30 Credits – Development of a method to determine the influence of rubber components in dynamic simulations

Ingress:

At Scania Research and Development, significant emphasis is put on offering premium and sustainable products which create value for the customer. In order to ensure that continuous improvements are achieved and that waste is eliminated during the development of new products, extensive digital and physical testing is performed.

Background:

Scania develops engines for trucks, buses and for installment in marine or industrial applications. These engines are subjected to vibration loads during operation. The nature of these vibrations depends partly on the environment in which the engine is mounted, and partly on operating parameters such as torque and engine speed. Engine components are designed to withstand these vibrations, while minimizing the addition of unnecessary mass. Simulation and testing methods used to facilitate the design process are the subject of continuous improvements, which this thesis will contribute to.

Scania has a few components in the engine made of rubber e.g. pipes, hoses or rubber sealing. These rubber components influence the dynamic response of the surrounding components. However, it is challenging and complicated to model rubber to effectively capture its dynamic response.

Target:

The objective of the thesis is to develop a method to effectively model and determine how a rubber component’s dynamic response influences the surrounding components. The focus would be on a particular engine component for which a simulation model needs to be built for vibration fatigue evaluation. The verification of simulation results would be done by comparing with experimental test data.

Assignment:

The thesis project will be conducted at Scania R&D in Södertälje at the structural analysis, tribology & acoustics simulation group NMDS in close collaboration with the strength testing group NMBT.

The thesis project may be broken down into the following parts:

• Perform a literature study of existing experimental and simulation based methods of rubber for vibration fatigue evaluation at Scania and elsewhere.
• Perform an investigation of the users’ needs and requirements of the future method.
• Perform calculations with components connected to rubber in the frequency domain according to one of our methods.
• Evaluate different ways to model the rubber (e.g. 1D elements, point mass, special elements) and compare the results of the frequency response simulation with a corresponding physical test performed by NMBT.
• Develop a method of modelling rubber so the influence of the rubber on other components correspond well to the physical test. The method should be based on the literature study.
• Present the results of the master thesis in a comprehensive report and during an oral presentation at Scania R&D.

Education:

• Education: Master of science in Engineering student with an interest in structural analysis.
• Meritorious knowledge: Vibration, Fatigue, Hyper elastic materials, Verification and Validation, Solid Mechanics, Testing, FE Software (Abaqus, Hypermesh etc), Scripting (MATLAB/Python)
• Number of students: 1
• Start date: August 2021
• Estimated time needed: 20 weeks

Contact persons and supervisors:

• Anirudh Gururaj Deshpande, CAE Engineer, NMDS
  +46855372546
  anirudh-gururaj.deshpande@scania.com
• Andrew Spencer, Group Manager, NMDS

andrew.spencer@scania.com

Application:
Please enclose CV and personal letter to your application. Selections will be made throughout the application period.

Scania is a world-leading provider of transport solutions, including trucks and buses for heavy transport applications combined with an extensive product-related service offering. Scania offers vehicle financing, insurance and rental services to enable our customers to focus on their core business. Scania is also a leading provider of industrial and marine engines. In 2019, we delivered 91,700 trucks, 7,800 buses as well as 10,200 industrial and marine engines to our customers. Net sales totalled to over SEK 152 billion, of which about 20 percent were services-related. Founded in 1891, Scania now operates in more than 100 countries and employs some 51,000 people. Research and development are concentrated in Sweden, with branches in Brazil and India. Production takes place in Europe, Latin America and Asia, with regional production centers in Africa, Asia and Eurasia. Scania is part of TRATON SE.