Fatigue Evaluation on Splitted Surface of Aluminum Alloy Die-Cast Connecting Rod Fabricated by Fracture Splitting Method

Abstract

When the fracture splitting method is applied to aluminum alloy die-cast connecting rod, the ruggedness on the splitted surface may crash while driving the engine. A fatigue endurance test was conducted by repeatedly applying a load to a connecting rod fabricated by the fractured splitting method. That was investigated whether it could be safely used during driving the engine. As a result, when the load amplitude was severer than the actual working load, the connecting rod ruptured from the small end of the connecting rod before crushing occurred on the splitted surface. There was also a trace like rubbing on the splitted surface. As a result of FEM analysis, it was found that if the load does not exceed the driving load, there is no gap between the splitted surfaces and aluminum alloy die-cast connecting rod can be safely used.