INVESTIGATION OF STATIC AND DYNAMIC STRENGTH OF AIR SUSPENSION BELLOWS IN HEAVY VEHICLES

Abstract

Air suspension bellows is a rubber-based polymer material that needs to be used in heavyduty vehicles. The service life of the rubber and court cloth used as the bellows material changes due to the process. While premature damage to the bellows increases the risk of accidents, frequent replacements cause an increase in costs. In this study, improvement studies based on the court cloth and the process were carried out. At the end of the study, two types of air bellows materials passed static tests. These tests are; DMA, RPA tests for pre-cooking rubber mixture; for court cloth, elongation, z and s twist, adhesion strength, court thickness. Tensile test, hardness and impermeability tests were applied to the samples after the vulcanization process. With the improvements made, the mechanical tests have been confirmed. Blasting and fatigue tests were carried out for the life of the bellows. The mold firing temperature was reduced from 185°C to 180°C, the time was reduced from 415 seconds to 385 seconds, and it was determined that the product life of the bellows increased by 15% at 12 bar constant pressure.