Static and Transient Analyses of Leaf Spring Using Composite Material

Leaf springs are one of the oldest suspension components and are still frequently used, especially in commercial vehicles. The automobile industry has shown interest in replacement of steel spring with fiber composite leaf spring due to high strength-to-weight ratio. This work deals with replacement of conventional steel leaf spring of a light commercial vehicle with composite leaf spring using graphite/epoxy, carbon/epoxy and Kevlar/epoxy. Dimensions of the composite leaf spring are to be taken as same dimensions of the conventional leaf spring. The objective is to compare the load carrying capacity, stresses and weight savings of composite leaf spring with that of steel leaf spring. The finite element modeling and analysis of a multi-leaf spring have been carried out. Static analysis of the multi-leaf spring is performed for the deflection and stresses under defined loading conditions. It is possible to reduce the weight of the leaf spring without any reduction on load carrying capacity and stiffness. Design and analysis for both the steel and composite leaf springs have been done using ANSYS 12.1 software and it is compared with the theoretical values.