铝硅合金软接触电磁铸造成型中耦合场计算研究

从电磁场的基本原理出发,利用ANSYS有限元软件建立铝硅合金半固态电磁铸造的磁流耦合场模型,通过数值模拟计算磁场对流场和温度场的影响。结果表明,电磁场频率直接决定流场及温度场的分布,高频电磁场感应加热效果明显、洛伦兹力主要表现为电磁压力,有利于电磁铸造约束成型。

大型薄壁铝合金铸件磁流铸造技术

介绍了磁流体力学的发展、应用过程，通过流动磁场与熔融金属的相互作用揭示了磁流铸造的原理；在国内外磁流铸造研究应用的基础上，总结了磁流铸造的技术特点；在与压铸比较的基础上，讨论了磁流铸造的主要优点及其应用范围和前景。

磁流铸造条件下A357合金充型能力的试验研究

为了解决大型薄壁铸件的充型问题，利用大型磁流铸造设备对流动磁场作用下的Ａ３５７合金的充型能力进行了试验研究，结果表明：在相同的磁场作用强度下厚壁铸件比薄壁铸件的充型能力好；当铸件的壁厚相同时，在磁场的作用下，合金的充型能力比无磁时提高５０％。

实型(消失模)铸造与磁型铸造

一、实型铸造 实型铸造(FULL mould process)简称F法,也称气化模铸造(Lost foam casting process)或消失模铸造(Evaporutiue casting process)简称EPC法。 1.实型铸造的基本工艺过程(见图1) 用泡沫塑料制作模样及浇冒口系统,并把它们粘结成一个整体,再刷上涂料埋入型砂中,震动造型后不起模即可进行浇注。由于泡沫塑料模样在高温下可以全部燃烧失变成气体,液态金属可取代塑料模样的位置,冷却凝固后成为铸件。

磁型铸造磁场强度对A356合金凝固组织的影响

利用磁型铸造成形工艺,将恒定电流产生的磁场作用于铸造铝合金A356。利用光学显微镜研究了磁场强度对合金凝固组织的影响,用Image-Pro Plus图像分析软件对α-Al初晶的二次枝晶臂间距、共晶组织含量以及共晶硅的长、宽和长宽比进行统计分析。结果表明:磁场强度由132 Gs增加至192 Gs时,熔断的二次枝晶数量逐渐增加,磁场强度为192 Gs时,熔断的二次枝晶臂数量达到最多,且呈现蔷薇状的形貌;二次枝晶臂间距逐渐减小,最小的二次枝晶臂间距为38.12μm;共晶组织含量同样呈降低趋势;而随着磁场强度的增加,共晶硅粒子的长、宽均呈现增长的趋势,其长宽比由2.63增至5.88。

磁型铸造生产线

我车间自1975年5月开始采用磁型铸造法生产铸钢件,四年多来,经过工艺试验,批量生产,发展到目前巳生产60多个品种、30多万个成品铸件的规模。其中有37个品种已取代了砂型,年产量达10万余件。随着品种的增加和产量的扩大,原设计建造的双排立式循环生产线,已不能满足生产的需要。所以,我们针对原生产线暴露出来的问题,于1978年10月进行了改进设计,改建成水平布置的封闭循环的生产线(图1)。

Effect of minor Sc and Zr addition on microstructure and properties of ultra-high strength aluminum alloy

The Al-9Zn-2.8Mg-2.5Cu-xZr-ySc alloys （x=0, 0.15%, 0.15%; y=0, 0.05%, 0.15%）, produced by low-frequent electromagnetic casting technology, were subjected to homogenization treatment, hot extrusion, solution and aging treatment. The effects of minor Sc and Zr addition on microstructure, recrystallization and properties of alloys were studied by optical microscopy （OM）, scanning electron microscopy （SEM） and transmission electron microscopy （TEM）. The results show that Sc and Zr addition can refine grains of the as-cast alloy by precipitation of primary Al3（Sc,Zr） particles formed during solidification as heterogeneous nuclei. Secondary Al3（Sc,Zr） precipitates formed during homogenization treatment strongly pin the movement of dislocation and subgrain boundaries, which can effectively inhibit the alloys recrystallization. Compared with the alloy without Sc and Zr addition, the Al-Zn-Mg-Cu-Zr alloy with 0.05%Sc and 0.15%Zr shows the increase in tensile strength and yield strength by 172 MPa and 218 MPa, respectively. Strengthening comes from the contributions of precipitation, substructure and grain refining.

Heat transfer behavior of AZ80-1%Y alloy during low-frequency electromagnetic casting

Heat transfer behaviors of AZ80?1%Y alloy during low frequency electromagnetic casting (LFEC) and direct chilling casting were studied by in-situ temperature measurement. The results demonstrated that the low frequency electromagnetic field (EM) caused forced convection in the melt during LFEC. The forced convection led to uniform solidification velocity and temperature field. EM frequency, excitation current intensity and casting temperature could control the heat transfer behavior. The forced convection could improve the microstructure and degrade the difference in microstructure between the edge and center of billet. Appropriate parameters of low frequency EM for casting Mg alloy are 20 Hz of frequency and 60 A of electric current intensity.

Effect of electromagnetic field on microstructure and macrosegregation of flat ingot of 2524 aluminium alloy

Low frequency electromagnetic casting （LFEC） process with the application of an induction coil outside the conventional direct chill （DC） casting mould was used to prepare the flat ingot of 2524 alloy and the effect of electromagnetic field on the microstructure and macrosegregation of this alloy was systematically studied. The results show that the fiat ingot prepared by the LFEC process has a finer and more uniform as-cast microstructure and the grain morphology is transformed from dendrite and rosette-like to equiaxed structure. The LFEC process also shows a significant effect on macrosegregation, and with the application of electromagnetic field during casting process, the segregation in the centre of the ingot is obviously reduced. The mechanism of these effects was also discussed.

Production of super-high strength aluminum alloy billets by low frequency electromagnetic casting

The effects of low frequency electromagnetic field on the macro-physical fields in the semi-continuous casting process of aluminum alloys and the microstructure and crack in the billets were studied and analyzed by the numerical and experimental methods.Comparison of the results for the macro-physical fields in the low frequency electromagnetic casting（LFEC） process with the conventional DC casting process indicates the following characters due to the application of electromagnetic field：an entirely changed direction and remarkably increased velocity of melt flow;a uniform distribution and a decreased gradient of temperature;elevated isothermal lines;a reduced sump depth;decreased stress and plastic deformation.Further,the microstructure of the billets is refined remarkably and the crack in the billets is eliminated in LFEC process because of modification of the macro-physical fields induced by the application of low frequency electromagnetic field.

As-cast structure and tensile properties of AZ80 magnesium alloy DC cast with low-voltage pulsed magnetic field

The effects of a low-voltage pulsed magnetic field on the solidified structure and mechanical properties of DC casting AZ80 magnesium alloy were investigated.The results showed that the solidified structure of the DC casting AZ80 magnesium alloy was refined obviously by the low-voltage pulsed magnetic field and significant grain refinement in the DC casting ingot of AZ80 magnesium alloy was achieved.Meanwhile,the morphology of the dentritic in the DC casting ingot was transformed from coarse dentritic to fine rosette with the application of low-voltage pulsed magnetic field.The ability of deformation of the ingot was enhanced and especially the plasticity of the ingot center after upsetting was improved greatly by more than 80%after deformation.

New method of direct chill casting of Al-6Si-3Cu-Mg semisolid billet by annulus electromagnetic stirring

The electromagnetic direct chill （EMDC） casting process is a welt-established production route for aluminum alloy ingot, however, the skin effect restricts the casting diameter. In order to avoid this problem, annulus electromagnetic direct chill （A-EMDC） casting process has been developed. A three-dimension finite element computational model of A-EMDC casting process was established by using ANSYS Magnetic-Nodal programs and FLOTRAN CFD programs. Microstruetures of A-EMDC casting semi-solid Al-6Si-3Cu-Mg alloy billets were investigated. Two pairs of vortexes occur within the crystallizer with opposite direction in A-EMDC. The annulus gap is advantageous to increasing circulate flow, reducing the temperature gradient as well as shallowing liquid sump depth. The microstructure obtained by A-EMDC is globular or rosette-like, and the microstructure is homogeneous in the billet.

DC casting of light alloys under magnetic fields

The working principle of LFEC（Low frequency electromagnetic casting） process developed in Northeastern University, China was introduced and the metallurgical results of LFEC were discussed according to the casting practices. The low frequency field around the mold produces Lorenz force, which can be divided into two parts： one is the potential force which will be balanced by a pressure gradient of the liquid and results in the formation of a convex surface meniscus and improves the surface quality; the other is the rotary force which stirs the liquid in the mold to refine the microstructures and homogenize the distribution of alloying elements. LFEC can refine microstructures remarkably, improve surface quality of the ingots, depress macrosegregation and eliminate cracks. Some new technologies, such as horizontal direct chill casting under low-frequency electromagnetic field （HLEC）, DC casting of hollow billets under electromagnetic fields （HBEC）, electromagnetic modifying of hypereutectic A1-Si alloys（EMM）, air film casting under static magnetic field （AFCM）, and multi-ingots casting under low-frequency magnetic field （MLFEC） were developed based on LFEC.

Electromagnetic characteristics of cold crucible in an induction coil for melting purpose

The electromagnetic characteristics of cold wall crucible, especially its field strength and distribution, were evaluated experimentally, in which the effects of parameters as input power and position were also discussed. The results showed that the magnetic induction intensity （B） increased with the increase of the input power. Along the radial direction inside the cold crucible, B is the strongest at the edges, and gradually attenu- ated from the edges to the center. While along the axial direction, B is the strongest at the center, and gradually attenuated from the center to the edges. Corresponding with the calculation on electromagnetic field distribution inside the coil without cold crucible, the effects of cold crucible on the electromagnetic field have been reduced by comparing measured and calculated results. However, it was also found that the value of B strength will be decreased to about 50% of its original proposition without cold crucible due to the electromagnetic shielding effect, which will be the understanding for mehing turns in cold crucible.

Optimization of mechanical properties using D-optimal factorial design of experiment: Electromagnetic stir casting process of A357-SiC nanocomposite

Electromagnetic stir casting process of A357-Si C nanocomposite was discussed using the D-optimal design of experiment(DODOE) method. As the main objective, nine random experiments obtained by DX-7 software were performed. By this method, A357-Si C nanocomposites with 0.5, 1.0 and 1.5 wt.% Si C were fabricated at three different frequencies(10, 35 and 60 Hz) in the experimental stage. The microstructural evolution was characterized by scanning electron and optical microscopes, and the mechanical properties were investigated using hardness and roomtemperature uniaxial tensile tests. The results showed that the homogeneous distribution of Si C nanoparticles leads to the microstructure evolution from dendritic to non-dendritic form and a reduction of size by 73.9%. Additionally, based on DODOE, F-values of 44.80 and 179.64 were achieved for yield stress(YS) and ultimate tensile strength(UTS), respectively, implying that the model is significant and the variables(Si C fraction and stirring frequency) were appropriately selected. The optimum values of the Si C fraction and stirring frequency were found to be 1.5 wt.% and 60 Hz, respectively. In this case, YS and UTS for A357-Si C nanocomposites were obtained to be 120 and 188 MPa(57.7% and 57.9 % increase compared with those of the as-cast sample), respectively.

Purification technology of molten aluminum

Various purification methods were explored to eliminate the dissolved hydrogen and nonmetallic inclusions from molten aluminum alloys. A novel rotating impeller head with self-oscillation nozzles or an electromagnetic valve in the gas circuit was used to produce pulse gas currents for the rotary impeller degassing method. Water simulation results show that the size of gas bubbles can be decreased by 10%20% as compared with the constant gas current mode. By coating ceramic filters or particles with active flux or enamels, composite filters were used to filter the scrap A356 alloy and pure aluminum. Experimental results demonstrate that better filtration efficiency and operation performance can be obtained. Based on numerical calculations, the separation efficiency of inclusions by high frequency magnetic field can be significantly improved by using a hollow cylinder-like separator or utilizing the effects of secondary flow of the melt in a square separator. A multi-stage and multi-media purification platform based on these methods was designed and applied in on-line processing of molten aluminum alloys. Mechanical properties of the processed scrap A356 alloy are greatly improved by the composite purification.

Numerical model and experimental observation for distribution of SiC_p in electromagnetic-centrifugally cast composites

A two-phase numerical model coupled with heat transfer was presented to describe the radial distribution of SiC particles on centrifugally-cast metal matrix composite,and a transverse static magnetic field was concurrently imposed to induce electromagnetic stirring of the melt as it revolved with the mold.Meanwhile,experimental observations were also carried out to examine the radial distribution of SiC particles in pure aluminum.The effects of the imposed magnetic field,particle size and the matrix metals were discussed.The computational results show that the particles tend to be congregated by the centrifugal force,and both increasing the imposed magnetic field and decreasing the particle size tend to result in even distribution of the particles.With the magnetic field varying from 0 to 1 T and the particle size from 550 to 180 μm,a uniform distribution of the particles in the aluminum matrix can be obtained among the computational results.The matrix metal can also influence the particle distributions due to the difference in physical properties of metals.Experimental observation shows similar tendency of particle distributions in aluminum matrix influenced by magnetic field and particle size.However,the chilling effect from the mold wall results in an outer particle-free zone,which is not involved in the numerical model.

Direct-chilling casting of Mg alloy under electromagnetic and ultrasonic combined field

The effects of low frequency electromagnetic (LFEC) field and ultrasonic (US) field on the microstructures, macrosegregation of alloying elements and the mechanical properties of DC cast AZ80 alloy were studied. The results show that both LFEC and US fields can refine the grains of the billets, which results in the increase in mechanical properties and uniformity of alloying element distribution. The effective refinement takes place on the edge of ingots when LFEC field is applied, while in the center of billets when field US is adopted. Combined the characteristics of LFEC and US fields, a new process for direct-chilling (DC) casting of Mg-electromagnetic-ultrasonic (ECUS) casting is developed, by which the grains are refined significantly and are more uniform in the whole ingots, and the mechanical properties of the ingots are improved.