The basic function of friction clutches is to transfer the torque in the conditions of its smooth engagement without vibrations. Hard working conditions under high thermal and mechanical loads, leading to high temperature in the contact area, intense wear, and instability of the coefficient of friction impose restrictive criteria in the design of friction materials. In this paper, the results of experimental research of the effect of ceramic and intermetallic additives to the copper-based material of the friction disc of the clutch on the thermophysical and frictional properties were presented. Next, these properties were incorporated in the proposed contact 3D numerical model of the clutch to carry out computer simulations of the heating process and subsequent cooling. Based on the obtained experimental data and transient temperature changes of the friction and steel discs, the relations between the powder additives, thermophysical properties of the five friction materials, and coefficients of friction, wear, and temperature reached were discussed. Among these, it was found that when working with the lubrication, the largest values of the coefficient of friction 0.068 and wear 13.5 μm km-1 were reached when using the 3 wt.% SiC additive.
Keywords: clutch; finite element analysis; friction material; frictional heating; temperature.