Solid Mechanics-II

Mini-Project
Topic: Failure Analysis of CV Axle

Group Members:
o Mohammad Hamza Awan (17PWMEC4279)
o Saad Ahmad( 17PWMEC4277)
o Muhammad Fahad Rashid(17PWMEC4290)
o Ameer Hamza Khan(17PWMEC4284)
o Fawad Ali (17PWMEC4278)
 Failure Analysis of a CV Axle:
Abstract:

CV axle also known as Constant velocity axle. It’s a type of axle which is used on front wheeled
drive vehicles which allows power to be transmitted to the front tires even while wheel is turning. It is
called constant velocity due to the way it is designed .No matter which way the outer section is turned,
it will maintain its same speed as the inner section. This allows for smooth power to be transmitted. The
current analysis is for predicting the possible causes of failure of a CV axle by using various failure
theories and stress analysis.

1. Introduction:
I. Function

As discussed earlier,
CV axles are a very essential part of any car.
It performs a vital role of smoothly turning a car. In driving a car while taking turns ,the inner tires of the
car would slow down due to less angular velocity of the car, while the outer tires would have high
angular velocity. This difference would result in a disaster. This huge problem is solved by CV axles and
joints. This axle adjusts itself according to the required conditions and gives a constant angular velocity
of to both the inner and the outer tires.
II. Manufacturing process:
The following three main steps are undertaken while manufacturing CV axles for
different types of vehicles:
 Casting
 Machining Process
 Finishing

I. Casting:
It is the first step of manufacturing process. Firstly, we have to make a mould cavity
for axle. We have to melt a material and then that melted liquid is poured in the
mould cavity and then it is allowed to be solidified on cooling.
II. Machining Process:
It is second step of manufacturing of axle. In this step we have to design the axle for
it to be fitted inside the CV joint. We make spline threads on the surface.
III. Finishing:
There are many processes in finishing the material. The most important is
Electrolysis to avoid corrosion and rusting. Others include polishing and lubrication.
III. Materials of the CV axle:
The axle material widely used is steel. Mostly ANSI 4340 steel is used for average cost
vehicles. CV joints also have rubber boots over them. The ANSI 4340 steel has following
properties:

IV. Dimensions of CV axle:

CV axles differ in size and dimensions depending on the type of vehicle. Large and
heavy vehicles have large and powerful drive shafts. Our specimen had the following
dimensions:

Figure 1: Assembly Drawing of a CV Axle

 2. Failure Analysis of CV-Axel (Driving
Shaft):
First we should know that what is failure analysis ?
Well, it is the process by which a failed product(machine component) is inspected to
determine what caused it to fail, how it went wrong and how to prevent it from failure.
So here we will discuss that what was the basic cause for our sample(CV-Axel) failure.
Since it is already known that CV-Axel shaft is linking between inner and outer CV-Joints.
The purpose of this shaft is to ;
➢ Transmit the driving torque to the wheels
➢ Maintain the position of the wheels relative to each other and the body of vehicle
Signs and Symptoms:
Following are the signs and symptoms of the CV joints which ultimately lead to
the failure of the whole CV axle of our vehicle:
 Loud clicking sound while turning
 Grease on the Edge of the tire
 Excessive Vibrations while driving

Reviewing theories pertaining to failure analysis ;

According to the failure theories, an actual machine component (here specifically CV-
Axel) will fail due to applied stresses become greater than the yield strength of machine
component. These stresses includes both shear and normal stresses. However, on its
consequences we see different phenomenon like vibrating stresses usually known as
fatigue stresses. In most cases related to shafts, the basic causes of failure are fig1-1
▪ Corrosion
▪ Wear
▪ Overload (high shear & normal forces)
▪ Fatigue (cyclic stresses)
Causes of failure for CV-
Axel(sample) :
As we have got a broken CV-Axel
shaft, shown in figure 1-1. We will
analyze now, how it got broken and
became useless.
So the most nearer cause of this
failure is fatigue stresses and
overloading. Though the
corrosion and wear factors are
present but the main causes are the
former one. On the axel, there is its
own weight, also comes to further
stresses when the wheel move up
down as well as the suspension system, along with this the axel shaft rotates so there is
torsional stresses. Besides these, there is dynamic loading when the engine piston
moves up down, it creates fatigue torsional stresses also. The sample(CV-Axel) is made
up hardened steel, which means it is neither more brittle nor
more ductile, but in intermediate. From this we infer that it failed due to torsional and
as well as bending fatigue stresses. If it was a pure ductile material then the failure
cause would be that of only shear stress. So we will now discuss one by one
independently;
o Overloading of Shear Stresses
There is a chance that the axel was hot enough to show more enough properties of
ductility. We see that the axel broken by near angle to 40-45degrees.
In this case we consider that shear stress produced in shaft was more than the yield
strength of the axel that cause the failure.
o Overloading of Normal Stresses:
As for as the shaft has its own weight which is distributed uniformly, this weight
multiplied with its length to cause bending moment in axel. Along with this the axel also
absorb some normal stress when positioning the wheel (CV-Joints). This might have
caused the stress exceed from ultimate tensile stress of the axel shaft.
o Fatigue loading :
Since we know that fatigue stresses are cyclic stresses changes with respect to time. If
we see our broken sample(axel shaft), it seemed like there is mighty cracks initiated
tangentially around the shaft which indicate the fatigue failure. There is also a possibility
that the crack initiated by corrosion or stress reversals.
Surface analysis of CV-Axel:
As shown in figure, the surface of broken plane shows that initially there are cracks
meaning that causes is fatigue failure, then at middle core it seems that it is totally
twisted meaning that shear stress was dominant.
Also the fracture offers key evidence. If the angle of failure is;
 o Closer to 90 degrees, it is dominant normal stresses

o Midway between 45degrees and 90 degrees, it is a combination of Shear and Normal

stresses.
o Closer to 45degrees, it is dominant under shear stress.

3. Force Analysis:
Different forces act on the drive shaft of a car. These all forces are variable and depend
on the different factors which we will discuss later.

Table 2 : Specifications Of our Vehicle

S.no Parameter Specification Value

1. Engine Maximum Torque(Nm/rpm) 59/ 3000
Volume 796CC
Power(KW/rpm) 29.4/5,500
2. Axle Wheel Base(mm) 2175
Minimum Turning Radius or axle ratio(m) 4.4
3. Weight Gross vehicle weight(kg) 1330
Following are the main loads acting on the CV axles:

 Engine Weight
 Power transmitted by the engine
 Axial Loads
 Shear Forces
 Tension Loads
  Impact Loads

Components of Loads causing Stresses:

1) Engine Loads:
It is acting vertically downward as a concentrated load. Engine load is taken as reaction load in
dynamic condition.

Figure 2 : Flexural Stresses are produced due to the weight of the engine.

2) Power Transmitted By the Engine:

The engine transmits the power to the drive shaft and rotation is produced in
the drive shafts. These excessive and long term rotations produces different types of
forces and stresses in the drive shaft. The most common Stress produced in the drive
shaft is Fatigue stress. The main cause of fatigue is alternating and fluctuating rotations.

3) Axial Loads:
Load is due to the effect of steering. Tension acts at both ends of axle where it is fixed to
wheel hub.

Figure 3
4) Shear Forces and Bending Moment:
Due to different road conditions, shear and bending stresses are produced.

Figure 4

5) Impact Loads:
These loads are also due to the different road conditions.

Figure 5
 4. Stress Analysis:
Following are different types of stresses produced:
a) Fatigue
b) Shear Stresses
c) Normal Stresses
d) Flexural Stresses

Following is the detail of these stresses:

a) Fatigue:
Fatigue is the weakening of a material caused by repeatedly applied loads. These
progressive and localized failure occurs due to cyclic loading. The most important
thing about this type of failure is that this failure occurs even when the nominal
maximum stresses are less than the yield strength of the material. There are three
steps of this type of failure:
 Microscopic Crack Initiation
 Production of Macro-Cracks
 Simple Ultimate failure due to large number of cracks
 Fatigue Life:
The number of stress cycles Nf that a specimen sustains before the ultimate failure is called
the fatigue life or Fatigue Strength of that material.
 Fatigue Limit/Endurance Limit:
For some materials, decreasing the amplitude of the rotations to a value such that the
material would not fail is called the endurance or fatigue limit.
 S-N Diagram:
Fatigue properties of materials are often described using the S-N curve. This curve describes
the relation between the cyclic stress amplitude and number of cycles to the failure. On the x-
axis ,the number of cycles are given in the log scale and on the y-axis, stress amplitude(max
stress) is taken.

Figure 6
 There are three methods for determining the fatigue life of a material:

 Stress-Life Method
 Strain-Life Method
 Linear-Elastic Fracture Mechanics

b) Shear Stresses:
Shear stress is the component of stress co-planer with the material cross-section. It
arises from the force vector component parallel to the cross-section of the material.
It is due to torque.

Figure 7

𝑇𝑟
Shear Stress = 𝜏 = 𝐽
T = Torque acting on the axle due to power transmitted by the engine
The torque acting on the axle is given by the relation
T = (BPx60)/2πN N-m
Where,
BP = Brake Power (in KW)
n = Engine speed (in RPM)
r = Radius of the axle
J = Second polar moment of Area
For circle(i.e. circular axle) its value is given by:
𝜋𝐷 4
𝐽=
32

As form the data given above, we can find the value for Shear Stress as:

Torque= 𝜏 = 59 N-m
Diameter of axle = D = 7.62cm
Second Polar Moment of Area = J = 3.309 × 10−6 𝑚4
So , the shear stress becomes:

𝜏 = 1.358 𝑀𝑃𝑎

c) Normal Stresses:
Normal Stresses arises from the force vector component perpendicular to the
cross-section of the material. In axles, these stresses are produced due to the steering
 force acting on them. It would be virtually impossible to calculate this because Steering
Effort depends on too many variables such as tyre size/type, the terrain , the design of
the steering and suspension system, the steering geometry ,etc.

d) Flexural Stresses:
Flexural strength, also known as modulus of rupture, or bend strength, or transverse
rupture strength is a material property, defined as the stress in a material just before it yields in
a flexure test i.e. bending test. These stresses are due to the bending moment produced in the
axle due to the weight of the engine acting on the axle. The magnitude of this stress can be
found out by the following formula:

𝑀𝑦
Flexural Stress = 𝜎 = 𝐼
M = Bending Moment
y = Radius of the axle
𝑑4
I = Second Moment of Area = 𝜋 = 1.6545 × 10-6 m4
64

As,

The weight of the car is = W = (1330 kg) * (9.8 m/s2 ) = 13.034 kN

13.034
Each tyre would have the force = P = 4
= 3.258 kN

Length of the axle = 21.06 inch = 53.49 cm

Maximum Moment on axle = 871.35 N-m

Therefore,

Maximum Flexural Stress = 20.065 MPa

Figure 8
 Principle Stresses:
The Maximum value of Normal stresses for which the shearing stresses become zero,
are called the principle stresses. It can be found out by using the following formula:

𝜎𝑥 + 𝜎𝑦 𝜎𝑥 − 𝜎𝑦 2 2
𝜎𝑚𝑎𝑥,𝑚𝑖𝑛 = ± √( ) + 𝜏𝑥𝑦
2 2
Here,
𝜎𝑥 = 20.065 MPa
𝜎𝑦 = 0 MPa
𝜏𝑥𝑦 = - 1.85 MPa

So, we can find the values of principle stresses:

𝜎𝑚𝑎𝑥,𝑚𝑖𝑛 = 20.16 MPa , -0.095 MPa

𝜎𝑥 − 𝜎𝑦 2 2 = 10.127 MPa
Maximum Shearing Stress = 𝜏𝑚𝑎𝑥 = √( 2
) + 𝜏𝑥𝑦

5. Strength Analysis:
As discussed earlier, most axles are made up of ANSI 4340 steel. All the material
properties of this metal are defined by the American Society of Testing and Materials(ASTM).

Yield Strength of Steel = 472.3 MPa

Tensile Strength of Steel = 744.7 MPa
Ultimate Strength of Steel = 1054 MPa

We can find the Fatigue strength and the endurance limits of the axle by using the following
formulas:

Endurance Limit = Se = 0.5 Sult = 0.5 × 1054 = 527 MPa

Fatigue Strength = Sf = a ×Nb
Where,
1 𝑓𝑆𝑢𝑡
b = Fatigue Strength Exponent = - 3 log( 𝑆𝑒
)= -0.095 (According to the standard)
(𝑓𝑆𝑢𝑡 )2
a = Constant of Proportionality = 𝑆𝑒
N = Number of cycles = 106 cycles for Infinite Life of the material i.e. At Endurance limit( From
Figure 6)
𝜎𝐹 × (2𝑁)𝑏
f = Fractional Change = 𝑆𝑢𝑡
 Calculations:

The SAE approximation for steel is:

Fatigue Stress = 𝜎𝐹 = Sut + 345 MPa = 1054 + 345 = 1399 MPa

𝜎𝐹 × (2𝑁)𝑏
f = Fractional Change = = 0.334
𝑆𝑢𝑡
(𝑓𝑆𝑢𝑡 )2
a = Constant of Proportionality = 𝑆𝑒
= 235.16 × 106
By using all the above values, the fatigue strength is given by:

Fatigue Strength = Sf = a ×Nb = 63.29 MPa

6. Sustainable Design & Development of

CV Joints and Axle
Design is the process of devising a component or a system to meet desired needs. It follows to
come up with solution of a problem and thus fulfill the need and requirement of a society.

Figure 9
Now as the part (CV joints) ought to be designed according to our Society and customers’
demand, so we must have to fulfill the requirements of a customer. Usually the demand of a
customer is based on following two things:-

1. Safety & Efficiency

2. Economical

1. Safety of CV Joints and Axle:-

The first and foremost factor of safety is suitable MATERIAL. So selection of material
according to suitable criterion is the first responsibility of a designer but keeping in mind
the economical aspect of a material. For example non-corrosive material like galvanized
steel would be the best one. For safety of CV Joints, as they are a key part of drive train
system, they are heavily lubricated with molybdenum disulfide grease and protected
with a rubber boot. Both the lubricant and the boot are necessary for continued CV joint
protection and function.

Figure 10

2. Economical Aspect:-

As far as Economical aspect is considered, the customer could afford a reasonable amount of
the product (Cheap) and wanted a warranty of the given product. For Example, ULTIMATE
HIGH STRENGTH CV JOINT is one of the best designed product.

 FEATURES
 Selling price $285.00-$325.00 ( Economical )
 Designed to deliver trouble-free, consistent performance.
 Right for your vehicle and lifestyle.
 Made from high-quality materials for ultimate durability.
 WARRANTY: the quality and reliability of its Ultimate CV Axles that it provides a
''No Questions Asked'' lifetime warranty. You break it, RCV Performance replaces
it.
The CV Joints from RCV Performance use heavy-duty components, each of which is designed to
provide competition strength with superior reliability. There are also other economical and
reliable CV joints and axles. Thus, a large number of customers could buy and easily use it.

Sustainable design of CV assembly that produces positive impact on

the environment:-
For a designer, it’s the responsibility to design a component that is environment friendly. So, for
CV joints and axles, they have to be environment friendly (for useful life) as well as recyclable
(after useful life).For this, steel industry has proven to be extremely environmentally friendly.
This is because it uses primary energy sparingly, saves non-renewable sources and limits the
waste stream. Also, Aluminum has about one-third the density and stiffness of steel. After
steel, it is the most frequently used metal in the world and its uses continue to expand.
Aluminum is amongst the most environmentally friendly metals on the planet. On a percentage
basis, it is the most recycled of any industrial metal. But due to costly, we would prefer STEEL
for CV axles. Thus by using quality remanufactured CVJ parts, we can:-

 Save Energy. Much less energy is used to remanufacture vs. making new.
 Fewer hydrocarbons are releases since less energy is used to remanufacture vs. new.
 Remanufacturing greatly reduces the carbon footprint of all the processes.
 Reduce the Landfill Waste:-
 The old axle does not go to the landfill – most of parts get remanufactured and
thus re-used
 The replaced steel parts get shipped off to be recycled into lower grades of steel
 CVJ has worked for 22 years to minimize its waste streams and emissions.

 Sustainable design of CVJ – meeting the needs of the society:-

As explained previously above, in order to meet the needs of the society, our CV joints and
axles that we are going to designed should have to possess the following properties:-
  Safe and Durable
 Economical
 Period of Useful life_ greater (long-lasting)
 Easily available at market
 Efficient
 Re-sale i.e. can be exchange within customers
 Efficient & reusable.

So, keeping in view above all features we can design the CVJ and axles so that it could meet the
needs of the society and thus we may achieve our target as customers would buy our designed
product.

7. Recommendations:
Many improvements can be made in this drive shaft to prevent its failure. As we have
designed the product now it is necessary for us to avoid similar failure of our
component in near future. For this we must have to consider following
recommendations:-
 Appropriate use of material according to designed dimensions.
 A complete test of the designed product must be undertaken before its
commercialization.
 To consider that the designed component would not going to interact or collide with any
other component of machine when its going to assemble.
 To check the component that it hasn’t got any crack or stress concentration area that
would be the cause of crack propagation in near future.
 Finishing and other modification processes must be carried out properly in order to
provide better efficiency.

So, these are all recommendations that our material would not fail in near future.
 Improvements in the dimensions of the material :-

As it is the foremost responsibility of a designer to make its component economical, so

dimensions of the material must be designed according to that. As in our design of CVJ and
axles, we have to consider proper and accurate dimensions. Our dimensions should have to be
satisfy with any one of the International standards of CV axles and joints. For example, the
diameter of axle and ball bearings of CV joints must be according to standards. Also, the
assembling ratio must be kept in mind. Thus by implementing , we would get our product cheap
and economical.
 Improvement in Material of our Assembly:-

As we have discussed earlier in our designed section, so here its not worth mentioning to
specify material again of our assembly. Same as previous section, we have to select the material
that would be safe, efficient and economical. CV joints and axle would be best fit for steel
material that would be slightly galvanized.
 Improvement in the shape:-

The recommendations for improvement in the shape would be such that it would be esthetical
and ergonomical so that it would be used in industry. As for our CVJ and axle, they have to be fit
in assembly of a car. So our first concern is that the shape of our joints and axle would not
trouble our cars efficiency and outlook as our prime goal is to make car efficient and smooth.
Thus we can make the shape of our assembly simply according to standards. The axle would
definitely be cylindrical shape and joints would be such that that they could easily rotate
around specified angles. Thus, we may transform our CVJ and axles in such shape that would in
turn provide better efficiency for car.

 The axle-shafts, housing, bearing cage can be manufactured with high quality steels such as
aircraft-quality high alloy steel.
 Now-a-days, new designs are being introduced in the market. These designs allows for tight
steering angles up to 45 degrees and an articulation angle of 28 degrees. These units need low
maintenance.
 To give toughness to the driveshafts, different steels can be used having a high value of
modulus of toughness. 300M Chromoly Steel can be used for this purpose. It is heat-treated for
even more strength.
 8. Conclusions:

After this mini-project of Solid Mechanics, we have learned the skills and tactics to deal with our daily-
life problems. Now, we are able to design and develop CV joints and axles for a particular car. We have
also learnt the different factors that caused our material to fail and after this project, we are able to deal
with those problems. We have also concluded the forces and stresses that were occurring during its
motion. After graduation, we would be able to deal with such daily life problems related to failure
theories and then design and development of the products that would be economical.

As far as final project year is concerned, we would be aware of such problems related to failure
theories. Also, we would be able to manage time , planning and interactions among our group fellows.

The first difficulty that we encountered was to identify initial crack. As we had no microscope so we
couldn’t visualize the proper crack in the material. So by using theories and assumptions that we have
learned in the SM theory, we tackled this problem. Another problem that we faced was in calculations of
forces involved in the failure because of too many variables involved. The most enjoying phase in our
mini-project was our discussion and co-operation among our group members. As a whole we worked as
a team, and we enjoyed the most working with each other. Thus this mini-project has helped a lot us
in learning different techniques and skills.