Published online by Cambridge University Press: 31 January 2012
In this research we studied the fracture of a cast iron drum for 3.5 ton trucks, and it seeks to determine the causes that led to a series of cracks in different areas of the part of drum brake during the manufacturing process, casting or machining. The work followed the methodology usually used in failure analysis; we used the following analytical techniques: visual inspection, penetrating liquids, fractography, metallography, chemical analysis and mechanical testing of hardness. The analysis of the automotive part surface is divided into four sections which are the flange, track, belt and covers powders which were evaluated by the above techniques to determine the failure of the piece. Metallography analysis in each section of the piece showed different microstructure on gray cast iron; showing that pieces works with different cooling conditions during manufacture, giving a mechanism of failure-prone fragile.