Modal Analysis and Comparison of Composite Materials and Mild Steel for Dump Truck Chassis Frame

This paper elaborates on the modal analysis and comparison of truck chassis frames made of composite materials (Carbon/Epoxy and E-glass/epoxy) and mild steel using the finite element method (FEM). All the specifications of the vehicle were taken from Bishoftu Automotive Industry, Ethiopia. Weight reduction has been achieved by 79.48% and 66.67% for carbon/epoxy and E-glass/epoxy respectively. The modal analysis shows that the first six natural frequencies of carbon/epoxy, E-glass/epoxy and mild steel are in the ranges from 56.8Hz to 134.8Hz, 27.22Hz to 64.59Hz and 31.97Hz to 75.88Hz respectively. The first two natural frequencies for carbon/epoxy and all-natural frequencies for E-glass epoxy and mild steel are in the engine excitation range. The main disturbance is due to the road excitation which ranges from 0 to 100 Hz, which is even greater than the engine excitation. Carbon/epoxy is the best candidate that some of its natural frequencies are above the engine and road excitations as compared to steel and E-glass epoxy chassis frames. © 2023. Carbon Magics Ltd.