Comparative Analysis of Different Starter Driven Gear Materials Using Finite Element Method

Gear is an essential element in motor vehicles. Bending stress and gear surface strength are two factors contributing to a gear failure. Therefore, calculating precisely the bending stress and total deformation of the gear tooth is profoundly important for the development of modern gear design industry. This study aimed to investigate the strength, deformation, and crack in gears. The Finite Element Method (FEM) was used in the ANSYS simulation. The simulation was performed on three gear materials, i.e. alloy steel, structural steel, and carbon steel. The results showed that among the three materials, the highest strength with the equivalent stress of 921.63 MPa was structural steel, with the maximum principal stress of 407.33 MPa and maximum shear stress of 407.33 MPa.