Rita Ferreira

PhD student with industry (Mahle, Componentes de Motores, SA) in Leaders for Technical Industries Doctoral program of Engineering Design and Advanced Manufacturing focus area from MIT Portugal.

MSc, Mechanical Engineering, University of Minho

Email: rita.mac.ferreira@gmail.com

Author name: R. Ferreira

Current Work

The automotive industry still one of the main trading areas and, especially in the present age, it is extremely focused in a continuous enhancement though. Currently, most of research and development activities are focused in the reduction of costs or environmental impact. Into the internal combustion engine there is parts with complex shape, the most known are the piston and the connecting rod, but there is also others that appear to be so simple that its existence and its role are not perceptible on the first glance, like the piston ring. The first piston ring, that is closer of the combustion gases, is the compression piston ring. Top compression ring is continuously exposed to severe wear conditions, particularly in the running surface. This project will embrace:

• Enhance the tribological performance of heavy-duty diesel top compression ring;
• Study the conventional solutions and the currently applied manufacturing techniques;
• Develop different wear resistant materials to be applied in the compression ring running surface;

Explore the flexibility of new materials (metal matrix composites using hard reinforcements

Publications

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