Formability and strengthening mechanism of AA6061 tubular components under solid granule medium internal high pressure forming

A new technological process of tube forming was developed, namely solution treatment → granule medium internal high pressure forming → artificial aging. During this process, the mechanical properties of AA6061 tube can be adjusted by heat treatment to satisfy the process requirements and the processing method can also be realized by granule medium internal high pressure forming technology with the features of convenient implementation, low requirement to equipment and flexible design in product. Results show that, at a solution temperature of 560 ℃ and time of 120 min, the elongation of AA6061 increases by 313%, but the strength and the hardness dramatically decrease. At an aging temperature of 180 ℃ and time of 360 min, the strength and hardness of AA6061 alloy are recovered to the values of the as-received alloy. The maximum expansion ratio（MER） of AA6061 tube increases by 25.5% and the material properties of formed tube reach the performances of raw material.

Fundamentals and Processes of Fluid Pressure Forming Technology for Complex Thin-Walled Components

A new generation of fluid pressure forming technology has been developed for the three typical structures of tubes,sheets,and shells,and hard-to-deform material components that are urgently needed for aerospace,aircraft,automobile,and high-speed train industries.in this paper,an over all review is introduced on the state of the art in fundamentals and processes for lower-pressure hydroforming of tubular components,double-sided pressure hydroforming of sheet components,die-less hydroforming of ellipsoidai shells,and dual hardening hot medium forming af hard-to-deform materiais Particular attention is paid to deformation behavior,stress state adjustment,defect prevention,and typical applications.In addition,future development directions of fluid pressure forming technology are discussed,including hyper lower-loading forming for ultra-large non-uniform components,precision for ming for intermetallic compound and high-entropy alloy components,intelligent process and equipment,and precise finite element simulation of inhomogeneous and strong anisotropic thin shells.

Heat treatment and granule medium internal highpressure forming of AA6061 tube

The new forming process of AA6061 alloy tube, including solution treatment, granule medium internal high-pressure forming and aging treatment, was developed. The AA6061 alloy tube via heat treatment satisfied the forming requirement, and the granule medium internal high pressure forming method for AA6061 alloy tube was also realized by using convenient implementation with low requirement of equipment and flexible design of product. At a solution temperature of 560℃ and time of 120 min, the elongation of the AA6061 extruded tube increases by 300% and the strength and the hardness dramatically decrease too. Therefore, the AA6061 alloy tube meets the requirement of internal high-pressure forming because of the improvement of formability. The experiments shows that the strength and hardness of AA6061 alloy workpiece recover to that of the as-received alloy at an aging temperature of 180℃ and time of 360 min, and the strength of AA6061 alloy workpiece is equal to the base alloy. The typical parts of convex ring tube, stepped shaft tube and hexagonal tube were successfully produced in lab by using the present forming method. The forming tests show that the maximum expansion ratio(MER) of the AA6061 extruded tube increases by 25.5% and the material properties of formed AA6061 alloy tube reached the performance of as-received alloy.

Finite element analysis of stiffness and static dent resistance of aluminum alloy double-curved panel in viscous pressure forming

The static dent resistance performance of the aluminum alloy double-curved panel formed using viscous pressure forming (VPF)was studied by finite element analysis,which mainly considers the forming process conditions.The whole simulation consisting of three stages,i.e.,forming,spring-back and static dent resistance,was carried out continuously using the finite element code ANSYS.The influence of blank holder pressure(BHP)and the drawbead on the stiffness and the static dent resistance of the panels formed using VPF was analyzed.The results show that the adequate setting of the drawbead can increase the plastic deformation of the double-curved panel,which is beneficial to the initial stiffness and the static dent resistance.There is an optimum BHP range for the stiffness and the static dent resistance.

External Pressure Forming and Buckling Analysis of Tubular Parts with Ribs

Buckling and forming processes of tubes with varying slenderness ratio （ratio of length to diameter） under external hydraulic pressure were analyzed with three-dimensional finite element method （FEM） for studying tube external pressure forming （EPF）. Buckling pressures for different tube blanks without mandrel were predicted, and an EPF of a carbon steel tube onto a mandrel with six ribs was simulated. Both thickness distribution and buckling pressure from the simulations were found to be in agreement with those from experiments. Buckling pressures are shown to be a function of the slenderness ratio. The tubular part with six ribs produced by EPF has a uniform thickness distribution, whose maximum thinning rate is only 5.9%.

Finite element analysis and experiment research on aluminum alloy ladder bowl with viscous pressure forming (VPF)

The process parameters of aluminum alloy ladder bowl with viscous pressure forming and solid metal punch forming were numerically simulated by commercial finite element software DEFORM. The influence of blank holder pressure (BHP) on the formability of sheet metal was investigated. It was found that lower BHP does benefit to the distribution of thickness both with VPF and with solid punch forming. The forming force needed in VPF is bigger than that of with solid punch forming at the same stroke. The distribution of thickness with VPF is more uniform than that of with solid punch forming. Compared with solid punch forming, the damage values of workpiece at the top convex corner are lower by VPF. It was also shown that fracture tendency could be reduced with VPF, so that means the formability is improved. At the same time, aluminum alloy ladder bowl was manufactured with VPF. The results show that the simulation results are in agreement with the experimental data very well.

Viscous Inner and Outer Pressure Forming Method of Thin-walled Tube and Its Application

Aiming at overcoming the difficulties in integral forming of thin-walled tubes with complex shapes, a novel forming method by inner and outer pressure through viscous was proposed. In this method, by dividing large deformation of the part into inner and outer pressure forming deformations, the limit deformation of tube part can be increased by several times. Meanwhile, the principle of viscous inner and outer pressure forming was provided, and key problems during the forming process such as reduction of the wall-thickness and instability wrinkling were analyzed. Thereby, the complex curved surface super-alloy GH3044 thin-walled tube with varying diameter ratio of 1.35（the ratio between the maximum and minimum diameters of the part） can be integrally formed by this method. The experimental surface of the formed part is superior in quality and the wall-thickness distribution is uniform. The results show that the viscous inner and outer pressure forming can provide a new approach for integral forming of thin-walled tubes with complex shapes.

ANALYSIS OF FORMING PRESSURE AND INSIDE DIAMETER VARIATION IN THIN WALL TUBE PRESS EXPANSION

The forming pressure is calculated by utilizing the slab method and the variation principles and influence factors of inside diameter in thin wall tube press expansion are analyzed.The results of theoretical analysis are well agree with the experiments.The conclusion is valuable to product quality control in the actual manufacturing.

Effect of blank holder pressure on viscous pressure forming aluminum alloy ladder parts

Viscous pressure forming (VPF), is suitable for forming difficult to form sheet metal parts. An investigation in the effect of blank holder pressure (BHP) on VPF aluminum alloy ladder parts was conducted. Based on experimental and numerical simulation results of the effect of BHP on dimensional accuracy, wall thickness reduction, forming pressure, material flow and defects (such as wrinkling and fracture) of specimens, the effect patterns of BHP load path on VPF ladder parts were explained. The limits of BHP corresponding to specimens with no defect and with wrinkling or fracture defect were determined. In the limits of formable BHP, the variable load path of BHP was beneficial to drawing blank into the die and decreasing wall thickness reduction of specimens. The experimental results show that the ladder parts of good surface fineness and high dimensional accuracy can be obtained by variable load paths of BHP.

Evaluation of forming limit in viscous pressure forming of automotive aluminum alloy 6k21-T4 sheet

A ductile fracture criterion is introduced into numerical simulation to predict viscous pressure forming limit of the automotive body aluminum alloy 6k21-T4. The material constant in the ductile fracture criterion is determined by the combination of the viscous pressure bulging (VPB) test with numerical simulation. VPB tests of the aluminum alloy sheet are carried out by using various elliptical dies with different ratios of major axis to minor axis(β), and the bugling processes are simulated by the aid of the finite element method software LS-DYNA3D. On the basis of the stress and strain calculated from numerical simulations, the forming limits of bulging specimens obtained are predicted by the ductile fracture criterion, and compared with experimental results. The fracture initiation site and the minimal thickness predicted by the ductile fracture criterion are in good agreement with the experimental results.

Influence of arc pressure on the forming of molten pool in tungsten inert gas arc butt welding with micro gap for tantalum sheet

Arc pressure is the key influencing factor to forming of molten pool. Countering the characteristic of tungsten inert gas arc welding with micro gap for tantalum sheet, according to the fundament of arc physics, a distribution model of arc pressure and forming mechanism of molten pool with micro butt gap are proposed, and the influences of arc pressure on forming of molten pool are discussed. Experimental researches for the dynamic formation process of weld molten pool by using high-speed vidicon camera show that when butt gap is appropriate, that is from 0. 1 to 0. 15 mm, molten metals formed on two workpiece uplift and grow up first, then are fused and form uniform molten pool finally.

Numerical simulation of aluminum alloy ladder parts with viscous pressure forming

Viscous pressure forming (VPF), a recently developed flexible die forming process that is suitable for difficult to form material, can obtain the better stress states of sheet blank during forming process in manufacturing complex shape parts. The process of manufacturing aluminum alloy ladder parts with VPF and solid metal punch was simulated by the FE software DEFORM. Under different blank holder pressure (BHP), the stress state, the strain state, the forming of small radius curved face and the distribution of thickness were analyzed. The simulation results show that, compared with solid metal punch forming, the sheet blank can flow into die cavity more easily with VPF due to the improvement of the stress states; the severe thickness reduction can be avoided, the sheet blank can contact the die perfectly and the parts have high dimensional accuracy.

Influence of viscous medium temperature distribution on sheet fracture in viscous pressure forming at warm temperature

Viscous pressure forming(VPF) of aluminum alloy AA3003 sheet metal at warm temperature was investigated by using coupled thermo-elastoplastic-viscoplastic finite element method. The influence of viscous medium temperature distribution on sheet fracture location was studied and the distributions of fracture factor at different temperatures were obtained by using ductile fracture criterion. The results show that the failure of sheet metal varies with increasing initial temperature of viscous medium. When the initial temperature of viscous medium is near that of sheet metal,the failure location occurs at dome center,and when the initial temperature of viscous medium is too low,however,the failure location occurs at die corner. The occurrence of fracture can be postponed and even prevented through controlling the temperature distribution in viscous medium.

Magnetic pressure in electromagnetic tube forming with echelon coil

The effects of geometrical characteristics of echelon coil on the magnetic pressure distribution and their contribution to the final shape of parts were focused and investigated through experiments and numerical simulation using FEM software ANSYS. The results show that the geometrical characteristics of echelon coil play a key role in controlling the magnetic pressure acting on the tube. They show a hump-like distribution near the interface between bigger diameter region and transition region of echelon coil, and affect the final shape of tubular parts then. With the reduction of relative diameter, the magnetic pressure in smaller diameter region decreases and its distribution gradient in transition region increases. With the augment of relative length, the magnetic pressure increases in bigger diameter region, while it almost remains constant in smaller diameter region, and the gradient in transition region enhances sharply. The distribution of magnetic pressure in the axial direction of tube agrees well with the profile of specimen.

“Giant pressure shadow” structure and ore-finding method of tectonic stress field in the Tongchang Cu-Au polymetallic orefield,Shaanxi,China:Ⅱ.Dynamics of tectonic ore-forming processes and prognosis of concealed ores

The Tongchang orefield is located in the central part of the Mianxian-Lueyang-Yangpingguan area that is celebrated as a 'gold triangle' area,at the juncture of the latitudinal tectonic zone of South Qinling,the Longmenshan Cathysian tectonic zone and the Sichuan-Yunnan longitudinal tectonic zone,where there are distributed Cu-Au polymetallic ore deposits(occurrences) including the Tongchang,Chenjiaba,Qinjiabian,Hongtushi,Yinshangou and Xiakouyi ore deposits(mineralization).Based on the "giant pressure shadow" structure put forward and demonstrated by numerical modeling of the tectonic stress field and the static photoelasticity experiments on the basis of tectonic ore-controlling laws in the orefield,tectonic metallogenesis driven by orefield tectonic stress has been discussed in terms of its geological setting,orefield geomechanics,and tectonic stress field.It is thought that the dynamic evolution model of the tectonic stress field controls the whole process of formation of the polymetallic ore deposits(mineralization) in the orefield,as well as the deformation field.As a result,it controls the emplacement of rockbodies and the transformation of ore-source bodies,and provides both the channel-ways for ore-forming fluids and ore-hosting space.Furthermore,it controls the migration potential field of fluids and,thereafter,its flow direction,rate and volume;the tectonic stress field also controls the energy field and hence controls the position of occurrence of ore deposits and their scale.The method of tectonic stress field has been applied to ore prognosis in the orefield.The rules of magmatic emplacement and metallogenic fluid migrating and concentrating under the control of the structural stress field were expounded,hence providing the theoretical basis for the prognosis of concealed ores.In addition,a number of important target areas have been defined.

Inner and outer pressure forming of nickel based super-alloy thin-walled part with variable diameter sections

A novel forming method of nickel based super-alloy thin-walled part with variable diameter sections was proposed by using inner and outer pressure with the visco-elasto-plastic pressure-carrying medium at room temperature,and the principle of the method was provided.Experiments and FE simulations were carried out to analyze the deformation characteristics for the part with larger variable diameter ratio(35%).The results show that visco-elasto-plastic pressure-carrying medium can meet the requirements of the room-temperature deformation condition for nickel based super-alloy sheet.The inner and outer pressure forming with the visco-elasto-plastic pressure-carrying medium can meet the requirements of dimensional accuracy for the thin-walled part with variable diameter sections.The thinning of wall-thickness is less than 4%.This method provides a new approach for near-net shape forming of nickel based super-alloy thin-walled parts with variable diameter sections.

Superplastic forming gas pressure of titanium alloy bellows

The complex superplastic forming (SPF) technology applying gas pressure and compressive axial load is an advanced forming method for titanium alloy bellows,whose forming process consists of the three main forming phases namely bulging, clamping and calibrating phase. The influence of forming gas pressure in various phases on the forming process was analyzed and the models of forming gas pressure for bellows were derived according to the thin shell theory and the plasticity deformation theory. Using the model values, taking a two-convolution DN250 Ti-6Al-4V titanium alloy bellows as an example, a series of superplastic forming tests were performed to evaluate the influence of the variation of forming gas pressure on the forming process. According to the experimental results these models were corrected to make the forming gas pressures prediction more accurate.

Magnetic force distribution and deformation law of sheet using uniform pressure electromagnetic actuator

The distribution of magnetic forces and current on sheet and coil was analyzed in detail according to the structural parameter of the coil which was invalid.The result shows that the current direction based on simulation result agrees with the principles of uniform pressure electromagnetic actuator.The reason for coil failure was proposed.Then the magnetic forces on the sheet were input into an explicit finite element software ANSYS/LS-DYNA to analyze the deformation law of the sheet.

Viscous warm pressure bulging process of AZ31B magnesium alloy with different ellipticity dies

Based on the bulging principle of different ellipticity dies, the methyl vinyl silicone rubber with excellent thermal stability and heat transfer performance was chosen as the viscous medium. The finite element analysis and experiments of viscous warm pressure bulging （VWPB） of AZ31B magnesium alloy were conducted to analyze the influence of different ellipticity dies on the formability of AZ31B magnesium alloy. At the same time, based on the grid strain rule, the forming limit diagram （FLD） of VWPB of AZ31B magnesium alloy was obtained through measuring the strain of bulging specimens. The results showed that at the temperature range of viscous medium thermal stability, the viscous medium can fit the geometry variation of sheet and generate non-uniform pressure field, and as the die ellipticity increases, the difference value of non-uniform pressure reduces. Meanwhile, according to the FLD, the relationship between part complexity and ultimate deformation was investigated.