Dispersion Strengthened Copper Valve Seat Inserts and Guides in Automotive Engines

Increasing efficiency of the high performance automobile engines results in higher temperatures in the valves, valve seat inserts and valve guides. This fact demands a higher heat transfer rate in order to lower these temperatures. This paper deals with new sintered materials, based on dispersion strengthened copper, used to produce valve seat inserts and valve guides with a superior thermal conductivity. In rig tests these high thermal conductivity valve seat inserts reduced the valve temperature and wear rate. These results were later confirmed in engine tests. The wear results of the copper based materials were comparable to those of the standard series of iron based materials. Initial results of rig tests on the valve guides are reported. The wear rates of the dispersion copper based materials were lower than those of the P/M iron based materials and brass.