Calculated and experimental evaluation of the performance of the brake disc made of titanium alloy

The aim of the work is to reduce the unsprung weight of the wheel of a racing automobile due to the use of a disc made of titanium alloy in the brake mechanism. The object of the study is the brake disc of a vehicle of the Formula Student class. The subject of research is the use of titanium alloy in the design of the brake disc and its performance evaluation. As part of the work, an analysis of the thermal loading of the brake disc made of titanium alloy and the experimental verification of its performance were made. The calculations of thermal loading were carried out by the finite element method. To this end, a calculation method has been developed taking into account changes in the heat flux and convection coefficient during multiple braking. The paper presents the results obtained when carrying out calculations in accordance with this method. The numerical evaluation showed that the temperature arising in the brake mechanism does not exceed the permissible for the working capacity of the brake mechanism. The full-scale experiment showed that the calculated disk temperature, which occurs during braking, is close to the temperature established during the full-scale experiment. The error is not more than 13%. A full-scale experiment showed that the brake disc made of titanium alloy is not operational with the selected manufacturing technology. The conclusions were drawn on the applicability of the above method of thermal analysis of the brake disc, on the performance of the structure, and proposals were made for improving its efficiency.

brake system, titanium alloy brake disk, brake test bench