Carbon Fiber Driveline
Location
CSU 203
Start Date
11-4-2017 2:10 PM
End Date
11-4-2017 3:20 PM
Student's Major
Automotive and Manufacturing Engineering Technology
Student's College
Science, Engineering and Technology
Mentor's Name
Gary Mead
Mentor's Department
Automotive and Manufacturing Engineering Technology
Mentor's College
Science, Engineering and Technology
Second Mentor's Name
Bruce Jones
Second Mentor's Department
Automotive and Manufacturing Engineering Technology
Second Mentor's College
Science, Engineering and Technology
Third Mentor's Name
Samuel Ertl
Third Mentor's Deparment
Automotive and Manufacturing Engineering Technology
Third Mentor's College
Science, Engineering and Technology
Description
Until recently most performance vehicles have utilized steel for their drive shafts. This is because steel can handle rotating forces very well at the cost of high weight. Alternatively, carbon fiber can be a replacement as it is very resistant to these rotating forces at a significantly reduced weight but it is at the expense of being much higher cost. The added cost is due to the strength of the carbon fiber filaments and the precision required to wind the carbon fiber; this precision allows for a higher strength to weight ratio when compared to a steel counterpart. In FSAE lowering the weight of rotating pieces means that the cars can get up to speed faster, thus lowering the weight of the driveline is a large improvement. To test whether this application will work, the glue bond between the carbon fiber drive shaft and the aluminum inserts is the focus as it is the weak point. For the test there were 15 carbon fiber tubes that were 3 inches long each. Then aluminum inserts were made at 3 different insert lengths (¼ inch, ½ inch and ¾ inch) to test the strength. The reason for using a small test sample is so that applying a huge force is not required, then the test samples can be compared to show whether the glue strength is linear or exponential. From this we can conclude the length of insert and if the weight change is worth the new cost.
Carbon Fiber Driveline
CSU 203
Until recently most performance vehicles have utilized steel for their drive shafts. This is because steel can handle rotating forces very well at the cost of high weight. Alternatively, carbon fiber can be a replacement as it is very resistant to these rotating forces at a significantly reduced weight but it is at the expense of being much higher cost. The added cost is due to the strength of the carbon fiber filaments and the precision required to wind the carbon fiber; this precision allows for a higher strength to weight ratio when compared to a steel counterpart. In FSAE lowering the weight of rotating pieces means that the cars can get up to speed faster, thus lowering the weight of the driveline is a large improvement. To test whether this application will work, the glue bond between the carbon fiber drive shaft and the aluminum inserts is the focus as it is the weak point. For the test there were 15 carbon fiber tubes that were 3 inches long each. Then aluminum inserts were made at 3 different insert lengths (¼ inch, ½ inch and ¾ inch) to test the strength. The reason for using a small test sample is so that applying a huge force is not required, then the test samples can be compared to show whether the glue strength is linear or exponential. From this we can conclude the length of insert and if the weight change is worth the new cost.
Recommended Citation
Torrell, Ryan. "Carbon Fiber Driveline." Undergraduate Research Symposium, Mankato, MN, April 11, 2017.
https://cornerstone.lib.mnsu.edu/urs/2017/oral-session-11/2
