Strength analysis of connecting rods with pistons using finite element method

Abstract

A connecting rod is the core component of an engine which has a function to transmit power released from combustion from the piston to the crankshaft. Deformation is the most commonly occurring damage to connecting rods. The connecting rods made of structural steel, aluminium alloy and titanium alloy were designed using Autodesk Inventor and analysed using ANSYS. The simulations showed the following results. The connecting rod made of structural steel had the highest maximum stress of 82.791 MPa. The connecting rod made of aluminium alloy had the highest maximum deformation of 0.84071 mm. The three connecting rod materials had the same maximum safety factor, i.e. 15.