Burnout mechanism of a piston made of high-silicon aluminum alloy for internal combustion engines

The relevance of this study is driven by the need to enhance the reliability and durability of internal combustion engine pistons operating under extreme conditions of high temperature, pressure, and mechanical loads. Piston burn-through is one of the most severe problems, leading to reduced engine efficiency and costly repairs. This article investigates the mechanism of burn-through in pistons made of the high-silicon aluminum alloy M244 (according to the Mahle classification), used in two-stroke engines. The combination of metallographic analysis and 3D modeling established the relationship between the temperature field in the piston crown and the formation of a porous structure that leads to material failure. It has been established that burn-through is caused by the nucleation and growth of pores, predominantly in the near-surface zone of the piston crown. It is demonstrated that material porosity depends on temperature and is described by a linear function. A correlation between pore size and silicon inclusion dimensions was identified, suggesting that pore formation is associated with thermomechanical effects at the phase/inclusion interfaces. A model of burn-through was developed, accounting for the material’s thermal and structural state. This work holds practical significance for improving the thermal stability of pistons and preventing their failure during operation.
EDN: TWEULP, https://elibrary/tweulp

References

[1] Vitkovskiy S.L. Destruction of internal combustion engine piston elements. Trudy Bratskogo gosudarstvennogo universiteta. Ser. Estestvennye i inzhenernye nauki, 2014, vol. 1, pp. 163–167. (In Russ.).

[2] Belov V.P., Apelinskiy D.V., Bezhenar V.N. Experimental assessment of the temperature state of tractor diesel pistons. Traktory i selkhozmashiny [Tractors and Agricultural Machinery], 2022, vol. 89, no. 2, pp. 111–120, doi: https://doi.org/10.17816/0321-4443-105717 (in Russ.).

[3] Nikitin I.V. To a question of an estimation of the validity to flights of engines of ultralight air courts. Nauchnyy vestnik MGTU GA [Civil Aviation High Technologies], 2005, no. 85, pp. 143–150. (In Russ.).

[4] Dudareva N.Yu., Kishalov A.E., Kalshchikov R.V. et al. Development of the simulation technique of the piston heat conditions of the internal-combustion engine. Vestnik UGATU, 2019, no. 3, pp. 46–54. (In Russ.).

[5] Petrov V.I., Smirnov A.G. Features of thermal processes during piston burnout in an internal combustion engine. Energetika i teplotekhnika, 2011, no. 3, pp. 28–33. (In Russ.).

[6] Vorobyev V.Yu. Study of piston burnout in a diesel engine. Dvigateli vnutrennego sgoraniya, 2013, no. 2, pp. 53–58. (In Russ.).

[7] Kozlov D.M., Petrov N.I. Effect of piston burnout on the performance characteristics of a diesel engine. Dvigateli vnutrennego sgoraniya, 2015, no. 4, pp. 22–27. (In Russ.).

[8] Matsulevich M.A., Lomakina N.M., Lomakin G.V. Evaluation of thermal and mechanical load of piston in turbocharged gasoline engine. Transport Urala [Transport of the Urals], 2015, no. 4, pp. 78–80, doi: https://doi.org/10.20291/1815-9400-2015-4-78-80 (in Russ.).

[9] Makarov A.R., Smirnov S.V., Osokin S.V. et al. Engineering materials for pistons of internal combustion engines. Izvestiya MGTU MAMI, 2013, vol. 1, no. 1, pp. 118–122. (In Russ.).

[10] Zarenbin V.G., Chaynov N.D., Russinkovskiy S.Yu. et al. Modelirovanie teplovogo sostoyaniya i raschet na zaedanie par treniya bazovykh teplonapryazhennykh detaley porshnevykh dvigateley [Modeling of the thermal state and calculation of the friction pairs of the basic heat-stressed parts of piston engines]. Moscow, Infra-M Publ., 2024. 202 s. doi: https://doi.org/10.12737/2083543 (in Russ.).

[11] Kazantsev I.A., Bychkov V.I., Kazantsev A.I. Impact of thermophysical properties of piston on the operational characteristics of internal combustion engines. Izvestiya vysshikh uchebnykh zavedeniy. Povolzhskiy region [University Proceedings. Volga Region. Technical Sciences], 2018, no. 2, pp. 107–118, doi: https://doi.org/10.21685/2072-3059-2018-2-10 (in Russ.).

[12] Mukaseev A.V. Povyshenie effektivnosti sudovykh dizeley primeneniem kombinirovannogo metoda vosstanovleniya porshney iz alyuminievykh splavov. Diss. kand. tekh. nauk [Improving the efficiency of marine diesel engines using a combined method of restoring pistons from aluminum alloys. Kand. tech. sci. diss.]. Novosibirsk, 2004. 108 p. (In Russ.).

[13] Al-Bdeyri M.Kh., Krasilnikov V.V., Sergeev S.V. Modified quasi-stationary method for studying changes in transition temperatures of diesel engine pistons coated with heat-shielding materials. Vestnik Irkutskogo gosudarstvennogo tekhnicheskogo universiteta [Proceedings of Irkutsk State Technical University], 2020, vol. 24, no. 5, pp. 954–965, doi: https://doi.org/10.21285/1814-3520-2020-5-954-965 (In Russ.).

[14] Dudareva N.Yu., Kalshchikov R.V., Dombrovskiy O.P. et al. Experimentally studied thermal piston-head state of the internal-combustion engine with a thermal layer formed by micro-arc oxidation method. Nauka i obrazovanie. MGTU im. N.E. Baumana [Science and Education of the Bauman MSTU], 2015, no. 5. EDN: UBXQRR (in Russ.).

[15] Sobachkin A.V., Loginova M.V., Yakovlev V.I. et al. Effect of gamma irradiation on the structural and phase characteristics of products obtained by SPS sintering. Polzunovskiy vestnik, 2020, no. 3, pp. 88–92, doi: https://doi.org/10.25712/ASTU.2072-8921.2020.03.016 (In Russ.).

[16] Valeev R.S., Enikeev R.D., Sakulin R.Yu. Micro-weld oxidation as a means to prevent burnout of 2-stroke engine piston. Dvigatelestroenie [Engines Construction], 2020, vol. 280, no. 2, pp. 30–34. (In Russ.).

[17] Snegokhod RM Vector 551i [Snowmobile RM Vector 551i]. go-rm.ru: website. URL: https://go-rm.ru/rm_vector_551i_data.html (accessed: 22.07.2025). (In Russ.).

[18] Rastrovyy elektronnyy mikroskop JSM-6490LV [Scanning electron microscope JSM-6490LV]. uust.ru: website. URL: https://uust.ru/eik/units/jsm-6490lv/ (accessed: 22.07.2025). (In Russ.).

[19] Zilbergleyt M.A., Temruk V.I. Package ImageJ application for image processing obtained scanning electronic microscopy (paper analysis). Polimernye materialy i tekhnologii [Polymer Materials and Technologies], 2017, vol. 3, no. 1, pp. 71–74, doi: https://pmt.mpri.org.by/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/zilbergleit.pdf (in Russ.).

[20] Dudareva N.Yu., Zagayko S.A. Samouchitel SolidWorks 2010 [SolidWorks 2010 self-study guide]. Sankt-Peterburg, BKhV-Peterburg Publ., 2011. 416 p. (In Russ.).

[21] Pistons and engine testing. Springer, 2016. 295 p.

[22] Dudareva N.Yu., Kolomeychenko A.V., Kisel Yu.E. The efficiency of thermal protection of ICE pistons with the micro-arc oxidation. Traktory i selkhozmashiny [Tractors and Agricultural Machinery], 2024, vol. 91, no. 1, pp. 101–112, doi: https://doi.org/10.17816/0321-4443-586629 (in Russ.).

[23] Aptukov V.N., Ilyushchenko P.N., Fonarev A.V. Modeling of crack formation in materials under explosion loads. Vychislitelnaya mekhanika sploshnykh sred [Computational Continuum Mechanics], 2010, vol. 3, no. 1, pp. 5–12. (In Russ.).

[24] Bugaro N.G. Modeling of crack formation in materials under explosion loads. Vychislitelnaya mekhanika sploshnykh sred [Computational Continuum Mechanics], 2008, vol. 1, no. 4, pp. 5–20. (In Russ.).