Progress of Solidification Researches and the Applications in Materials Processing

The research achievements of solidification theories and technologies in the last decades are reviewed with the stresses on some new development in the recent years. Some new interesting areas emerged in the last years are also pointed out.

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.

Effects of mechanical vibration on filling and solidification behavior, microstructure and performance of Al/Mg bimetal by lost foam compound casting

Al/Mg bimetal was prepared by lost foam solid-liquid compound casting,and the effects of mechanical vibration on the filling and solidification behavior,microstructure and performance of the bimetal were investigated.Results show that the mechanical vibration has a remarkable influence on the filling and solidification processes.It is found that after mechanical vibration,the filling rate increases and the filling rate at different times is more uniform than that without vibration.In addition,the mechanical vibration also increases the wettability between liquid AZ91D and A356 inlays.The mechanical vibration reduces the horizontal and vertical temperature gradient of the casting and makes the temperature distribution of the whole casting more uniform.Compared to the Al/Mg bimetal without vibration,the shear strength is improved by 39.76%after the mechanical vibration is applied,due to the decrease of the inclusions and Al_(12)Mg_(17) dendrites,and the refinement and uniform distribution of the Mg_(2)Si particles in the interface of the Al/Mg bimetal.

Migration behavior of solidification nuclei in pure Al melt under effect of electric current pulse

A mathematical model considering free nuclei was developed to reveal the migration behavior of the free nuclei. Numerical simulation results show that most of the nuclei on the top surface of the melt move downwards and distribute randomly inside the Al melt, which induces more nucleation sites resulting in grain refinement. At the same time, the effect of nuclei size on the nuclei distribution and refinement employing electric current pulse （ECP） was also investigated. The smaller nuclei migrate a short distance with the Al melt at lower speed. But for the larger nuclei, the migration downwards with higher speed benefits the refinement of interior grains of the melt. The research results help to better understand the refinement process and provide a more reasonable explanation of the grain refinement mechanism using ECP.

Damping capacity of high strength-damping aluminum alloys prepared by rapid solidification and powder metallurgy process

Two kinds of high strength-damping aluminum alloys （LZ7） were fabricated by rapid solidification and powder metallurgy （RS-PM） process. One material was extruded to profile aluminum directly and the other was extruded to bar and then rolled to sheet. The damping capacity over a temperature range of 25-300 ℃was studied with damping mechanical thermal analyzer （DMTA） and the microstructures were investigated by optical microscopy （OM）, scanning electron microscopy （SEM） and transmission electron microscopy （TEM）. The experimental results show that the damping capacity increases with the test temperature elevating. Internal friction value of rolled sheet aluminum is up to 11.5×10^-2 and that of profile aluminum is as high as 6.0×10^-2 and 7.5×10^-2 at 300 ℃, respectively. Microstructure analysis shows the shape of precipitation phase of rolled alloy is more regular and the distribution is more homogeneous than that of profile alloy. Meanwhile, the interface between particulate and matrix of rolled sheet alloy is looser than that of profile alloy. Maybe the differences at interface can explain why damping capacity of rolled sheet alloy is higher than that of profile alloys at high temperature （above 120 ℃）.

Effect of RE addition on solidification process and high-temperature strength of Al-12%Si-4%Cu-1.6%Mn heat-resistant alloy

The effect of RE addition on solidification process and high-temperature strength of Al-12%Si-4%Cu-1.6%Mn(in wt.%)heat-resistant alloy was investigated by microstructure observation and tensile test.A great number of fine needle-like RE-rich phases are observed in the alloys with RE addition. Solutionizing treatment does not change their morphologies and sizes, indicating that they have good thermal stability. The addition of RE totally alters the solidification process of eutectic CruAl2 phase, from network-like phase in the form of segregation at the final eutectic grain boundaries to discretely blocky phase growing on the hair-filamentous RE-rich needles. In the alloys with Ce addition, blocky CuAl2, particulate Al15Mn3Si2 and needle-like RE-rich needle phases grow together, but they did not occur in the alloy with only La addition. The addition of RE does not considerably improve the strength of the alloy at high temperatures. The formation of RE-rich phases also does not significantly alter the originating and propagating of micro-cracks in the alloy during tensile test.

Solidification process and microstructure of transition layer of Cu-Al composite cast prepared by method of pouring molten aluminum

The Cu?Al composite casts were prepared by the method of pouring molten aluminum. The solidification process and themicrostructure of the transition layer were investigated during the recombination process of the liquid Al and the solid Cu. The results reveal that the microstructure of the transition layer in the Cu?Al composite cast consists of α(Al)+α(Al)?CuAl2 eutectic,α(Al)?CuAl2 eutectic, CuAl2+α(Al)?CuAl2 eutectic and Cu9Al4. Additionally, the pouring temperature, cooling mode of the Cu platesurface and start time of the forced cooling after pouring have no effect on the microstructure species. But the proportion of thevarious microstructures in the transition layer changes with the process parameters. The pure Al at the top of the transition layer startsto solidify first and then the α(Al) phase grows in a dendritic way, while the CuAl2 phase exhibits plane or cellular crystal growth from the two sides of the transition layer towards its interior. The stronger the cooling intensity of the Cu plate outer surface, the more developed the dendrite, and the easier it is for the CuAl2 phase to grow into a plane crystal.

Modeling and simulation of 3D thermal stresses of large-sized castings in solidification processes

When heavy machines and large scaled receiver system of communication equipment are manufactured, it always needs to produce large-sized steel castings, aluminum castings and etc. Some defects of hot cracking by thermal stress often appear during solidification process as these castings are produced, which results in failure of castings. Therefore predicting the effects of technological parameters for production of castings on the thermal stress during solidification process becomes an important means. In this paper, the mathematical models have been established and numerical calculation of temperature fields by using finite difference method (FDM) and then thermal stress fields by using finite element method (FEM) during solidification process of castings have been carried out. The technological parameters of production have been optimized by the results of calculation and the defects of hot cracking have been eliminated. Modeling and simulation of 3D thermal stress during solidification processes of large-sized castings provided a scientific basis, which promoted further development of advanced manufacturing technique.

Effect of Yttrium on the Solidification Process and Performance of Al7SiMg Alloy

Solidification processes of Al7SiMg-xY(0.1wt%,0.3wt%,0.5wt%) alloys were investigated by thermal analysis.The microstructures were observed by using optical microscopy and scanning electron microscopy.Effects of different concentrations of yttrium on tensile performance both as cast and T6 heat treated were studied at room temperature,respectively.The results show that little changes happen in liquidus with increases concentration of yttrium.While it results in obvious depression of solidus and eutectic arrest temperature in solidification process.Moreover,the solidification range increases significantly.The performance is better when concentration of yttrium is 0.1wt%.With increment of yttrium,more large flake-like compounds of yttrium gather in grain boundaries,performance especially the elongation of the alloy decrease remarkably.

Construction and analysis of dynamic solidification curves for non-equilibrium solidification process in lost-foam casting hypoeutectic gray cast iron

Most lost-foam casting processes involve non-equilibrium solidification dominated by kinetic factors, while construction of a common dynamic solidification curve is based on pure thermodynamics, not applicable for analyses and research of non-equilibrium macro-solidification processes, and the construction mode can not be applied to nonequilibrium solidification process. In this study, the construction of the dynamic solidification curve(DSC) for the nonequilibrium macro-solidification process included: a modified method to determine the start temperature of primary austenite precipitation(T_(AL)) and the start temperature of eutectic solidification(T_(ES)); double curves method to determine the temperature of the dendrite coherency point of primary austenite(T-(AC)) and the temperature of eutectic cells collision point(T_(EC)); the "technical solidus" method to determine the end temperature of eutectic reaction(T_(EN)). For this purpose, a comparative testing of the non-equilibrium solidification temperature fields in lost-foam casting and green sand mold casting hypoeutectic gray iron was carried out. The thermal analysis results were used to construct the DSCs of both these casting methods under non-equilibrium solidification conditions. The results show that the transformation rate of non-equilibrium solidification in hypoeutectic gray cast iron is greater than that of equilibrium solidification. The eutectic solidification region presents a typical mushy solidification mode. The results also indicate that the primary austenite precipitation zone of lost-foam casting is slightly larger than that of green sand casting. At the same time, the solid fraction(f_s) of the dendrite coherency points in lost-foam casting is greater than that in the green sand casting. Therefore, from these two points, lost-foam casting is more preferable for reduction of shrinkage and mechanical burntin sand tendency of the hypoeutectic gray cast iron. Due to the fact that the solidification process(from the surface to center) at primary austenite growth area in the lost-foam cylinder sample lags behind that in the green sand casting, the mushy solidification tendency of lost-foam casting is greater and the solidification time is longer.

Calculation of Solidification Process of Continuous Cast Bar

In this paper,it presents the results of calculation of solidification process of copper continuous cast bar by cross section size 120 mm × 70 mm with application of Pro Cast 2010 software. The estimation of mould design effect on solidification process of continuos copper cast bar is completed at various speeds of casting.Profiles of liquid metal cavities and temperature allocations in the cast bar at various casting speeds are defined.The analysis of received liquid metal cavity profiles shows that a new mold construction allows significantly decrease of the length of the liquid metal cavity during continuous copper casting at HAZELETTcasting machine and the increase of maximum casting speed from 10 to 11 m / min. Adequacy of the results of copper continuous cast bar solidification process calculation is confirmed by the experimental data.

Numerical prediction of the incremental melting and solidification process

A mathematical formulation is applied to represent the phenomena in theincremental melting and solidification process (IMSP), and the temperature and electromagneticfields and the depth of steel liquid phase are calculated by a finite difference technique using thecontrol volume method. The result shows that the predicted values are in good agreement with theobservations. In accordance with the calculated values for different kinds of materials anddifferent size of molds, the technological parameter of the IMS process such as the power supply andthe descending speed rate can be determined.

3-D Finite-Element Numerical Simulation of Centrifugal Induction Electrosalg Casting Solidification Process

A 3-D finite-element numerical simulation model of temperature field for CIESC casting solidification process was developed with the aid of ANSYS software and a series of corresponding experiments were made. The results showed that the good agreement was obtained between the numerical simulation and the experiments. Based on the numerical simulation results, the characteristics of temperature distribution in the castings during CIESC solidification process were analyzed and summarized. According to the G/R-1/2 method and numerical simulation results, there is no any shrinkage defect in the CIESC casting and structure or casting is fine and compact.

MY CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE PHYSICAL PROCESS OF SOLIDIFICATION

In 1950, I graduated from Tsinghua University,majoring in machine building. Three years later, Ientered the Iron & Steel College in Moscow to start studying metallurgy as a postgraduate. After obtaining my associate professorship, I came back home. I devoted the succeeding 40 years to the theory and technology of solidification, because I had realized the importance of the physical process of solidification in materials science and engineering technologies as a means of upgrading the properties of traditional materials and developing new materials. My contributions in this field might be listed as follows:

Numerical simulation and processoptimization for producing large-sized castings

3-Dvelocity and temperature fields of mold filling and solidification processes of large-sized castingswere calculated,and the efficiency and accuracy of numerical calculation were studied.The mold filling andsolidification processes of large-sized stainless steel,iron and aluminum alloy castings were simulated by using ofnew scheme;their casting processes were optimized,and then applied to produce castings.

Using finite difference method to simulate casting thermal stress

Thermal stress simulation can provide a scientific reference to eliminate defects such as crack,residual stress centralization and deformation etc.,caused by thermal stress during casting solidification.To study the thermal stress distribution during casting process,a unilateral thermal-stress coupling model was employed to simulate 3D casting stress using Finite Difference Method(FDM),namely all the traditional thermal-elastic-plastic equations are numerically and differentially discrete.A FDM/FDM numerical simulation system was developed to analyze temperature and stress fields during casting solidification process.Two practical verifications were carried out,and the results from simulation basically coincided with practical cases.The results indicated that the FDM/FDM stress simulation system can be used to simulate the formation of residual stress,and to predict the occurrence of hot tearing.Because heat transfer and stress analysis are all based on FDM,they can use the same FD model,which can avoid the matching process between different models,and hence reduce temperature-load transferring errors.This approach makes the simulation of fluid flow,heat transfer and stress analysis unify into one single model.

Direct Generation of Intense Compression Waves in Molten Metals by Using a High Static Magnetic Field and Their Application

Compression waves propagating through molten metals are contributed to degassing, accelerating reaction rate,removing exclusions from molten metals and refining solidification structures during metallurgical processing of materials. In the present study, two electromagnetic methods are proposed to generate intense compression wavesdirectly in liquid metals. One is the simultaneous imposition of a high frequency electrical current field and a staticmagnetic field; the other is that of a high frequency magnetic field and a static magnetic field. A mathematical modelbased on compressible fluid dynamics and electromagnetic fields theory has been developed to derive pressure distributions of the generated waves in a metal. It shows that the intensity of compression waves is proportional to thatof the high frequency electromagnetic force. And the frequency is the same as that of the imposed electromagneticforce. On the basis of theoretical analyses, pressure change in liquid gallium was examined by a pressure transducerunder various conditions. The observed results approximately agreed with the predictions derived from the theoreticalanalyses and calculations. Moreover, the effect of the generated waves on improvement of solidification structureswas also examined. It shows that the generated compression waves can refine solidification structures when they wereapplied to solidification process of Sn-Pb alloy. This study indicates a new method to generate compression wavesby imposing high frequency electromagnetic force locally on molten metals and this kind of compression waves canprobably overcome the difficulties when waves are excited by mechanical vibration in high temperature environments.

FINITE ELEMENT NUMERICAL SIMULATION OF TEMPERATURE FIELD IN METAL PATTERN CASTING SYSTEM AND "REVERSE METHOD" OF DEFINING THE THERMAL PHYSICAL COEFFICIENT

With the technology support of virtual reality and ANSYS software, an example on the simulation of temperature distribution of casting system during the solidification process was provided, which took the latent heat of phase change, the conditions for convection, and the interface heat transfer coefficient into consideration. The result of ANSYS was found to agree well with the test data. This research offers an unorthodox way or ＂reverse method＂ of defining the relevant thermal physical coefficient.

In-situ composite Cu-Cr contact cables with high strength and high conductivity

In order to develop a new type of contact cable with high strengthand high electrical conductivity, Cu-Cr alloy series were selected asmaterials and cu-Cr alloy castings were produced by means ofdirectional solidification continu- ous casting (DSCC) process. theresults show that the fibrillar strengthening phase, β-Cr, orderlyarranges among the copper matrix phase along the wire direction; andmicrostructure of in-situ composite forms, which retains the basicproperty of good conductivity of the copper matrix and meanwhileobtains the strengthening effect ofβ-Cr phase.