000
MPa
µ
0.35
Density
Tensile Yield Strength
Ρ
2680
315
kg/m3
MPa
𝜎𝑇
3. Properties of ALSic
SYMBOL
VALUE
UNITS
Young’s Modulus of
Elasticity
Poisson’s ratio
PROPERTY
E
210000
MPa
µ
0.33
Density
Tensile Yield Strength
Ρ
7800
745
𝜎𝑇
kg/m3
MPa
4. Properties of Ti-6-AL-4V
SYMBOL
VALUE
UNITS
Young’s Modulus of
Elasticity
Poisson’s ratio
PROPERTY
E
113800
MPa
µ
0.342
Density
Tensile Yield Strength
Ρ
443
880
𝜎𝑇
DESIGNING OF PISTON IN CAD (CATIA V5 R20)
kg/m3
MPa
ANALYSIS OF PISTON
1. STATIC STRUCTURAL
Structural Analysis is performed to observe the deformation and stresses absorbed by the piston
when a pressure of 3.5MPa is applied on the piston with piston pin being constrained and
frictional supports are given for piston ring.
2. TRANSIENT THERMAL
Transient Thermal analysis is used to determine the temperatures and thermal quantities that
changes over time. The loads applied in transient thermal analysis are the function of time. The
temperature applied is about 1000°C and temperature distribution and heat flux is noted for
different element.
RESULTS OF TE ANALYSIS(PICTORIAL)
1. STATIC STRUCTURAL OF AL Alloy
I.
II.
STATIC STRUCTURAL OF AL ALLOY 4032
STATIC STRUCTURAL OF ALSic
III.
STATIC STRUCTURAL OF Ti-6-AL-4V
2. TRANSIENT THERMAL ANALYSIS
I.
TRANSIENT THERMAL ANALYSIS OF AL ALLOY
II.
III.
TRANSIENT THERMAL ANALYSIS OF AL ALLOY 4032
TRANSIENT THERMAL ANALYSIS OF ALSic
IV.
TRANSIENT THERMAL ANALYSIS OF Ti-6-AL-4V
RESULTS (TABULAR DATA)
1. STATIC STRUCTURAL
Material
Deformation
(mm)
Al Alloy
Al
Alloy
4032
ALSic
Ti-6AL-4V
0.045525
0.046929
Von
Moises
Stress
(MPa)
63.652
55.197
Shear
Stress
(MPa)
35.684
29.486
15
15
4.39
5.7
0.02123
0.032805
61.981
56.147
17.14
29.558
15
15
12.2
15
2. TRANSIENT THERMAL
Material
Heat Flux (W/𝒎𝒎𝟐)
Al Alloy
Al Alloy 4032
ALSic
Ti-6AL-4V
1.707
2.4994
0.16829
1.259
Safety
Safety
Factor(max) Factor(min)