Identifying and analyzing lightweight materials for automobile wheel rims using the finite element method

¹ National Institute of Technology, Department of Mechanical Engineering, 795004, Manipur, India
² National Institute of Technology, Department of Computer Science and Engineering, Manipur, India

^* Corresponding author: ericksonmerino@gmail.com

Published online: 7 January 2026

Abstract

This study employed finite element analysis (FEA) to evaluate the mechanical performance of AZ91D magnesium alloy reinforced with 1.5 wt.% titanium diboride (TiB2) nanoparticles, fabricated through stir casting, for potential use in automotive wheel rims. Unlike most rim analyses that focus on aluminium alloys, this work benchmarks a magnesium-titanium diboride (Mg-TiB2) nanocomposite against Al6061 and A356 under identical geometry, loading and boundary conditions. The AZ91D/1.5 wt.% TiB2 composite exhibited a maximum deformation of 0.055 mm, von Mises stress of 10.85 MPa and elastic strain of 2.31 x 10^-4, compared with 0.0374 mm, 10.88 MPa and 1.58 x 10^-4 for Al6061 and 0.0575 mm, 11.05 MPa and 2.51 x 10^-4 for A356. All values were well below the respective yield strengths, confirming safe elastic behaviour. The composite also achieved an approximate 31% reduction in density compared with Al6061, offering potential improvements in acceleration, braking and fuel efficiency. Argon gas was used to minimize oxidation as casting occurred while preheating TiB2 powder before mixing. The stir rate was set so that a sufficient rate of particle dispersion was maintained. The FEA results look promising for lightweight rims, but proper fatigue and impact tests are still needed to confirm real-world performance.