Modeling and Thermal-Mechanical Coupling Analysis of Piston in Car Engines

In this paper, finite-element analysis (FEA) is carried out on the temperature field and stress field of automobile engine piston, as well as the thermal-mechanical load coupling stress field. Through the analysis, the authors grasped the thermal load and combined stress distribution of the piston, and thus optimized the piston design to improve its operational reliability. Specifically, a 1/4 solid model of the piston was constructed in the three-dimensional (3D) computer-aided design (CAD) software Pro/ENGINEER, and then converted into a finite-element model in Pro/Mechanica. Then, an alternating load was imposed on the piston model, and fatigue analysis was performed to identify the parts of the piston prone to fatigue failure, and judge whether the piston structure satisfies working requirements. Next, temperature field analysis was carried out on the piston model. The distribution of the steady-state temperature field as determined by applying temperatures and heat transfer coefficients as required by the boundary conditions of the third kind. Finally, the piston model was subject to thermal-mechanical coupling analysis. The stress and deformation distributions of the piston under the coupled stress field were ascertained under the boundary conditions of temperature field distribution and mechanical load. Through the above work, the authors obtained the basis for safety evaluation of piston, laying the foundation for further reducing the thermal load and optimizing the stress distribution of piston.