Impact of the Housing on the Air Flow and the Thermal Behavior of an Automotive Clutch System

Abstract

New directives and increasing competition push automakers to get better performances (engine power increase), along with mass and size reduction (consumption). These evolutions lead to an increase of the thermal solicitations undergone by the automotive clutches whereas their weight must be decreased, as it is one of the main influent factors on CO2 emissions. Previous studies only focused on the air flow created by the clutches, but none of them have shown the impact of the clutch housing on the cooling of the clutch parts. In order to determine the influence of the clutch housing on the thermal behavior of automotive clutch systems, a numerical study has been performed on a simplified model of a clutch system. A parametric variation has been performed on the clutch housing size in order to evaluate its impact on the flow and the thermal behavior of clutches. The results show that clutch housing has a significant impact on the air flow and the thermal behavior of clutches. Thermal tests on real clutches with and without clutch housing have confirmed these results.