Comparative Finite Element Analysis of Structural Materials for the development of a Mechanically Adjustable and Ergonomic Seating System

Comparative Finite Element Analysis of Structural Materials for the development of a Mechanically Adjustable and Ergonomic Seating System | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article Comparative Finite Element Analysis of Structural Materials for the development of a Mechanically Adjustable and Ergonomic Seating System Chubiyojo Gideon Hassan, Babatunde Abdulbasit¹, Aseeperi Victor¹, and 2 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-7152269/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract System performance, longevity, and user safety are all greatly impacted by the structural material selection made when designing systems for ergonomic applications. Using a mechanically realistic seating mechanism as a standard case study, this work offers a simulation-driven comparative assessment of engineering materials used in ergonomic structural systems, where comfort, safety, and long-term mechanical reliability are essential. The main objective of this project is to assess the mechanical behaviour of particular engineering materials under practical loading scenarios. Four potential structural materials-cast iron, stainless steel, mild steel, and aluminium alloy were modeled in ANSYS Workbench and put through a consistent human loading process. The meshing, boundary conditions and geometry were applied uniformly throughout all simulations. Von Mises stress, total deformation, elastic strain, and stress intensity are the main mechanical outcomes that were assessed. In order to determine how dependable materials are to cyclic load under long-term use, fatigue life analysis was also carried out, but only for materials having available S-N curves. Simulation results showed that mild steel provides the best mix of stiffness, yield performance and fatigue endurance, whereas aluminium gives a notable weight advantage at the cost of decreased structural stability. In contrast to cast iron, which fared badly in both its deformation and stress requirements, stainless steel demonstrated a moderate level of mechanical integrity, although its cost and fatigue are notable drawbacks. The most ergonomic application was ultimately chosen and ranked after taking availability and cost research into account. This study offers a solid framework for choosing structural materials in the development of ergonomic products that is based on mechanics. For engineers and designers looking to combine affordability, durability, and strength in human-centered design systems, it provides evidence-based advice. Ergonomics Finite Element Analysis (FEA) Material selection Von Mises stress Deformation Fatigue life Elastic strain Structural materials Full Text Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. Cite Share Download PDF Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. 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Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-7152269","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":506480808,"identity":"c180d6ec-e414-4868-91ee-c74231bb7754","order_by":0,"name":"Chubiyojo Gideon Hassan","email":"data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAZAAAAAyAQMAAABI0h/eAAAABlBMVEX///8AAABVwtN+AAAACXBIWXMAAA7EAAAOxAGVKw4bAAABBElEQVRIiWNgGAWjYDACZgYDIHkAwvlQYQMkGRsPEK2FccaZNBDVgF8LA5IWZt6Ww2AGXi3y7swbH3zccUdevv/ws4czG87brW0/DLSlxiYalxbDw2zFhjPPPDPccCPN3ODjjtvJ284kArUcS8ttwKWlmcdMmrftMOMGCQYzyZlnbiebHQBqYWw4jE+L+W+gFvv5/ce/AfWeSzY7/xC/FnlmHjNmoBagyTkg6w7Ymd0gYIsBM1ux5My2w8kbbuSUSc44k5xgdgNoSwIevwADauOHj22HbYEO2ybxocLO3ux8+sMHH2pscNtyAE0gEawyAYdysC3oZtnjUTwKRsEoGAUjFAAAZLBrNKajYFYAAAAASUVORK5CYII=","orcid":"","institution":"Federal University of Technology.","correspondingAuthor":true,"prefix":"","firstName":"Chubiyojo","middleName":"Gideon","lastName":"Hassan","suffix":""},{"id":506480809,"identity":"4a752728-1d5f-461b-b173-d31f2ca7436e","order_by":1,"name":"Babatunde Abdulbasit¹","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Federal University of Technology.","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Babatunde","middleName":"","lastName":"Abdulbasit¹","suffix":""},{"id":506480810,"identity":"5ee26248-f35f-48b4-bac3-be838f5dfe48","order_by":2,"name":"Aseeperi Victor¹","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Federal University of Technology.","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Aseeperi","middleName":"","lastName":"Victor¹","suffix":""},{"id":506480811,"identity":"488f3f26-91a6-4572-b502-ac3c4d7b8199","order_by":3,"name":"Balogun Joshua¹","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Federal University of Technology.","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Balogun","middleName":"","lastName":"Joshua¹","suffix":""},{"id":506480812,"identity":"e90b04b1-5421-4e82-b65d-254cc40aac23","order_by":4,"name":"Nicholas Akhaze Musa¹","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Federal University of Technology.","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Nicholas","middleName":"Akhaze","lastName":"Musa¹","suffix":""}],"badges":[],"createdAt":"2025-07-17 21:23:14","currentVersionCode":1,"declarations":"","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-7152269/v1","doiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-7152269/v1","draftVersion":[],"editorialEvents":[],"editorialNote":"","failedWorkflow":false,"files":[{"id":95196844,"identity":"42057247-e696-45a1-860a-f74fc32a513e","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-11-05 11:38:29","extension":"pdf","order_by":1,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"manuscript-pdf","size":1606447,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"REVISEDMANUSCRIPT.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-7152269/v1_covered_5ffe8f29-e493-499a-a815-4a0efb4181f2.pdf"}],"financialInterests":"No competing interests reported.","formattedTitle":"Comparative Finite Element Analysis of Structural Materials for the development of a Mechanically Adjustable and Ergonomic Seating System","fulltext":[],"fulltextSource":"","fullText":"","funders":[],"hasAdminPriorityOnWorkflow":false,"hasManuscriptDocX":false,"hasOptedInToPreprint":true,"hasPassedJournalQc":"","hasAnyPriority":false,"hideJournal":true,"highlight":"","institution":"","isAcceptedByJournal":false,"isAuthorSuppliedPdf":true,"isDeskRejected":"","isHiddenFromSearch":false,"isInQc":false,"isInWorkflow":false,"isPdf":true,"isPdfUpToDate":true,"isWithdrawnOrRetracted":false,"journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"researchsquare","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"externalIdentity":"","sideBox":"","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"/submission","title":"Research Square","twitterHandle":"researchsquare","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":false,"editorialSystem":"","reportingPortfolio":"","inReviewEnabled":false,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true},"keywords":"Ergonomics, Finite Element Analysis (FEA), Material selection, Von Mises stress, Deformation, Fatigue life, Elastic strain, Structural materials","lastPublishedDoi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-7152269/v1","lastPublishedDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-7152269/v1","license":{"name":"CC BY 4.0","url":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"},"manuscriptAbstract":"\u003cp\u003eSystem performance, longevity, and user safety are all greatly impacted by the structural material selection made when designing systems for ergonomic applications. Using a mechanically realistic seating mechanism as a standard case study, this work offers a simulation-driven comparative assessment of engineering materials used in ergonomic structural systems, where comfort, safety, and long-term mechanical reliability are essential. The main objective of this project is to assess the mechanical behaviour of particular engineering materials under practical loading scenarios.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eFour potential structural materials-cast iron, stainless steel, mild steel, and aluminium alloy were modeled in ANSYS Workbench and put through a consistent human loading process. The meshing, boundary conditions and geometry were applied uniformly throughout all simulations. Von Mises stress, total deformation, elastic strain, and stress intensity are the main mechanical outcomes that were assessed. 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