ME374 Module 2
ME374 Module 2
Manufacturing of Shafts
Shafts are generally manufactured by hot rolling and finished to size
by cold drawing or turning and grinding. The cold rolled shafts are
stronger than hot rolled shafts but with higher residual stresses. The
residual stresses may cause distortion of the shaft when it is machined,
especially when slots or keyways are cut. Shafts of larger diameter are
usually forged and turned to size in a lathe.
Types of Shafts
Transmission shafts
These shafts transmit power between the source and the machines absorbing
power. The counter shafts, line shafts, over head shafts and all factory shafts
are transmission shafts. Since these shafts carry machine parts such as pulleys,
gears etc., therefore they are subjected to bending in addition to twisting.
Machine shafts
These shafts form an integral part of the machine itself. The crank shaft is an
example of machine shaft.
Standard Sizes of Transmission Shafts
25 mm – 60 mm 5 mm increment
60 mm – 110 mm 10 mm increment
110 mm – 140 mm 15 mm increment
140 mm – 500 mm 20 mm increment
Standard lengths of the shafts are 5m, 6m, and 7m
Stresses in Shafts
Depending on the application, shafts may be hollow or solid. Shafts
are generally acted upon by bending moment, torsion, and axial force.
Therefore, the design of the shaft is primarily driven by determining
the stresses at critical points in the assembly that may arise due to the
loading.
The following stresses are induced in the shafts :
1. Shear stresses due to the transmission of torque (i.e. due to
torsional load).
2. Bending stresses (tensile or compressive) due to the forces acting
upon machine elements like gears, pulleys etc. as well as due to the
weight of the shaft itself.
3. Stresses due to combined torsional and bending loads.
Design of Shafts
The shafts may be designed on the basis of:
1. Strength, and 2. Rigidity and stiffness.
In designing shafts on the basis of strength, the following cases may be
considered:
(a) Shafts subjected to twisting moment or torque only,
(b) Shafts subjected to bending moment only,
(c) Shafts subjected to combined twisting and bending moments, and
(d) Shafts subjected to axial loads in addition to combined torsional and
bending loads.
M = Bending moment,
I = Moment of inertia of cross-sectional area of the shaft about the axis
of rotation,
𝜎𝑏 = Bending stress, and
y = Distance from neutral axis to the outer-most fiber.
We know that for a round solid shaft, moment of inertia,
Or arranged as
We also know that for a hollow shaft, moment of inertia,
𝜋 𝑑𝑜4 − 𝑑𝑖4
𝑀= × 𝜎𝑏
32 𝑑0
Example 3
A pair of wheels of a railway wagon carries a load of 50 kN on each
axle box, acting at a distance of 100 mm outside the wheelbase. The
gauge of the rails is 1.4 m. Find the diameter of the axle between the
wheels, if the stress is not to exceed 100 MPa.
Torsional Rigidity of shafts
The torsional rigidity is important in the case of camshaft
of an I.C. engine where the timing of the valves would be
affected. The permissible amount of twist should not
exceed 0.25° per meter length of such shafts. For line
shafts or transmission shafts, deflections 2.5 to 3 degree
per meter length may be used as limiting value. The
widely used deflection for the shafts is limited to 1 degree
in a length equal to twenty times the diameter of the shaft.
The torsional deflection may be obtained by using the torsion equation,
Example 4
A steel spindle transmits 4 kW at 800 r.p.m. The angular deflection
should not exceed 0.25° per meter of the spindle. If the modulus of
rigidity for the material of the spindle is 84 GPa, find the diameter of
the spindle and the shear stress induced in the spindle.
(c) Shafts subjected to combined twisting
and bending moments
When the shaft is subjected to combined twisting moment and
bending moment, then the shaft must be designed on the basis of the
two moments simultaneously. Various theories have been suggested to
account for the elastic failure of the materials when they are subjected
to various types of combined stresses. The following two theories are
important from the subject point of view:
1. Maximum shear stress theory or Guest's theory. It is used for
ductile materials such as mild steel.
2. Maximum normal stress theory or Rankine’s theory. It is used for
brittle materials such as cast iron.
According to maximum shear stress theory, the maximum shear stress in the
shaft,
Shear Diagram
Moment Diagram
Shafts subjected to Fluctuations
In the previous articles we have assumed that the shaft is subjected to constant
torque and bending moment. But in actual practice, the shafts are subjected to
fluctuating torque and bending moments. In order to design such shafts like
line shafts and counter shafts, the combined shock and fatigue factors must be
taken into account for the computed twisting moment (T ) and bending
moment (M ).
The equivalent twisting moment,
It may be noted that for a solid shaft, k = 0 and d0 = d. When the shaft
carries no axial load, then F = 0 an when the shaft carries axial tensile
load, then 𝛼 = 1.
Example 9
A hollow shaft is subjected to a maximum torque of 1.5 kN-m and a
maximum bending moment of 3 kN-m. It is subjected, at the same time,
to an axial load of 10 kN. Assume that the load is applied gradually
and the ratio of the inner diameter to the outer diameter is 0.5. If the
outer diameter of the shaft is 80 mm, find the shear stress induced in
the shaft.