MECH1280 Engineering Materials Assignment Sample

1. Material Considerations, List factors affecting material selection

In the process of choosing the material that has to be used in constructing a go-kart track safety barrier, three significant elements have to be taken into account:

Mechanical Strength – It should have the ability to take impacts of force up to 1 kN and also take the energy from the kart during a collision without cracking (Lendvai et al. 2025).

Flexibility and Impact Resistance – the barrier must, under load, be capable of bending or stretching but should return to its original shape.

Durability – The material should have environmental factors that may be required.

Cost-Effectiveness – The material must be able to give optimal performance at a reasonable price.

Weight & Ease of Installation – Ease of installation and transportation since lighter equipment is less expensive.

Company Specifications:

The barrier must absorb impact energy and resist loads up to 1 kN.

Impact speed limit: 10 km/h.

Maximum height: 0.5 m, length: 1 m.

Materials must balance strength, cost, and safety.

2. Consideration of Methods

The three-point bend test is the right test to undertake this experiment as it provides information on the flexural strength, stiffness, and failure modes of the materials used in the safety barrier (Keshavarzi et al. 2022).

Why is it Suitable?

• Measuring Bending Strength and Stiffness: It shows how much the material can withstand bending under force, which is an essential characteristic of a safety barrier.
• Replicates Real-World Loading: By crashing the go-kart, the barrier will be subjected to bending force similar to the test condition, and therefore, the result has a straight application.
• Identifies Failure Points & Flexibility: The test determines the yield and the failure strength to prevent the material from failure under impact loads.

Alternative Tests

• Impact Test – measures the impact on energy absorption as it directly impacts the equipment but is more of a specialized means.
• Compression Test – assesses the composite material's general strength without replicating its bending characteristics (Narimani et al. 2023).

Therefore, the three-point bend test is the best method to study the desired mechanical characteristics of the materials.

3. Experimental Results

Material	Thickness (d) mm	Breadth (b) mm	Length between supports (L) mm	Failure Load (N)	Displacement at Max Failure Load (mm)	Fracture Description
MDF	6	20	100	1373.16	6.38356	Brittle failure with sudden fracture, splitting along fiber direction.
Plywood	8	25	120	4146	6.65012	Gradual failure with multiple cracks forming before breaking. Some delamination was observed.
Carbon Fibre	4	15	110	583.54	5.00825	Sudden catastrophic failure with sharp fracture. Fibers detached at the failure zone.

4. Total Load

Step 1: Understand the Scaling Concept

In three-point bending test, the failure load F is referred to a sample of definite thickness thickness (d), width(b) and length between the supports (L)(Birro et al. 2021).

Step 2: Conclusion

Material	Failure Load (MN)
MDF	5.72 MN
Plywood	10.37 MN
Carbon Fibre	4.86 MN

From the point of view of the failure load, plywood is the most effective material for the barrier (Karki et al. 2022).

Carbon Fibre and MDF have the lowest failure load, meaning it may not be suitable for absorbing strong impacts.

Thus, Plywood is the best choice based on failure load capacity.

5. Material Selection

From the outcomes of three-point bend tests, it can be identified that Plywood is the best material for the go-kart track safety barrier. The highest failure load of 10.37 MN means that it possesses the ability to bear larger impact loads about the breaking limit. Also, Plywood has the highest flexural strength of 62.19 MPa hence, it is the most appropriate for high strength and is still more flexible (Wang et al. 2024).

The other important factor is energy absorption, which refers to the amount of energy that the particular material can withstand before breaking. Plywood had various failures where several small cracks developed before reaching the final fracturing point; this is advantageous for safety barriers. This enables the distributed load to be spread over some time so that the concentration of the impact force in one specific area is avoided for the sake of the safety of the go-kart drivers.

From the aspect of the cost point of view, Plywood is cheaper than Carbon Fibre, yet it has a higher strength than MDF. It also has improved resistance to deterioration in an outdoor environment, therefore, it is more economical and reliable for the company (Hagel et al. 2021).

However, despite its light weight, Carbon Fibre has low impact strength and will sustain serious failure at the most unexpected time. But as much as MDF has its advantages, it is also too brittle to work with since it can easily split apart. Plywood has the best combination of strength, versatility and durability, and it is also rather inexpensive as compared to other types of barriers, which makes this type most appropriate for constructing the go-kart barrier.

6. Discussion

A material to consider

Although Plywood is the most suitable material out of all the above tests, there are some other materials which also could have been considered for the construction of safety barrier of the go-kart track based on strength, impact toughness and cost effectiveness.

High-Density Polyethylene (HDPE)

Why?

It is a high-density plastic, specifically, it exhibits high density, high strength, impact strength and flexibility (Zhang et al. 2022). It does not just crack easily when something heavy falls on any part of it, which makes it suitable for cushioning impacts.

Pros:

Water repellent, has low density, and is safe compared to wood.

Cons:

It is costlier than plywood and is prone to suffer deformation when an impact is applied to its surface.

Rubberized Barriers (Recycled Tire Rubber)

Why?

Among the advantages of rubber is that it has a very high energy absorption factor; it does not crack under impact (Hassan and Rodrigue, 2024). It has its application in race tracks to provide some form of protection from the impacts.

• Pros: Very effective at bringing high durability, suited for energy absorption, and reduces the occurrence of critical staking.
• Cons: Heavy and costly to install.

Fiberglass Panels

Why?

Fiberglass is a non-metal material, but it has relatively high density, good flexural strength and moderate impact strength.

• Pros: Corrosion-resistant and weatherproof.
• Cons: Next to plywood, the cost of this material is slightly higher, and it is very easy to crack when one drops it.

Aluminum Panels with Foam Core

Why?

Aluminum is a material that is strong enough to provide necessary rigidity, but the foam, core part is ideal in terms of its ability to dissipate energy in case of an impact.

• Pros: Lightweight, durable, and weather-resistant.
• Cons: Expensive and requires specialized installation.

Final Recommendation

Looking at the cost factor, Plywood will be the most suitable one. However, for increased safety, HDPE or Rubber barriers would be preferable as they would be more durable and historically can hold the impact easily.

B the most suitable material

Though carrying out the three-point bend test highlighted information on the flexural strength and failure point, other tests could be conducted to break more details on impact, durability and performance.

Impact Test (Charpy or Izod Test)

Why?

This test identifies how much energy is absorbed in a specific impact, which imitates crashes in real conditions (Sunarno and Zainuddin, 2023).

What it reveals:

If the material shatters or absorbs energy gradually, the chances of its safety can be pinned on it in the event of a crash.

Best for:

Comparing Plywood vs. HDPE vs. Carbon Fibre.

Fatigue Test

Why?

This test determines the barrier can endure successive impacts as would be expected of a barrier that will be used for an indefinite amount of time.

What it reveals:

If the material is getting weaken over time.

Best for:

Identifying long-term durability.

Weathering & Moisture Absorption Test

Why?

This barrier is going to be subjected to rain, effects of ultra violet light and humidity.

What it reveals:

If the covered material distorts, deteriorates or deteriorates at some stage.

Best for:

Choosing types of Plywood coatings or using its replacements like High density polyethylene.

Final Suggestion:

In case of impact absorption being the primary area of focus, an Impact Test should be carried out. These two tests are vital when the long-term endurance of the material is a factor of concern.

Reference materials and sample papers are provided to clarify assignment structure and key learning outcomes. Through our Assignment Help UK, guidance is offered while maintaining originality and ethical academic practice. The MECH1280 Engineering Materials Assignment Sample demonstrates practical application of material selection, mechanical testing, and performance evaluation.

References

Journals

• Birro, T.V., Aufray, M., Paroissien, E. and Lachaud, F., 2021. Assessment of interface failure behaviour for brittle adhesive using the three-point bending test. International Journal of Adhesion and Adhesives, 110, p.102891.
• Hagel, S., Joy, J., Cicala, G. and Saake, B., 2021. Recycling of waste MDF by steam refining: Evaluation of fiber and paper strength properties. Waste and Biomass Valorization, pp.1-13.
• Hassan, M.R. and Rodrigue, D., 2024. Application of Waste Tire in Construction: A Road towards Sustainability and Circular Economy. Sustainability, 16(9), p.3852.
• Karki, D., Al-Hunaity, S., Far, H. and Saleh, A., 2022, June. Composite connections between CFS beams and plywood panels for flooring systems: Testing and analysis. In Structures (Vol. 40, pp. 771-785). Elsevier.
• Keshavarzi, M.M., Gilaki, M. and Sahraei, E., 2022. Characterization of in-situ material properties of pouch lithium-ion batteries in tension from three-point bending tests. International Journal of Mechanical Sciences, 219, p.107090.
• Lendvai, L., Fekete, I., Rigotti, D. and Pegoretti, A., 2025. Experimental study on the effect of filament-extrusion rate on the structural, mechanical and thermal properties of material extrusion 3D-printed polylactic acid (PLA) products. Progress in Additive Manufacturing, 10(1), pp.619-629.
• Narimani, S., Davarpanah, S.M., Kovács, L. and Vásárhelyi, B., 2023. Variation of Elastic Stiffness Parameters of Granitic Rock during Loading in Uniaxial Compressive Test. Applied Mechanics, 4(2), pp.445-459.
• Sunarno, S. and Zainuddin, Z., 2023. Impact Test Analysis on Steel Metal Materials and Aluminum. Journal of Social Research, 2(7), pp.2378-2392.
• Wang, Y., Wang, T., Crocetti, R. and Wålinder, M., 2024. Effect of moisture on the edgewise flexural properties of acetylated and unmodified birch plywood: a comparison of strength, stiffness and brittleness properties. European Journal of Wood and Wood Products, 82(2), pp.341-355.
• Zhang, J., Hirschberg, V. and Rodrigue, D., 2022. Blending recycled high-density polyethylene HDPE (rHDPE) with virgin (vHDPE) as an effective approach to improve the mechanical properties. Recycling, 8(1), p.2.