SHAFT DESIGN

Shafts, Axles and Spindles

• A shaft is a rotating member usually of circular cross-section (solid or
hollow), which transmits power and rotational motion.
• Shafts can sometimes be square in cross section.
• An axle, though similar in shape to the shaft, is a stationary machine
element and is used to transmit bending moment only.
• A spindle is a short shaft that imparts motion either to a cutting tool
(e.g. drill press spindles) or to a work piece (e.g. lathe machine
spindles).
Introduction
• The power is delivered to the shaft by a tangential force and the
resultant torque in the shaft permits the power to be transferred to
various machine elements linked to the shaft
• Machine elements such as gears, pulleys, flywheels, clutches, and
sprockets are mounted on the shaft and are used to transmit power
from the driving device (motor or engine) through a machine.
• Press fit, keys, pins and splines are used to attach these machine
elements on the shaft.
• Various types of retaining rings, thrust bearings, grooves and steps in
the shaft are used to take up axial loads.
Shaft Material
• The material used for shafts normally has the following properties
• It should have high strength
• It should have good machinability
• It should have good heat treatment properties
• It should have high wear resistant properties

• The material used for ordinary shafts is carbon steel of grades 40 C 8,

45 C 8 and 50 C 8.
Material Properties
Standard Sizes
• 25 mm to 60 mm with 5 mm steps
• 60 mm to 110 mm with 10 mm steps
• 110 mm to 140 mm with 15 mm steps
• 140 mm to 500 mm with 20 mm steps

• Standard length of shafts are 5m, 6m and 7m

Stresses in Shafts

• Shear stresses due to the transmission of torque (torsional load)

• Bending stresses due to the forces acting on the machine elements

such as gears, pulleys etc. as well as the weight of the shaft itself

• Stresses due to combined torsional and bending loads

Maximum Permissible Working Stresses
• According to ASME code for the design of transmission shafts, the
maximum permissible working stress in tension or compression
maybe taken as
• 112 MPa for shafts without allowance for keyways
• 84 MPa for shafts with allowance for keyways
• The permissible tensile strength maybe taken as 60% of the elastic
limit in tension but not more than 36% of the ultimate tensile
strength
In other words
• The maximum permissible shear stress maybe taken as
• 56 Mpa for shafts without allowance for keyways
• 42 Mpa for shafts with allowance for keyways

• The permissible shear stress maybe taken as 30% of the elastic limit in
tension but not more than 18% of the ultimate tensile strength
In other words
Shafts Subjected to Twisting Moment Only
• When the shaft is subjected to twisting moment (or torque) only then
the diameter of the shaft may be obtained by the torsion equation

• Where T = Twisting moment acting on the shaft

J = Polar moment of inertia
=Torsional shear stress
r = Distance from neutral axis to the outer most fiber
Problem 1
• A solid shaft rotating at 200 rpm is to transmit 20KW. The shaft may
be assumed to be made of mild steel with an allowable sheer stress
of 42 MPa. Determine the diameter of the shaft neglecting the
bending moment on the shaft.
Problem 2
• Find the diameter of a solid steel shaft to transmit 20 KW at 200 rpm.
The ultimate sheer stress of the steel maybe taken as 350 MPa and a
factor of safety as 8. If a hollow shaft is to be used instead of the solid
shaft, find the inside and outside diameter when the ratio of inside to
outside diameters is 0.5.
Shafts Subjected to Bending Moment Only
• Bending Equation

• Where M = Bending Moment

I = Moment of inertia
=Bending stress
y = Distance from neutral axis to the outer most fiber
Problem 3
• A pair of wheels of a railway wagon carries a load of 50 KN on each
axle box, acting at a distance of 100 mm outside the wheel base. The
gauge of the rails is 1.4 m. Find the diameter of the axle between the
wheels, if the stress is not to exceed 100 MPa.
Shafts Subjected to Combined Twisting and
Bending Moment
• The shaft must be designed on the basis of the two moments
simultaneously

• According to maximum shear stress theory

By limiting the maximum shear stress equal to the allowable shear stress,
the above equation can be written as
• According to maximum normal stress theory

By limiting the maximum normal stress equal to the allowable bending

stress, the above equation can be written as
Problem 4
• A solid circular shaft is subjected to a bending moment of 3000 N-m
and a torque of 10,000 N-m. The shaft is made of 45 C 8 steel having
ultimate tensile stress of 700 MPa and an ultimate sheer stress of 500
MPa. Assuming a factor as safety of 6, determine the diameter of the
shaft.
Problem 5
• A shaft made of mild steel is required to transmit 100 KW at 300 rpm.
The supported length of the shaft is 3m. It carries two pulleys each
carrying 1500 N supported at a distance of 1m from the ends
respectively. Assuming a safe value of shear stress as 60 MPa,
determine the diameter of the shaft.
Problem 6
• A shaft is driven by means of a motor placed vertically below it. The
pulley on the shaft is 1.5m in diameter and has belt tensions 5.4 KN
and 1.8 KN on the tight and slack side of the belt. Both these tensions
maybe assumed to be vertical. The distance of the pulley to the
bearing being 400mm, determine the diameter of the shaft. Assume
maximum allowable shear stress of 42 MPa.
Problem 7
• A shaft is supported by two bearing placed 1m apart. A 600mm dia
pulley is mounted at a distance of 300mm to the right of the left hand
bearing and this drives a pulley directly below it with the help of a
belt having maximum tension of 2.25 KN. Another pulley 400mm dia
is placed 200mm to the left of the right hand bearing and is driven
with the help of electric motor and belt which is placed horizontally
to the right. The angle of contact for both the pulleys is 1800 and
µ=0.24. Determine the suitable diameter for a solid shaft, allowing
working stress of 63 MPa in tension and 42 MPa in shear for the
material. Assume the torque on one pulley is equal to the one on the
other pulley.
Shafts Subjected to Fluctuating Loads
• In practice, the shafts are subjected to fluctuating torque and bending
moments
• To account for the fluctuating loads, the combined shock and fatigue
factors must be taken into account for the twisting and bending
moments

• Km = Combined shock and fatigue factor for bending

• Kt = Combined shock and fatigue factor for torsion
Recommended Values for Km and Kt
Problem 8
• A mild steel shaft transmits 20 KW at 200 rpm. It carries a load of 1
KN at 1m from the left hand bearing and is simply supported between
the bearings 2.5m apart. Determine the size of the shaft if the
allowable shear stress is 42 MPa and the maximum tensile or
compressive stress is not to exceed 56 MPa. What size of the shaft
will be required if it is subjected to gradually applied loads?
Problem 9
• Design a shaft to transmit power from an electric motor to a lathe
head stock through a pulley by means of a belt drive. The pulley
weighs 200 N and is located at 300mm from the center of the
bearing. The diameter of the pulley is 200mm and the maximum
power transmitted is 1 KW at 120 rpm. The angle of lap of he belt is
1800 and the coefficient of friction is 0.3. The shock and fatigue factor
for bending and twisting are 1.5 and 2.0 respectively. The allowable
shear stress in the shaft maybe taken as 35 MPa.
Design on the basis of Rigidity
• Torsional rigidity is important in camshafts in internal combustion
engines where the timing of the valves can be affected if there is
torsional deflection in the shaft

• = Torsional Deflection or angle of twist in radians

• T = Torque on the shaft
• J = Polar moment of inertia
• G = Modulus of rigidity of the material
• L = Length of the shaft
Problem 10
• A steel shaft transmits 4 KW at 800 rpm. The angular deflection
should not exceed 0.250 per meter of the shaft. If the modulus of
rigidity for the material of the shaft is 84 GPa, find the diameter of
the shaft and the shear stress induced in the shaft.