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How to Estimate the Fatigue Life of Disc Springs?

Jul. 26, 2021

Disc spring has a wide range of applications, small size and excellent performance. All aspects of our lives have been involved in the continuous exploration of applications. However, although disc springs are good, they also have a fatigue life. So how should we estimate the fatigue life of disc springs when using disc springs? Below, please see Belleville Disc Springs Manufacturer for your answer:

The process of estimating the fatigue life of disc springs is iterative. It is impossible to select the fatigue life and then perform follow-up work to meet the disc spring configuration.

Belleville Disc Springs

Belleville Disc Springs

The basic steps for estimating fatigue life are as follows:

1. Determine the application requirements under a small load stress state. The force required to be applied by the disc spring under relatively small compression conditions shall be specified. 

2. Determine the fully loaded state of the disc spring. It can be determined by the stroke length or the additional load applied to the disc spring.

3. Using the above information, select a configuration of disc springs that may work under static loads. Should consider:

The size and series connection of the disc spring so that the small preload of the disc spring is always maintained at about 15%-20% of the larger rated load. If the preload cannot be maintained, the disc spring is likely to fail at the edge of the top inner diameter due to the generation of reverse compressive stress.

The number of disc springs that can accommodate the required stroke. It is recommended that the deflection should not exceed the recommended compression of the disc.

It is recommended that the direction and number of disc springs do not exceed the limit rated load of the disc.

Generally speaking, it is better to use a larger and lighter duty cycle disc spring than a smaller and heavier duty cycle disc spring.

4. Using the selected disc spring size, determine the amount of compression in the two extreme cases. If you only know the magnitude of the force, you need to perform calculations to determine the amount of compression. You can find the corresponding value in the list, or use the formula provided in DINEN 16984 to determine it separately. When using these formulas, the stress and the resulting spring force are determined by the compression of the disc spring. 

5. Determine the critical point of the selected disc spring. Depending on the disc spring used, the critical point may be at the following edges:

Bottom inner diameter point II

Bottom outer diameter point III

In practice, it is expected that stress assessment will be conducted at both points. It is suggested that the stress edge will be the limiting factor in determining the life of the disc spring. 

6. Calculate the stresses at point II and point III for the two compression levels. You can find the corresponding value in the list, but hope to use the fully validated formula provided in DINEN 16984 for calculation.

7. Generally, it is expected to keep 15%-20% of the preload on the disc in a state of less stress, and then reduce the stroke required for each disc spring.

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