Thin Wall Austempered Ductile Iron Connecting Rod for Lighter Automotive Component - Production of Thin Wall Ductile Iron Connecting Rod

Lighter automotive components are produced to respond to global issue regarding energy. Lighter components can be achieved by replacing the material to those known as lighter material such as aluminium or applying thin wall casting technique. Lightweight automotive components will mean lower fuel consumption. Based on the success in making thin wall ductile iron plate (TWDI) with a thickness to 1 mm using a vertical casting, it encourages the implementation of the design to create lightweight automotive components. The design was applied to produce a thin wall two-cylinder engine ductile iron connecting rod which will be upgraded with austempering process. This connecting rod will be applied in Vespa PX150. The designs were simulated in Z-Cast simulation software and analyzed to determine the most optimum design. The chosen design was casted in a foundry to match the simulation. Evaluation of the characteristics will be run in the second stage of the research.