Study the effect of vanes shape on the convective cooling of the ventilated brake disc

Abstract

Today, the most brake systems used on vehicles are the disc brakes. During the braking process, the large amount of frictional heat is generated on the contact surfaces of disc brakes. In order to ensure the safety of the drivers and the traffic participants, the optimal performance of brake system of the vehicles under the different working conditions should be ensured. Therefore, it can be considered that the brake system an essential element in the vehicle. Practical experiences showed that the most important factor that affects performance of the brake system is the excessive heat that generated during the braking process. Therefore, it’s necessary to pay high attention on the air cooling of the brake system. This is one of the reasons why the ventilated discs are used, besides that their usage provides the reduction of the inertial masses which meaning less cost. In order to provide a good cooling, it’s necessary to find the optimal vanes shape to increase the degree of air cooling as much as possible. The aim of this research paper is to analyse the air flow through four different ventilated brake discs; each one has the shape of vane. Comparisons were made between the results of the selected models of the ventilated brake discs. The results presented the air flow currents through the disc, as well as the turbulences that occurred during the air flow around vanes.