Numerical Investigation of Thermal Behavior in Brake Assembly During the ALPINE Braking Mode

A three-dimensional numerical method for the prediction of transient temperature of various brake components including brake fluid reached during the ALPINE braking mode in a ventilated disc brake assembly is presented in this paper. The ALPINE braking mode is the representative mountain descent simulation mode. For this precise analytical prediction of each brake component temperature during a repeated braking and heat soaking, a specified disc brake system is modeled including the brake disc, pad assembly consist of lining and back plate, piston and caliper body. Through this three-dimensional numerical method, a correlativity of the brake assembly geometry and the brake fluid temperature could be expected. Analytical results are compared with measured data with a good correlation. The effects of the various system parameters on the brake fluid temperature are also investigated with a three-dimensional computation. The analytical method developed in this study will help to design a robust brake system and reduce the time-consuming experiments currently required.