fe-safe/Rubber

Durability Analysis Software for Finite Element Models

Introducing the first commercially available software tool for the fatigue analysis of rubber and elastomers. Developers of rubber materials, components and systems increasingly rely on simulation as a routine means to address design issues.The call for simulation of durability is especially strong and durability often dominates development agendas. For metallic components, solutions for fatigue analysis from FEA have existed commercially for many years and have become an essential part of maturing and qualifying design concepts in many industrial sectors. Now a solution for elastomers is also finally available.

fe-safe/Rubber is a:

  • Unique, patented solution for the simulation of fatigue failure in elastomers
  • Purpose-developed tool for elastomers, possessing a formidable validation case
  • Developed by Endurica, leaders in the development of elastomer technology 
fe-safe/Rubber was used to correctly predict the life and location of the fatigue crack initiation site on this rubber bushing
    At a Glance

    Key Facts

    • Friendly user-interface from which to access your finite element results, define duty cycles and specify materials
    • Accurate Material Models - highly nonlinear stress strain curves, Mullin's effect, strain crystallization
    • Temperature Dependence
    • Time Dependence
    • Fatigue characterization scheme designed for efficiency and ease of application. fe-safe/Rubber uses material properties that can be directly obtained via readily available experiments
    • Pre-populated Materials Database, and add proprietary materials to your own database
    • Critical Plane analysis for multiaxial loading:
      • a patented critical plane algorithm that considers the individual loading experiences on each potential failure plane of the material
      • considers the effects of finite straining on the motions of each potential failure plane
      • the energy release rate of a hypothetical defect on each plane is estimated as a function of time
      • the possibility of crack closure is considered for each plane at each instance of time
      • the critical plane is identified as the plane that maximizes the rate of damage accumulation
    • Rainflow counting on a per-plane basis for variable amplitude loading
    • fe-safe/Rubber damage accumulation calculations consider the contribution from each peak and valley

    fe-safe/Rubber is an add-on module to fe-safe, enabling users to include the effects of complex loading histories, multiaxial fatigue, and other advanced capabilities in fe-safe.

    Capabilities

    fe-safe/Rubber estimates the fatigue life of a rubber component. Based on the mechanical duty cycle computed in the finite element analysis and the material properties of the rubber, it computes the number of repeats of the duty cycle that are required to produce a small crack at each location on the component. Fatigue lives are shown as color contours on the FE model, highlighting the critical locations where cracks will initiate.

    fe-safe/Rubber features a patented critical plane algorithm developed specifically for finite straining. This algorithm accurately accounts for the effects of crack closure and multiaxial loading. It also features a Rainflow counting procedure for identifying and accumulating the damaging effects of each event in the duty cycle. fe-safe/Rubber provides a selection of nonlinear material models that enable accurate representation of the rubber component's behavior, and a database of ready-to-use properties for a number of popular elastomer types.

    fe-safe/Rubber analyses the fatigue performance of elastomers under real-world service conditions. Because of their macromolecular structure, elastomers exhibit unique behavior and require specialized analysis methods:

    • Finite Strains
    • Nonlinear Elasticity 
    • Strain Crystallization
    • Time Dependence 
    • Temperature Dependence
    • Ozone Attack
    • Mullins Effect
    • Crack Closure
    • Fatigue Threshold
    • Microstructural Crack Precursor Size
    Benefits

    fe-safe/Rubber is a purpose-developed tool for elastomers, possessing a formidable validation case.

    • Increase confidence at the inception of the design cycle
    • Save the costs of build and break experiments for well-qualified designs
    • Inform your design process with research-validated software
    • Understand your component's failure process from the perspective of its critical features and their localized service experiences
    • Make design decisions that accurately account for material behavior and service environment