Experimental investigations and finite element analyses of interface heat partition in a friction brake system. New modelling paradigm for describing friction brake systems to support studies of interface temperature, contact pressure, heat flux distribution and heat partition ratio by experiment and FE simulation

Operating temperature range is one of the primary design considerations for developing effective disc brake system performance. Very high braking temperatures can introduce effects detrimental to performance such as brake fade, premature wear, brake fluid vaporization, bearing failure, thermal cracks, and thermally-excited vibration [2]. This project is concerned with investigating deficiencies and proposing improvements in brake system Finite Element (FE) models in order to provide high quality descriptions of thermal behaviour during braking events. The work focuses on brake disc/pad models and the degree of rotational freedom allowed for the pad. Conventional models [10] allow no motion/or free motion of the pad. The present work investigates the effect on disc/pad interface temperature and pressure distributions of limited relaxations of this rotational restriction. Models are proposed, developed and validated that facilitate different rotational degrees of freedom (DoF) of the pad. An important influencing factor in friction brake performance is the development of an interface tribo-layer (ITL). It is reasonable to assume that allowing limited rotational motion of the pad will impact the development of the ITL (e.g. due to different friction force distributions) and hence influence temperature. Here the ITL is modelled in the numerical simulations as a function of its thickness distribution and thermal conductivity. Different levels of ITL thermal conductivity are defined in this work and results show that conductivity significantly a1qwffects interface temperature and heat partition ratio. The work is based around a set of test-rig experiments and FE model developments and simulations. For the experimental work, a small-scale test rig is used to investigate the friction induced bending moment effect on the pad/disc temperature. Significant non-uniform wear is observed across the friction surface of the pad, and reasons for the different wear rates are proposed and analyzed together with their effect on surface temperature. Following on from experiment a suite of models is developed in order to evidence the importance of limited pad motion and ITL behaviours. A 2D coupled temperature-displacement FE model is used to quantify the influence of different pad rotational degrees of freedom and so provide evidence for proposing realistic pad boundary settings for 3D models. Normal and high interface thermal conductance is used in 2D models and results show that the ITL thermal conductivity is an important factor influencing the maximum temperature of contact surfaces and therefore brake performance. The interface heat partition ratio is calculated by using the heat flux results and it is confirmed that this value is neither constant nor uniform across the interface surfaces. Key conclusions from the work are (i) that ITL thermal conductivity is an important factor influencing the interface temperature/heat flux distribution and their maximum values, (ii) that allowed motion of the pad significantly affects the interface pressure distribution and subsequently the temperature distribution, (iii) that the transient heat partition in friction braking is clearly quite different to the conventional friction-pair steady heat partition (the heat partition ratio is not uniformly distributed along the interface) and (iv) that the thickness of the ITL increases through braking events, reducing the heat transfer to the disc, and so providing a possible explanation for increasing pad temperature observed over the life time of a brake pad