Engineering Failure Analysis 82 (2017) 703–712

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Engineering Failure Analysis

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Stress and failure analysis of the crankshaft of diesel engine MARK

a,⁎ b a a
Lucjan Witek , Michał Sikora , Feliks Stachowicz , Tomasz Trzepiecinski
a
Rzeszow University of Technology, Faculty of Mechanical Engineering and Aeronautics, 8 Powstancow Warszawy Ave., 35-959 Rzeszow, Poland
b
MTU Aero Engines Polska, Tajecina 108, 36-002 Jasionka, Poland

AR TI CLE I NF O AB S T R A CT

Keywords: In this work the failure analysis of the crankshaft of diesel engine was performed. Visual ex-
Crankshaft amination of the crankshaft fracture showed that beach marks, typical for fatigue failure were
Diesel engine observed. Additional observations of the crack initiation zone indicated that crack origin was not
Failure analysis covered by material defects or corrosion products. Performed hardness test of the fractured crank
Finite element method
pin showed that large HRC values were observed in central part of the pin only. On the corner of
Stress analysis
cylindrical pin surface where the crack origin was located the hardness of material was much
smaller. In order to explain the reason of premature crankshaft damage, the finite element
method was utilized. The results of nonlinear static analysis showed that during work of the
engine with maximum power the high stress area was located in crack initiation zone. Based on
results of performed investigations it was concluded that the main reason of premature fatigue
failure was high-cycle fatigue of the material in external zone of the crank pin where the small
structural radius was designed. In final part of the work the recommendations for increase of the
fatigue life of analyzed crankshaft were formulated.

1. Introduction

The crankshaft is one of the main components of a piston engine. It transfers loads from connecting-rods (connected with pistons)
on the clutch. In turbo diesel car engines the tendency to increase of engine power can be observed. It often causes a decrease of the
fatigue life of engine components [1]. Both the high power and large torsional moment of modern diesel engines cause a significant
increase of operational stresses in the crankshaft.
The failure analysis of the piston engine crankshaft was presented in several studies. A failure investigation of diesel engine
crankshaft used in a truck has been conducted in study [2]. The fracture occurred in the web between 2nd journal 2nd crankpin. The
depth of the nitrided layer in the fillet region (close to the fracture) was determined by the scanning electron microscope and the
hardness measurement, combined with nitrogen content analysis. Fractographic studies indicated that fatigue was dominant me-
chanism of crankshaft failure. The partial absence of nitrided layer may result from over-grinding after nitriding.
In work [3] the failure analyses of two crankshafts of diesel engines were performed. Both crankshafts were damaged shortly after
major repair of the engine. The main reason of premature failure was wrong grinding process that originated small thermal fatigue
cracks at center of the journals.
Results of failure investigations of the diesel engine crankshafts were presented in work [4]. The failure time of crankshafts varied
between 30 h and about 700 h of engine operation. The crankshafts were induction hardened on pins and journals. In this operation
the fillets were not hardened. An analysis indicated that cracks were initiated from the crankpin-web fillet region where the stress
level was about 175 MPa. According to author, the main reason of premature fatigue failure of the crankshaft is typical fatigue

⁎
Corresponding author.
E-mail address: lwitek@prz.edu.pl (L. Witek).

http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.engfailanal.2017.06.001
Received 2 October 2016; Received in revised form 23 February 2017; Accepted 1 June 2017
Available online 01 June 2017
1350-6307/ © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
L. Witek et al. Engineering Failure Analysis 82 (2017) 703–712

mechanism which occurs in crank pin fillet at large amplitude of the stress.
In study [5] the failed crankshaft used in a truck was analyzed. Spectrum analysis, tensile test, hardness test, and metallographic
examination revealed that the failed crankshaft material was ductile cast iron. The low hardness of the material in fillet region and
presence of free graphite and nonspheroidal graphite into microstructure of the crankshaft were main reasons for decrease of its
fatigue life.
The results of an interesting experimental and numerical analysis of the crankshaft segment are presented in study [6]. The
normal stress distribution in fillet of the crankshaft section subjected to bending was first obtained using linear-elastic finite element
analysis (FEA). The residual stress distribution into crankshaft fillet vicinity (induced by a fillet rolling process) was next determined
by elastic–plastic FEA. Based on calculated normal stresses, two fatigue models used to calculate the fatigue limits on surface cracks
and in-depth cracks were examined by an experimental data.
A case study of a crankshaft catastrophic failure was presented in work [7]. The crankshaft suffered a mechanical seizure on
crankpin no. 2 after 3 years in service. It was repaired and after 30,000 km the vehicle had a catastrophic failure on the same
crankpin. The macrograph of crankpin revealed that the crankpin was rectified and filled with a metal alloy for the same nominal
diameter. According to authors, the catastrophic failure was a consequence of the inadequate repairing by a non-authorized man-
ufacturer.
The majority of mentioned above cases are related to fracture of the crankshaft in crank pin regions. This region could be indexed
as critical. An interesting research, in which the crack was initiated in another region is described in work [8]. The origin of the
fatigue crack was the oil hole. Inspection of other oil holes showed another hole with sharp notch at the intersection of the oil hole
and the journal surface. The fracture of the shaft was due to poor refurbishment of the journals by welding.
The main objective of presented investigations is determination of stress state in the crankshaft during work of the engine. An
additional aim of this work is to explain the failure reasons of the crankshaft of a diesel engine.

2. Visual inspection of fractured crankshaft

The crankshaft of 2.0 DTI diesel engine was ruptured in region of the crank pin no. 2 (Fig. 1) at kilometrage of engine about
260,000 km. The number of crankshaft rotations to failure (based on following assumptions: medium speed of car of 50 km/h,
medium rotational speed of engine n = 2000 RPM) can be estimated as 6.24 × 108.
Visual examination showed that on crankshaft fracture the beach marks typical for fatigue failure were observed (Figs. 2–3). The
fatigue marks are also visible on magnified view of the fracture (Fig. 4). Observations of the crack initiation zone indicated that the
crack origin was not covered by corrosion products or material defects. The surface corrosion visible on the fracture (brown color,
Figs. 2–3) occurred because the crankshaft after failure was stored in humid air for a long time.

3. Material investigations of the fractured crankshaft

The crankshaft was next subjected to the material investigations. From the shaft segment the specimens were cut with use of the
wire-cut machine (Fig. 5). During this operation the specimens were not heated and the mechanical properties of the material were
not changed.
The tension test was made using Zwick-Roell tension machine. Results of the tension test (Fig. 6) showed that crankshaft material
has the following mechanical properties: yield stress (YS) 445 MPa, ultimate tensile strength (UTS) 757 MPa, modulus of elasticity
212 GPa (measured in the range of stress: 100–300 MPa) and elongation 7.6%.
In next part of experimental investigations the cylindrical surface of fractured crank pin was subjected to the hardness test using
the Rockwell method. The hardness was measured in 9 points (bottom part of Fig. 7). First measure point was located 2 mm from left
fillet of the crank pin (where the crack origin was observed). The results presented in Fig. 7 show that the hardness of 53–55 HRC was
observed in central part of the pin surface. On external part of cylindrical pin surface the decrease of hardness value (to 25 HRC) is
visible.

Fig. 1. View of the crankshaft after failure.

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Fig. 2. Fracture of the crankshaft. Crack front shape on right (a) and left (b) side of the fracture.

The material of crankshaft was also subjected to the chemical composition analysis. The measure area was located near the crack
origin (Figs. 2–3). Results of this analysis are presented in Table 1.
As seen from this table, the crankshaft was made out of carbon steel consisted of about 0.4% C. Obtained results were compared to
the composition of selected carbon and alloy steels used for shaft design (steels for quenching and tempering, Table 2) [9–11]. In
nomenclature of steels the Polish standards (PN) and DIN standards were used. Results of this comparison show that chemical
composition of material of the fractured crankshaft does not overlap with chemical composition of typical steels used for crankshafts
of piston engines. Investigated material of the crankshaft has a larger mass fraction of Si (0.57%) than standard value for steel 45
(0.1–0.4%) and smaller than fraction of Si for steel 35HGS (1.1–1.4%). Moreover the measured mass fraction of Mn (1.42%) is larger
than standards values of all mentioned steels.
As can be observed from Table 3, the yield stress and the ultimate tensile strength of the material of fractured crankshaft are
similar to standard value for the carbon steel 45. The difference is only in elongation (crankshaft: 7.6%, standard for steel 45: 14%).

4. Numerical model of the crankshaft, loads and boundary conditions

Before the model creation the fractured crankshaft was scanned using 3D optical scanner. After scanning a large number of
surface discontinuities were received (Fig. 8a). Obtained geometry was improved and next exported to the ABAQUS-CAE pre-pro-
cessor (Fig. 8b) [12]. The diameter of the main bearing journal equals 68 mm (Figs. 1, 8) whereas diameter of the crank pins —
49 mm. The fillet radius on the corner of the crank pin is equal to 1.5 mm. In numerical analysis both the mechanical force arising
from the pressure in cylinder and the centrifugal forces of rotated crankshaft were considered.
In order to stress state determination in crankshaft subjected to the operational loads the non-linear finite element analysis was

Fig. 3. Lateral view of the fractured crank pin.

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Fig. 4. Magnified area of the fracture (a). The spatial fracture profile of the small fracture zone (near A and B points) (b). The fracture profile of larger area (c). Results
obtained using the optical scanning microscope 3D-Alicona Infinite Focus.

Fig. 5. Fragment of the crankshaft with specimens obtained using a wire-cut machine (a) and the specimen after tension test (b).

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Fig. 6. Tension plot of the specimen cut from the crankshaft.

utilized. The finite element (FE) model of the crankshaft presented in Fig. 9 consists of 125,664 nodes and 81,461 TET-4 finite
elements [12].
In FE analysis the shaft segment consisted of the main bearing journals nos. I, II and III (Fig. 1) and the crack pins nos. 1 and 2
were considered. The geometry of the numerical model was limited to the half crankshaft only because of both the large number of
finite elements and large size of the numerical task (contact problem, nonlinear analysis).
The lateral circular surface of bearing journal no. III was fully constrained (TX = 0, TY = 0, TZ = 0, Fig. 9). On cylindrical surface
of bearing journal no. I, II and III the displacements on R (radial) and Z direction were equal to 0. Between the crank pin no. 2 and the

Fig. 7. Hardness of material on the surface of fractured crank pin as a function of X coordinate (Rockwell method, HRC units).

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Table 1
Chemical composition (%) of the material of investigated crankshaft.

C% Si S P Mn Ni Cr Mo Cu Fe

0.403 0.57 0.08 0.016 1.42 0.046 0.13 0.021 0.13 97.14

Table 2
Chemical composition of selected carbon steels used for shafts in comparison with composition of the material of investigated crankshaft [10,11].

Type of steel Chemical composition [%]

C Si S P Mn Ni Cr Mo Cu

Crankshaft (measured values) 0.403 0.57 0.08 0.016 1.42 0.046 0.13 0.021 0.13
45 (PN), 1.0503 (DIN) 0.43–0.5 0.1–0.4 Max 0.04 Max 0.04 0.5–0.8 Max 0.3 Max 0.3 Max 0.1 Max 0.3
40H (PN), 1.7035 (DIN) 0.36–0.45 0.17–0.37 Max 0.035 Max 0.035 0.5–0.9 Max 0.3 0.8–1.2 Max 0.1 Max 0.25
40HM (PN), 1.7225 (DIN) 0.36–0.45 0.17–0.37 Max 0.035 Max 0.035 0.5–0.9 Max 0.3 0.8–1.2 Max 0.1 Max 0.25
35HGS 0.32–0.40 1.1–1.4 Max 0.035 Max 0.035 0.8–1.1 Max 0.3 – Max 0.1 –

Table 3
Selected mechanical properties of typical steels used for shafts in comparison with the properties of the material of fractured crankshaft [10,11].

Grade of steel Yield stress [MPa] Ultimate tensile strength [MPa] Elongation [%]

Crankshaft (measured values) 445 757 7.6

45 (PN), 1.0503 (DIN) Min. 430 650–800 14
40H (PN), 1.7035 (DIN) Min. 660 900–1100 10
40HM (PN), 1.7225 (DIN) Min 650 900–1100 10
35HGS 830–930 1030–1180 10

Fig. 8. View of the shaft surface (with discontinuities) after scanning the geometry (a) and improved 3D model of the crankshaft used in analysis (b).

connecting rod a master-slave contact [12] with friction coefficient of 0.05 was defined (Fig. 9).
In numerical analysis the load resulting from pressure of the exhaust gases acting on the piston no. 2 was considered. The
maximum pressure in cylinder (10 MPa) was taken from the engine indicator plot (Fig. 10a). The maximum pressure occurs when the
crankshaft has an angle α = 10° after top death centre (TDC) (Fig. 10b). The force between connecting-rod and the crank pin was
transferred using the contact elements. Second considered load (centrifugal forces) was related to the rotation of crankshaft with the
maximum speed. In order to calculate the centrifugal forces the density of crankshaft material (7800 kg/m3), axis of rotation (Z,
Fig. 9) and rotational speed (n = 4000 RPM) was first defined.

5. Numerical stress analysis

The stress analysis of the crankshaft was made using Abaqus software [12]. As a result the maximum principal stress (σ1)
distributions were obtained for the crankshaft subjected to the operational loads. This stress is particularly interesting from the point
of view of the fatigue strength because just the tensile stresses contribute the most to the fatigue crack initiation and next to crack
propagation [13–16].

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Fig. 9. Numerical model of crankshaft and the connecting rod no. 2. Definition of boundary conditions.

Fig. 10. Indicator plot of turbocharged diesel engine (a) and position of the crankshaft during engine work (b).

Results of nonlinear static analysis presented in Fig. 11 showed that the maximum principal (σ1) stress value (112.44 MPa) is
located on the corner of cylindrical crank pin surface. This location overlaps the crack origin (Figs. 1–3). Results presented in
Figs. 12–13 showed that the maximum tensile stress area is located in the surface layer only (in the fillet vicinity). The depth of the
large stress area is about 1–2 mm.
In numerical analysis the positions of crankshaft 5° and 20° after TDC were also considered but the stress values for mentioned
cases were smaller at about 20–30%. It means that during the combustion stroke the largest tensile stress occurs when the crankshaft
is in position 10° after TDC. During one shaft rotation the tensile stress in the critical region (where crack origin was located) alters
from low to the maximum value (occurred at 10° after TDC). It causes the fatigue of crankshaft material during work of the engine.
When the dominant force (arising from high pressure of exhaust gases imposed to the piston) acts on the connecting rod no. 2, the
compression stress occurs in top part of crank pin cross-section (Fig. 13). It means that the crank pin during work of the engine is
subjected to bending. The large alternating bending stress and small pin fillet radius (notch effect) was probably a main reason of
operational fatigue fracture of the crankshaft.

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Fig. 11. Maximum principal stress (σ1) distribution (MPa) in crankshaft (for the engine speed n = 4000 RPM, the engine power of 100 HP, position of crankshaft: 10°
after TDC).

Fig. 12. Maximum principal stress (σ1) distribution (MPa) in axial cross-section of crank pin (for engine speed n = 4000 RPM, engine power: 100 HP, crankshaft
position: 10° after TDC).

6. Conclusions

In this work the failure analysis of crankshaft of diesel engine was performed. In order to explain the fracture reasons both the
visual examination and advanced investigation of shaft material were realized. In next part of the study the nonlinear finite element
method was utilized to determine the operational stress in crankshaft working at maximum engine power. In order to solve the
problem the numerical crankshaft model was first created. In numerical FE analysis the complex boundary conditions were defined in
order to simulate the interaction of the crankshaft with the adjacent parts: the connecting rod and the main bearings.
Based on the results of presented experimental and numerical investigations the following conclusions were formulated:

1. The crack origin was not covered by material defects or corrosion products. The beach marks show that failure of the crankshaft
was related to the fatigue of material.
2. The maximum tensile stress value (σ1 = 112.44 MPa, at crankshaft position: 10° after TDC) was located in the fillet of the crank
pin. This zone overlaps the crack origin. The stress in critical (fracture) region achieves about 25% of the yield stress of shaft
material (445 MPa).
3. The large number of load cycles of the crankshaft before failure (about 6.24 × 108 of shaft rotations and 3.12 × 108 of com-
bustion strokes) shows that the failure was caused by high-cycle fatigue occurred at considerable amplitude of tension stresses on
fillet of the crank pin.

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Fig. 13. Maximum principal stress (σ1) distribution (MPa) in crosswise cross-section of crank pin, (for engine speed of rotation n = 4000 RPM, engine power: 100 HP,
crankshaft position: 10° after TDC).

4. The crack initiation process was probably accelerated by bad surface hardening process of the pin area in which non-uniform
hardness was observed. A decrease of hardness is often related to decrease of yield stress and UTS of material. This phenomenon
has an influence on limited fatigue life of the shaft material in the critical (fracture) zone.
5. The crack initiation process could be also accelerated by improper chemical composition of the crankshaft material.

Recommendations

a) Introduce the larger fillet radius in external part of the crank pins in order to reduce the notch effect in critical zone of the
crankshaft.
b) Improve the heat treatment technology in order to obtain constant hardness and yield stress of material on surface of the crank
pin.
c) Introduce the fillet rolling process in order to obtain negative residual stresses in surface layer of the critical crankshaft region
where the crack was initiated. Negative residual stresses (as a result of the local plastic deformation) can have influence on
reduction of the operational stresses and increase of the fatigue life of analyzed crankshaft.

Acknowledgement

The research leading to these results has received funding from the People Programme (Marie Curie International Research Staff
Exchange) of the European Union's Seventh Framework Programme FP7/2007–2013/ under REA grant: PIRSES-GA-2013-610547.

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Lucjan Witek, PhD., DSc. Graduated in 1997 with M.Sc. degree in mechanical engineering (specialization: aerospace, airframe), Ph.D. degree in 2002 (discipline:
mechanics), both from the Rzeszow University of Technology, Poland. Currently is working on position of associate professor at Department of Aircraft and Aero
Engines, Faculty of Mechanical Engineering and Aeronautics, Rzeszow University of Technology. His research focuses on the nonlinear stress and fatigue analysis of

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mechanical structures, analysis of stability of thin-walled structures, fracture and fatigue studies of the aero-engines and aircraft components. Recently works on both
the numerical and experimental crack propagation analysis of the compressor blades subjected to resonant vibrations and the failure analysis of the piston engines. An
author of papers published by Elsevier, American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA), Springer, Trans Tech Publications (TTP) or Polish Society of
Theoretical and Applied Mechanics (PTMTS) publishing houses.

Michał Sikora, Eng. During this work preparation he worked as trainee in MTU Aero Engines Polska Company. Graduate of Rzeszow University of Technology (2016).
Specialist in numerical stress and strain analysis of mechanical components.

Feliks Stachowicz, Prof. DSc, PhD, Eng. Graduate of the Faculty of Non-Ferrous Metals at AGH University of Science and Technology in Kraków (1975). In 1981 he
defended PhD degree at the Faculty of Non-Ferrous Metals, AGH University, in 1991 obtained DSc degree at the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering and Automation,
Warsaw University of Technology, and in 2000 he was awarded the professor's degree. Specializes in evaluating metals usability for cold working processes (especially
forming limits of thin sheet metal) and analyses of basic parameters concerning technological forming processes of sheet metal, pipes and structural profiles as well as
recycling processes.

Tomasz Trzepiecinski received his M.Sc. degree in mechanical engineering from the Rzeszow University of Technology in 2002, Ph.D. degree in machine building
from Rzeszow University of Technology in 2006. Since 2009 he has been working as an Assistant Professor at the Department of Materials Forming and Processing,
Rzeszow University of Technology, Rzeszów, Poland and became as Associate Professor in 2014. His research interests include materials processing technology,
artificial neural networks, finite element method implementation and kinematics of robots.

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