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Recent trends to downsize engines have resulted in lighter weight and greater compactness. At the same time, however, power density has increased due to the addition of turbocharger and other such means to supplement engine power and torque, and this has increased the thermal and mechanical load. In this kind of environment, corrosion of the copper alloy bushing (piston pin bushing) that is press-fitted in the small end of the connecting rod becomes an issue. The material used in automobile bearings, of which the bushing is a typical example, is known to undergo sulfidation corrosion through reaction with an extreme-pressure additive Zinc Dialkyldithiophosphate (ZnDTP) in the lubricating oil. However, that reaction path has not been clarified. The purpose of the present research, therefore, is to clarify the reaction path of ZnDTP and copper in an actual engine environment.

During engine durability tests (peak power, constant engine speed) conducted in the development process, it has been the case that excessive wear has occurred to the upper surfaces of the piston top ring grooves, despite the fact that contact pressure due to combustion pressure has been low. This has resulted in considerable increases in development man-hours. The research discussed in this paper therefore set out to conduct a factor analysis of wear on the upper surfaces of piston top ring grooves in order to elucidate the wear mechanism in petrol engine for passenger car. This paper will discuss the test method employed in the factor analysis and the mechanism of wear demonstrated by the analysis. First, the form of the wear was analyzed, and rig test methods able to reproduce wear were developed. With regard to the form of wear, both sliding and impact modes were observed. Sensitivity analyses for each form of wear were conducted using rig tests.