United States Department of Transportation
i
Advanced Ceramic-Metallic Composites for Lightweight Vehicle Braking Systems
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2012-09-11
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[PDF-891.69 KB]
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TRIS Online Accession Number:01446297
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NTL Classification:NTL-PLANNING AND POLICY-PLANNING AND POLICY;NTL-SAFETY AND SECURITY-Vehicle Design;NTL-SAFETY AND SECURITY-Highway Safety;
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Abstract:According to the Federal Transit Administration Strategic Research Plan: “Researching technologies to reduce vehicle weight can also lead to important reductions in fuel consumption and emissions. The power required to accelerate a bus and overcome rolling resistance is directly proportional to vehicle weight. Composite materials are one example of an FTA research area aimed at reducing vehicle weights.” One way to reduce vehicle weight is through the development of lightweight components for advanced braking systems. Gray cast iron has been the material of choice in braking systems (such as in brake rotors and drums) because it is inexpensive and a large supply chain infrastructure is in place for engineering and manufacturing gray cast iron components. However, gray cast iron is a relatively heavy material. Utilizing lighter weight materials in braking systems would not only achieve better fuel economy by reducing the vehicle’s static weight but, since brake rotors and drums are rotating components, there would be a large multiplying effect on reducing the amount of energy required to increase their rotational speed as the vehicle accelerates. Finally, as the braking system is an unsprung weight, a lighter system would significantly improve vehicle handling performance and safety. In spite of obvious benefits to lightweight materials, there are significant technical and commercial challenges to overcome. Most lightweight materials do not have the physical, thermal, and tribological performance characteristics required for brake applications, such as a high strength and high thermal conductivity at elevated temperatures. Lightweight alternatives to cast iron that currently do exist are prohibitively expensive for general use in most vehicles. The TCON materials produced by Fireline, Inc. are a class of interpenetrating phase composites produced by a unique reactive metal penetration process. TCON materials contain continuous, microscopic networks of ceramic and metallic phases that are co-continuous and strongly bonded together. This unique material structure is substantially different from traditional metal matrix and ceramic matrix composites, therefore TCON materials exhibit mechanical, physical and thermal properties that are quite distinctive. Through process variations, the properties of TCON composites can be tailored to meet the requirements of specific applications. TCON materials can be net-shaped or near-net shaped in a wide variety of useful forms and sizes, making the process relatively low cost. In collaboration between Fireline and Youngstown State University, this project investigated how TCON materials may be utilized in lightweight vehicle brake systems. The project results are very promising, showing that TCON composites exhibited friction and thermal management properties similar to or better than cast iron, but with half the weight and less wear. It is expected that Fireline will continue on with the further development and evaluation of prototype TCON brake rotors, possibly leading to the commercialization of TCON brake components.
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