Photoelastic Investigation of Slippage in Shrink-Fit Assemblies

The development of torque-induced shear stresses in the presence of slippage, and the residual stresses remaining after torque-induced slippage, are analysed using frozen-stress photoelasticity. Shaft/ring specimens were manufactured from epoxy photoelastic material and were assembled by shrink-fitting prior to being loaded under various regimes, notably the application and release of a torque load. The interface pressure was predicted from Lamé thick cylinder theory, and was also estimated by fitting the Lamé model to the measured stress distributions. The distributions of interface shear stress were calculated from averaged photoelastic data, and compared with the results of a dislocation-based model and with a nonlinear finite element model. For a torque loaded specimen there was good agreement between experimental, theoretical and FE data. Another specimen was loaded in torque then unloaded, with results showing the expected features of slippage and residual stress.

J. D. BookerEmail: