Numerical Investigation of Thermo-Mechanical Behaviour of an Aluminum-Silicon Alloy Piston in an IC Engine

Increasing the power to volume density of an engine has been a significant research concern. A turbocharger is usually utilized to boost volumetric efficiency, but it also increases the in-cylinder temperature and pressure, compromising piston life. Thermal barrier coatings have emerged as a potential solution to minimize heat flow toward the piston skirt. Moreover, recent developments in ceramic-based coated pistons have shown promising outcomes. Zirconia, for instance, enables high-temperature operations of the machine component by reducing heat loss and protecting the engine parts from high thermo-mechanical stresses. In this study, actual engine-like thermal and structural loads are considered in a Finite Element Method-based numerical model to evaluate the structural behavior in an IC engine. Temperature distributions and thermo-mechanical stresses are determined. Thus, this article aims to develop a numerically model to observe the thermo-mechanical response. Results show thermal load as the primary contributor toward structural deformations compared with the structural loads. Such a model can effectively evaluate the thermo-mechanical response of a coated piston. Encouraging thermo-mechanical trends were also observed for a coated piston utilizing the developed model.