Wear Analysis of IC Engine Crankshaft Bearings Depending on the Connecting Rod Length

Considering the crankshaft of an internal combustion (IC) engine to be one of the most loaded components, forces acting on its bearings are very important to be known. Gas forces dominantly affect load of the bearings but inertia forces are not negligible, too. Influence of the connecting rod length on wear of the crankshaft main bearings is studied and analyzed in this paper. To that end, a previously developed computer software was used for theoretical wear diagrams of all main bearings to be obtained. The procedure has been conducted on a six-cylinder engine, for two different values of the connecting rod length. Based on the obtained results a short analysis has been done in order for some general conclusions to be reached.