Study of the dynamic behavior of porous functionally graded suspension structural systems using finite elements methods

In the context of the finite elements method, the dynamic behavior of porous functionally graded double wishbone vehicle suspension structural system incorporating joints flexibility constraints under road bump excitation is studied and analyzed. The functionally graded material properties distribution through the thickness direction is simulated by the power law including the porosity effect. To explore the porosity effects, both classical and adopted porosity models are considered based on even porosity distribution pattern. The dynamic equations of motion are derived based on the Hamiltonian principle. Closed forms of the inertia and material stiffness components are derived. Based on the plane frame isoparametric Timoshenko beam element, the dynamic finite elements equations are developed incorporating joint flexibilities constraints. The Newmark's implicit direct integration methodology is utilized to obtain the transient vibration time response under road bump excitation. The presented procedure is validated by comparing the computational model results with the available numerical solutions and an excellent agreement is observed. Obtained results show that the decrease of porosity percentage and material graduation tends to decrease the deflection as well as the resulting stresses of the control arms thus improving the dynamic performance and increasing the service lifetime of the control arms.