A Fatigue Analysis and Life Estimation of Crankshaft - a Review

The main objective of writing review on fatigue life of crankshaft is to investigate the behavior of crankshaft under complex loading conditions. Automobile industries are always interested to develop a new product which will be innovative and fulfill market expectations. All the engine components are subjected to constant to varying load which also varies in direction and due to these, components may fail. Bending and shear stress due to twisting are common stresses acting on crankshaft. Due to the repeated bending and twisting, crankshaft fails, as cracks form in fillet area. Hence, fatigue plays an important role in crankshaft development. Accurate prediction of fatigue life is very important to insure safety of components and its reliability. This review paper considers crankshaft as an important part of engine components, as forces which are acting on crankshaft are many and variable in nature. This paper presents an idea about research undertaken or completed on fatigue life of crankshaft, methods available and role of Finite Element Analysis (FEA) and experimental techniques used.