Deformation Behaviour Analysis Of Car Wheel Rim Under Different Loading Using Finite Element Method

An analysis was conducted to study the deformation behaviour of the car wheel rim when subjected to different loading. This design analysis was performed using SolidWorks and CATIA software. Steel and Alloy are the two types of car wheel rim commonly used in Malaysia. These car wheel rims have been modelled using SolidWorks and follow the manufacturer standard dimension and specification of the car wheel rims. CATIA runs the analysis of the rim models and supports the entire simulation on the rims. Analysis results are presented in the graph of maximum stress and maximum displacement versus speed. It has been found that the Steel wheel rim produced high stress value at 100 km/h speed or at 25 kN loading where the maximum stress is beyond the yield stress limit. Steel wheel rim also deformed twice than the Alloy wheel rim at 25 kN loading. This concludes the Steel wheel rim is highly absorbed loads which is not suitable for its application where the car wheel rim need to be moderately rigid and can withstand with the uneven road condition and potholes. This suggests that the Alloy wheel rim is safer than the Steel wheel rim when subjected to load.