Analysis of Contact Stresses and MLS Cylinder Head Gasket Behavior Using Finite Element Method

Multi-layer steel (MLS) cylinder head gaskets (CHG) are widely used to seal the engine cylinder head. Therefore, The interaction between the engine cylinder head, cylinder block and the cylinder head gasket is very important from technical point of view. To avoid the escaping gas from the engine affecting the overall performance of the engine during operation, both the pre-stressing force of the bolts as well as the gasket designare critical factors in enhancing the efficiency of the sealing of the gasket.In this paper the finite element method (FEM) is used to investigate the interaction between the cylinder head and the cylinder block. Further more the distribution of the contact pressure on the gasket and the cylinder head and the cylinder block stresses at different condition, such as cold assembly, hot assembly, cold start, firing, engine cooling down to 20°(c) and -25°(c) are calculated. The validation are performed using Fuji papertest and thermal survey test. The results revealed that the sealing pressure on the gasket strongly depends on the pre-stressing force of the bolts. However, the location of minimum contact pressure on the gasket is changed by considering the thermal loading.