Simulation of high-pressure washing of engine blocks

M. Carlsson, R. Ask, N. Sandgren, S. Jakobsson, F. Edelvik, L. Hanson. In proceedings from 51st Conference on Manufacturing Systems - CIRP CMS 2018, Stockholm, May 2018, Procedia CIRP, 72:416-419, 2018.

Abstract

Increased purity requirements put high demands on the automotive industry. For the engine blocks this means that metal and fibre particle leftovers from processing have to be removed in high-pressure washing stations. In this paper we investigate the possibility to simulate the process to predict the outcome of a washing program. A software originally developed for spray painting simulations has been utilized. Here, the impact distribution on the surface of the engine block is visualized to support the operators to reduce both the cycle time and dust particle levels. Excellent agreement is obtained with pointwise particle stamp measurements.




Photo credits: Nic McPhee