In: Mechanical Engineering
1) A prototype disk brake for a bicycle is to be mounted on the hub of the rear wheel, and consists of a pair of pads of area 5cm × 1cm which are pressed against opposing faces of the steel disk. The pads are aligned with their longer dimension in the tangential rotation direction, with the pad centres at a distance of 10cm from the centre of the disk. The brake is to be tested on a rotating machine to simulate the loading and wear in service. The disk rotates at a suitable constant speed, and the brakes are applied for 10 seconds every minute, with each pad applying a normal load of 1 kN.
(a) Find a suitable rotation speed (in revs. per minute, rpm) if the test is to simulate braking a bicycle travelling at a speed of 20km/hour, with a wheel diameter (including the tyre) of 70cm.
(b) When the brakes are applied, the machine registers an increase in torque of 30 Nm. Find the friction force that is being applied to each pad, and hence estimate the friction coefficient.
(c) Estimate the depth of material removed per hour of testing, if the Archard wear constant for the materials is ka = 2×10-8 MPa-1.
(d) What other factors would influence the wear rate in service?