Numerical and experimental study of automotive riveted clutch discs with contact pressure analysis for the prediction of facing wear

In this work, we investigate the behavior of the riveted clutch disc assembly which allows a soft gradual re-engagement of torque transmission. This progressive re-engagement is obtained by the clutch disc characteristics in the axial direction. The nonlinear axial elastic stiffness of the riveted clutch disc is described by the cushion curve which is an important technological constraint prescribed by car manufacturers. Therefore, we propose to perform a finite element riveted clutch disc model in order to predict the cushion curve. This model will allow to design new clutch discs while assuming car manufacturers specifications. One of the more important problems of the riveted clutch disc is the degradation of the cushion curve during the lifetime of this component. This degradation is due to an embedding phenomenon (facing wear). In this work, we propose to verify that the determination of the contact pressure distribution on the facings at the beginning of the clutch disc lifetime enables the embedding phenomenon to be estimated.