Effects of process parameters on morphology and distribution of externally solidified crystals in microstructure of magnesium alloy die castings

During the cold-chamber high pressure die casting(HPDC) process, samples were produced to investigate the microstructure characteristics of AM60B magnesium alloy. Special attention was paid to the effects of process parameters on the morphology and distribution of externally solidified crystals(ESCs) in the microstructure of magnesium alloy die castings, such as slow shot phase plunger velocity, delay time of pouring and fast shot phase plunger velocity. On the basis of metallographic observation and quantitative statistics, it is concluded that a lower slow shot phase plunger velocity and a longer delay time of pouring both lead to an increment of the size and percentage of the ESCs, due to the fact that a longer holding time of the melt in the shot sleeve will cause a more severe loss of the superheat. The impingement of the melt flow on the ESCs is more intensive with a higher fast shot phase plunger velocity, in such case the ESCs reveal a more granular and roundish morphology and are dispersed throughout the cross section of the castings. Based on analysis of the filling and solidification processes of the melt during the HPDC process, reasonable explanations were proposed in terms of the nucleation, growth, remelting and fragmentation of the ESCs to interpret the effects of process parameters on the morphology and distribution of the ESCs in the microstructure of magnesium alloy die castings.

Optimization of AZ80 magnesium alloy squeeze cast process parameters using morphological matrix

The squeeze cast process parameters of AZ80 magnesium alloy were optimized by morphological matrix. Experiments were conducted by varying squeeze pressure, die pre-heat temperature and pressure duration using L9（33） orthogonal array of Taguchi method. In Taguchi method, a 3-level orthogonal array was used to determine the signal/noise ratio. Analysis of variance was used to determine the most significant process parameters affecting the mechanical properties. Mechanical properties such as ultimate tensile strength, elongation and hardness of the components were ascertained using multi variable linear regression analysis. Optimal squeeze cast process parameters were obtained.

Effect of process parameters on density of magnesium alloy parts by low-pressure expendable pattern casting

The combination of magnesium alloys with the low-pressure expendable pattern casting(LP-EPC) process would bright future for application of magnesium alloys. The researches are focused on the effect of process parameters on the internal casting quality of magnesium alloy parts. AZ91D magnesium alloy castings were produced for different combinations of the LP-EPC process parameters. Specifically,pouring temperature,vacuum,filling velocity and coupling action of these factors were manipulated to observe their effect on the casting porosity and density distribution. The results indicate that the pouring temperature with LP-EPC process is lower than it in gravity casting. The selected process parameters,such as vacuum,filling velocity and coupled modes of them,must ensure melt metal flowing front profile exhibiting smooth and convex shape. The optimal process parameters for the castings are pouring temperature 983-1 023 K,vacuum 0.02-0.03 MPa,filling velocity 60-95 mm/s,and simultaneous filling with sucking.

Characteristics of hot tensile deformation and microstructure evolution of twin-roll cast AZ31B magnesium alloys

High temperature tensile properties and microstructure evolutions of twin-roll-cast AZ31B magnesium alloy were investigated over a strain rate range from 10-3 to 1 s-1.It is suggested that the dominant deformation mechanism in the lower strain rate regimes is dislocation creep controlled by grain boundary diffusion at lower temperature and by lattice diffusion at higher temperatures,respectively.Furthermore,dislocation glide and twinning are dominant deformation mechanisms at higher strain-rate.The processing map,the effective diffusion coefficient and activation energy map of the alloy were established.The relations of microstructure evolutions to the transition temperature of dominant diffusion process,the activation energy platform and the occurrence of the full dynamic recrystallization with the maximum peak efficiency were analyzed.It is revealed that the optimum conditions for thermo-mechanical processing of the alloy are at a temperature range from 553 to 593 K,and a strain rate range from 7×10-3 to 2×10-3 s-1.

Effect of vacuum on solidification process and microstructure of LFC magnesium alloy

Lost foam casting (LFC) is regarded as a cost-effective, environment-friendly vital option to the conventional casting process for production of near-net shape castings with high quality. Effect of vacuum on the solidification process and microstructure of LFC magnesium alloy were explored. The results indicate that vacuum plays a very important role in the heat transfer during mould filling and solidification periods, it increases the cooling rate of the filling melt, but greatly decreases the cooling rate of the casting during solidification period, and the solidification time of the casting is greater than that without vacuum. The microstructure of LFC magnesium alloy is rather coarse. Compared with that without vacuum, the microstructure of the LFC magnesium alloy under vacuum is more refined and has less precipitatedβ-phase, which is formed at the grain boundry and around the Al-Mn compound particle.

Grain Size Distribution and Interfacial Heat Transfer Coefficient during Solidification of Magnesium Alloys Using High Pressure Die Casting Process

The objective of this study is to predict grain size and heat transfer coefficient at the metal-die interface during high pressure die casting process and solidification of the magnesium alloy AM60. Multiple runs of the commercial casting simulation package, ProCASTTM, were used to model the mold filling and solidification events employing a range of interfacial heat transfer coefficient values. The simulation results were used to estimate the centerline cooling curve at various locations through the casting. The centerline cooling curves, together with the die temperature and the thermodynamic properties of the alloy, were then used as inputs to compute the solution to the Stefan problem of a moving phase boundary, thereby providing the through-thickness cooling curves at each chosen location of the casting, Finally, the local cooling rate was used to calculate the resulting grain size via previously established relationships. The effects of die temperature, filling time and heat transfer coefficient on the grain structure in skin region and core region were quantitatively characterized. It was observed that the grain size of skin region strongly depends on above three factors whereas the grain size of core region shows dependence on the interracial heat transfer coefficient and thickness of the samples. The grain size distribution from surface to center was estimated from the relationship between grain size and the predicted cooling rate. The prediction of grain size matches well with experimental results. A comparison of the predicted and experimentally determined grain size profiles enables the determination of the apparent interracial heat transfer coefficient for different locations.

Grain refinement of Mg-Al alloys by optimization of process parameters based on three-dimensional finite element modeling of roll casting

To study the influence of roll casting process parameters on temperature and thermal-stress fields for the AZ31 magnesium alloy sheets,three-dimensional geometric and 3D finite element models for roll casting were established based on the symmetry of roll casting by ANSYS software.Meshing method and smart-sizing algorithm were used to divide finite element mesh in ANSYS software.A series of researches on the temperature and stress distributions during solidification process with different process parameters were done by 3D finite element method.The temperatures of both the liquid-solid two-phase zone and liquid phase zone were elevated with increasing pouring temperature.With the heat transfer coefficient increasing,the two-phase region for liquid-solid becomes smaller.With the pouring temperature increasing and the increase of casting speed,the length of two-phase zone rises.The optimized of process parameters（casting speed 2 m/min,pouring temperature 640 ℃ and heat transfer coefficient 15 kW/（m2·℃） with the water pouring at roller exit was used to produce magnesium alloy AZ31 sheet,and equiaxed grains with the average grain size of 50 μm were achieved after roll casting.The simulation results give better understanding of the temperature variation in phase transformation zone and the formation mechanism of hot cracks in plates during roll casting and help to design the optimized process parameters of roll casting for Mg alloy.

Recent research progress on the phase-field model of microstructural evolution during metal solidification

Solidification structure is a key aspect for understanding the mechanical performance of metal alloys,wherein composition and casting parameters considerably influence solidification and determine the unique microstructure of the alloys.By following the principle of free energy minimization,the phase-field method eliminates the need for tracking the solid/liquid phase interface and has greatly accelerated the research and development efforts geared toward optimizing metal solidification microstructures.The recent progress in the application of phasefield simulation to investigate the effect of alloy composition and casting process parameters on the solidification structure of metals is summarized in this review.The effects of several typical elements and process parameters,including carbon,boron,silicon,cooling rate,pulling speed,scanning speed,anisotropy,and gravity,on the solidification structure are discussed.The present work also addresses the future prospects of phase-field simulation and aims to facilitate the widespread applications of phase-field approaches in the simulation of microstructures during solidification.

基于ProCAST的汽车发动机镁合金罩盖压铸过程模拟

采用了ProCast有限元模拟软件,模拟了不同工艺参数条件下,汽车发动机镁合金罩盖在压铸工艺下的充型过程和凝固过程,有效地预测了液态金属在充型过程及凝固过程中产生的缩孔和缩松等缺陷。并以此为依据,优化工艺参数,实现对铸造过程的控制,确定了浇注温度680℃、模具温度200℃为AZ91D镁合金汽车发动机罩盖较优的工艺方案,为缩减产品的试制、开发周期,降低生产成本,提高成品率,最终改善发动机罩盖的铸件质量和生产工艺参数的制定提供了依据。

铸造镁合金凝固过程数值模拟研究进展

镁合金以其轻量化、高比强度和良好的阻尼性能在汽车、航空航天等领域应用广泛。数值模拟通过再现铸造成形过程中的各类宏观和微观物理过程,可以调控组织、减少缺陷、提高力学性能和优化铸造工艺参数。本文综述了铸造镁合金在枝晶和共晶凝固组织模拟,偏析、气孔和热裂等缺陷模拟,以及力学性能预测等方面的研究现状,简要介绍了近两年在铸造镁合金成形工艺模拟方面的研究进展。最后,指出了当前铸造镁合金数值模拟研究存在的问题及发展方向。

镁合金铸造成型中的数值模拟

以AZ91D镁合金汽车控制臂为研究对象,采用Magma Soft铸造模拟软件对汽车控制臂的挤压铸造成型过程进行数值模拟,包括汽车控制臂浇铸过程中的充型和后期凝固过程,并优化了成型工艺。模拟结果表明,汽车控制臂在充型过程中,在充型达到60%时易于在左侧部位出现易卷气部位而形成气孔、夹渣等缺陷。优化后汽车控制臂的充型过程相对优化前更加平稳,控制臂较薄处以及嵌件处的卷气得到消除,避免了形成气孔、夹渣等缺陷。优化后挤压铸造汽车控制臂的成型质量良好,没有出现浇不足以及凝固补缩等缺陷,整个充型过程平稳,表明采用数值模拟方法对AZ91D镁合金控制臂的成型过程进行模拟优化是可行的,能得到成型质量良好的挤压铸件。

真空压铸工艺参数对AM50镁合金力学性能的影响规律

采用阶梯试验模具及AM50合金,进行了系统的真空压铸试验,实测了不同厚度的阶梯试样在不同工艺条件下的密度及力学性能,研究了高真空压铸工艺参数对AM50镁合金力学性能的影响规律。结果表明,随着型腔真空压力的降低,铸件密度、抗拉强度和伸长率均随之提高;铸造压力对力学性能的影响在真空压铸和常规压铸中遵循基本相同的规律,即增大铸造压力可以使铸件的致密程度、抗拉强度、屈服强度和伸长率得到提高;随着高速速度的增大,薄壁铸件的抗拉强度、屈服强度和伸长率均表现出明显的增加,这一点与常规压铸的规律相反。结合高真空和高速工艺,可以使薄壁铸件的抗拉强度和伸长率得到较为明显的提升。

压铸工艺对镁合金组织性能影响的研究

论述了压铸工艺条件下镁合金的凝固过程及特点,结合最近的研究进展,分析了压铸工艺对镁合金凝固组织及缺陷形成的影响,并探讨了压铸镁合金组织与性能之间的关系。

AZ91D镁合金壳形件真空压铸充型和凝固过程的数值模拟

运用有限元模拟仿真软件对镁合金AZ91D壳形件进行多组正交试验真空压铸过程的数值模拟,找出最佳的压铸工艺参数。通过模拟结果表明:最佳压铸工艺参数为浇注温度655℃、冲头压射速度3m/s、模具初始温度200℃。在这组优化的工艺参数下,通过对液态合金充型及凝固过程的可视化观察,有效的预测铸造缺陷产生的部位及原因,从而在实际生产中采取相应的措施避免缺陷的产生,优化铸造过程。

镁合金挤压铸造成形的研究

采用间接冲头式方法,研究了AZ91D镁合金的挤压铸造成形工艺,试生产了圆形铸件。结果表明:用N2或Ar气排除挤压模具型腔中的空气,能防止镁合金液在挤压成形流动过程中产生氧化及夹杂;挤压模具的加热,特别是挤压活塞及定量室外套的加热,对镁合金的挤压成形影响很大;挤压压力、保压时间和挤压速度等挤压工艺参数与铸件的结构密切相关。

工艺参数和型芯对AZ91D镁合金压铸充型能力的影响

通过正交实验,系统研究了压铸过程中浇注温度、模具温度、压射比压、充型速度对AZ91D镁合金充型能力的影响,同时研究了圆柱形型芯对其流动性能的影响。结果表明,对AZ91D镁合金压铸充型能力影响最大的因素是压射比压,其次是充型速度和浇注温度,影响最小的是模具温度。随着上述4个因素值的提高,AZ91D镁合金的充型能力均得到提高。随着型芯直径的增加,AZ91D镁合金的流动性能变差。应设法改善压铸工艺条件和型芯形状来提高合金的压铸充型能力。

镁合金汽车转向柱支架的压铸模拟仿真

为了观察在不同压射速度下金属液在充型过程中的流动情况,分析缺陷分布与位置,从而确定最佳浇注方案,利用模拟仿真软件FLOW-3D,保持模具温度和浇注温度不变,分别采用压射速度为4.3、6.0、7.8m/s,对镁合金转向器支架进行模拟仿真,观察气孔、缩孔等缺陷的分布。结果发现,在模具初始温度为220℃,浇注温度为700℃的条件下,最优的压射速度应为6.0m/s,此时能达到最佳充型效果。

工艺参数对镁合金铸轧板坯凝固前沿影响规律的研究

通过镁合金铸轧工艺试验,分析了辊面线速度、轧辊直径、铸轧区长度以及铸轧板坯厚度对铸轧区凝固前沿位置及板坯宏观质量的影响。试验结果表明,在铸轧区长度、板坯厚度一定的条件下,铸轧速度显著影响凝固前沿位置,并进一步决定镁合金铸轧板坯表面质量及宏观缺陷形成特征。在其他工况条件不变的情况下,铸轧速度必须根据铸轧区长度、板坯厚度进行调整,并将铸轧区凝固前沿控制在优化区域,可稳定工艺、提高板坯的表面质量。

保持架挤压铸造充型和凝固过程的数值模拟

为实现对挤压铸造生产过程的精确控制,运用有限元模拟软件对镁合金轴承保持架进行挤压铸造充型和凝固过程的数值模拟,得出最佳的挤压铸造工艺参数.优化的工艺参数为:浇注温度710℃,模具预热温度180℃,冲头压射速度25mm/s,比压200MPa,保压时间约为20s.建立了充型时间和凝固时间与模具预热温度和冲头压射速度的数学关系式,并对液态合金的充型及凝固过程进行了可视化观察.模拟结果表明,充型、凝固过程合理,铸件结构完整,效果良好,说明镁合金轴承保持架具有良好的成形性.将此模拟结果应用到实践中,可优化挤压铸造过程,提高工作效率.

合金材料以及工艺参数对压铸过程中铸件／铸型界面换热系数的影响

采用铝合金ADC12以及镁合金AM50为铸件材料,并采用"阶梯"铸件进行了压铸实验.以压铸过程实际测得的温度作为输入参数,利用自行编制的热传导反算程序计算了压铸过程铸件/铸型间的换热系数.结果表明:不同合金材料对界面换热系数的影响主要表现在换热系数的数值以及保持较高数值所持续的时间上,而对换热系数曲线的形状影响不大;随着高速速度的增大,较薄"阶梯"与铸型之间的换热系数增大;对于较厚"阶梯",随着铸型初始温度的上升,换热系数不断减小.随着铸造压力的增大,最厚"阶梯"与铸型之间换热系数逐渐增大,但铸造压力只在镁合金AM50实验条件下表现出了明显的影响规律.