ISSN(Online): 2319-8753

ISSN (Print) : 2347-6710

International Journal of Innovative Research in Science,

Engineering and Technology
(A High Impact Factor, Monthly, Peer Reviewed Journal)
Visit: www.ijirset.com

Vol. 7, Issue 2, February 2018

Design and Fatigue Analysis of Crankshaft

R.Raju 1, K.Namcharaiah2
P.G. Student, Department of Mechanical Engineering, VNR College of Engineering, Ponnur, Guntur, India1
Associate Professor, Department of Mechanical Engineering, VNR College of Engineering, Ponnur, Guntur, India2

ABSTRACT: A crankshaft is a fundamental feature in a vehicle's engine. It is the prime mover which is responsible
for the conversion of linear energy into rotational energy. The crankshaft changes the piston motion with the help of
connecting rods which inturn enable the engine to run. Hence, crankshaft is the most critical part of any assembly and
its life can be improved if maintained properly. This paper deals with the material composition and the manufacturing
processes usually followed for crankshafts and also the possible causes of failure and their analysis. In this regard, a
model of the crankshaft has been prepared using NX CAD 8.5 version and with the help of an analysis workbench,
ANSYS (the premier CAE tool since forty years), we were able to analyze the stress distribution and deformation for
two different materials. Finally, on the basis of the results acquired, suggestions with regard to the improvement in
design have been made.

KEYWORDS: Crankshaft, Modelling, Analysis, NX CAD, ANSYS, Suggestions, Failure

I. INTRODUCTION

Crank shaft is a large component with a complex geometry in the engine, which converts the reciprocating
displacement of the piston to a rotary motion with a four link mechanism. Since the crank shaft experiences a large
number of load cycles during its service life, fatigue performance and durability of this component has to be considered
in the design process. Design developments have always been an important issue in the crankshaft production industry,
in order to manufacture a less expensive component with the minimum weight possible and proper fatigue strength and
other functional requirements. These improvements result in lighter and smaller engines with better fuel efficiency and
higher power output. This study was conducted on a four cylinder four stroke cycle engine.

Copyright to IJIRSET DOI:10.15680/IJIRSET.2018.0702040 1868

 ISSN(Online): 2319-8753
ISSN (Print) : 2347-6710

International Journal of Innovative Research in Science,

Engineering and Technology
(A High Impact Factor, Monthly, Peer Reviewed Journal)
Visit: www.ijirset.com

Vol. 7, Issue 2, February 2018

Figure 1.1 presents a typical crankshaft with journals which actually act as supporters for the crankshaft. The crank
shaft, connecting rod, and piston constitute a four bar slider-crank mechanism, which converts the sliding motion of the
piston (slider in the mechanism) to a rotary motion. Since the rotation output is more practical and applicable for input
to other devices, the concept design of an engine is that the output would be rotation. In addition, the linear
displacement of an engine is not smooth, as the displacement is caused by the combustion of gas in the combustion
chamber. Therefore, the displacement has sudden shocks and using this input for another device may cause damage to
it. The concept of using crankshaft is to change these sudden displacements to a smooth rotary output, which is the
input to many devices such as generators, pumps, and compressors.

Paper is organized as follows. Section II describes related information about crankshaft, section III lists out various
materials and manufacturing processes for crankshafts especially single cylinder ones whereas section IV presents the
experimental results and section V presents conclusion.

II. RELATED INFORMATION

Crank shaft experiences large forces from gas combustion. This force is applied to top of the piston and since the
connecting rod connects the piston to the crank shaft, this force will be transmitted to the crank shaft. The magnitude of
the force depends on many factors which consist of crank radius, connecting rod dimensions, and weight of the
connecting rod, piston, piston rings, and pin. Combustion and inertia forces acting on the crankshaft cause two types of
loading on the crankshaft structure; torsional load and bending load. There are many sources of failure in the engine.
They could be categorized as operating sources, mechanical sources, and repairing sources. One of the most common
crankshaft failures is fatigue at the fillet areas due to bending load caused by the combustion. Even with a soft case as
journal bearing contact surface, in a crankshaft free of internal flaws one would still expect a bending or torsional
fatigue crack to initiate at the pin surface, radius, or at the surface of an oil hole.

This study was motivated by a need for a comparative study of analysis of crankshaft made of aluminum and its
alloys which are some of the mostly used materials to manufacture the crankshafts. It was desired to develop an
optimized geometry, material, and manufacturing procedure, which will reduce the weight for fuel efficiency. This
research was performed on crankshafts from single cylinder engines. However, since the basis of analysis are the same
for multi-cylinder engines, the procedures used could be modified and implemented for crankshafts from other types of
engines. Other studies on crankshafts from multi-cylinder engines are typically performed on a portion of the
crankshaft consisting of two journal bearings and one crankpin bearing, which is similar to that of a single cylinder
engine.

III. MATERIALS AND MANUFACTURING PROCESSES

The major crankshaft material competitors currently used in industry are forged steel, cast iron and aluminum.
Comparison of the performance of these materials with respect to static, cyclic, and impact loading are of great interest
to the automotive industry. A comprehensive comparison of manufacturing processes with respect to mechanical
properties, manufacturing aspects, and finished cost for crankshafts has been conducted by Zoroufi and Fatemi. This
section discusses forging and casting processes as the two competing manufacturing processes in crankshaft production
industry. Influencing parameters in both processes are detailed. Finally, the forged steel and the cast iron products are
compared in terms of material properties and manufacturing processes.

Forging is the term for shaping metal by plastic deformation. Cold forging is done at low temperatures, while
conventional hot forging is done at high temperatures, which makes metal easier to shape. Cold forgings are various
forging processes conducted at near ambient temperatures, such as bending, cold drawing, cold heading, coining, and
extrusion to produce metal components to close tolerances and net shape . Warm forging is a modification of the cold
forging process where the workpiece is heated to a temperature significantly below the typical hot forging temperature,
ranging from 500º C to 750º C Compared with cold forging, warm forging has the potential advantages of reduced

Copyright to IJIRSET DOI:10.15680/IJIRSET.2018.0702040 1869

 ISSN(Online): 2319-8753
ISSN (Print) : 2347-6710

International Journal of Innovative Research in Science,

Engineering and Technology
(A High Impact Factor, Monthly, Peer Reviewed Journal)
Visit: www.ijirset.com

Vol. 7, Issue 2, February 2018

tooling loads, reduced press loads, increased steel ductility, elimination of need to anneal prior to forging, and
favorable as-forged properties that can eliminate heat treatment . The use of the lower temperatures in cold and warm
forging processes provides the advantages of reducing and even substantially eliminating

IV. EXPERIMENTAL RESULTS

Fig 2: NX CAD model of crankshaft

Fig 3 Steel Material Fig 4 Steel Material

Static structural analysis has been conducted on the crankshaft by applying two different materials, Steel and Grey cast
iron. Based on the stress distribution and maximum deformation results, we get to know which material suits better for
the crankshaft and thus, fatigue life can be calculated.

Copyright to IJIRSET DOI:10.15680/IJIRSET.2018.0702040 1870

 ISSN(Online): 2319-8753
ISSN (Print) : 2347-6710

International Journal of Innovative Research in Science,

Engineering and Technology
(A High Impact Factor, Monthly, Peer Reviewed Journal)
Visit: www.ijirset.com

Vol. 7, Issue 2, February 2018

Fig 5 Grey Cast Iron Fig 6 Grey Cast Iron

Figure 2 presents the CAD model of the crankshaft designed using NX CAD software and the corresponding figures
Fig. 3, Fig. 4, Fig. 5 & Fig. 6 explain the results attained on successful completion of the static structural analysis.
Hence, on the basis of the results obtained, conclusion has been derived.

V. CONCLUSION

In our project from the above analysis, we observe that there has been considerable increase in the von mises stress
(max.) for Grey Cast Iron. We can also derive that the maximum deformation value is 5.572e-3mm for Grey Cast Iron
as compared to 5.821e-3mm with Steel. Hence, fatigue life will be more for Grey Cast Iron than that of Steel.

REFERENCES

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Copyright to IJIRSET DOI:10.15680/IJIRSET.2018.0702040 1871