MULTI-CRITERIA METHODS APPLIED IN THE SELECTION OF A BRAKE DISC MATERIAL

The selection of material for a self-propelled component is a complex process, because it involves an exploration of the main criteria according to the properties required by the component to be designed. The purpose of this study is to evaluate an alternative material in the manufacture of a brake disc in light SUV type vehicles, using multi-criteria methods; five candidate materials are taken into consideration for the desired application (Ti6Al 4V, Al10Si C, AISI 304L, ASTM A 536 and ASTM A48). The multicriteria methods (MCDM) used are: VIKOR - multi-disciplinary optimization and compromise solution; ELECTRE I -elimination and options that reflect reality; COPRAS -proportional complex evaluation; ARAS - additive ratio evaluation; MOORA - multi-objective optimization based on radius analysis and the ENTROPIA method used for the weighting of criteria. It is obtained that the best alternative is the ASTM A536 material according to the COPRAS, ELECTRE I, and ARAS methods due to its low density, a high elastic limit and a good resistance to compression; in the second option is ASTM A48 according to VIKOR and MOORA.