Carbon Fibre Reinforced Wheel for Fuel Ultra–Efficient Vehicle

Due to municipal policies that are about to be legislated in many cities around the world, it may occur that habitants will be forced to commute in ultralight urban low-consuming cars. This paper covers the research concerning the innovative design, manufacturing method and the test of the wheel for such a vehicle. The design guidelines were as follows: elevated rigidity and durability, reduced weight and ease to adapt different types of hubs and powertrains. This was achieved by determining the forces acting on the wheel, examination of the characteristics of the possible materials and performing static finite element analysis simulations that were aimed to reveal stresses distribution and presumable failure points. Afterwards, the carbon fiber reinforced polymer disc wheel was manufactured and tested to compare the empirical deformations with the results of the simulations. The results proved that this type of wheel can be successfully used in ultralight passenger vehicle. The predicted weight reduction of such a wheel, in comparison to the wheels available on the market, may be about 40% due to using carbon fibre reinforced polymer and new, innovative solution - the magnesium hub, instead of aluminum, that is known to damp the vibration more efficiently and is easier to create a strong bond with the wheel.