Study on Numerical Simulation of Mold Filling and Heat Transfer in Die Casting Process

A 3-D mathematical model considering turbulence phenomena has been established based on a computational fluid dynamics technique, so called 3-D SOLA-VOF (Solution Algorithm-Volume of Fluid), to simulate the fluid flow of mold filling process of die casting. In addition, the mathematical model for simulating the heat transfer in die casting process has also been established. The computation program has been developed by the authors with the finite difference method (FDM) recently. As verification, the mold filling process of a S-shaped die casting has been simulated and the simulation results coincide with that of the benchmark test. Finally, as a practical application, the gating design of a motorcycle component was modified by the mold filling simulation and the dies design of another motorcycle component was optimized by the heat transfer simulation. All the optimized designs were verified by the production practice.

Development of vacuum die-casting process

The vacuum die-casting process,started 25 years ago in Japan,has been widely applied.This technology contributes very much to improvement of castings quality.The main factor causing the defects of die castings is the trapped air in the mold cavity,while the key technology of vacuum die-casting process is to avoid the trapped air effectively by evacuating the cavity before casting.At the same time,due to the shot speed and the casting pressure reduced in half,the service life of the die is prolonged and the productivity is enhanced,as well.Vacuum die-casting process is of great signif icance in improving the die castings quality and making up the shortcomings of super-high-speed shot casting.

Finite element analysis for die casting parameters in high-pressure die casting process

The gating system and the overflow system were designed according to the casting structure during high pressure die casting(HPDC) process. The simulation was carried out by ProCAST software to visualize the injection chamber pre-crystallization and the flow of molten metal. The main work is to research four die casting process parameters, i.e. injection temperature, low-pressure velocity, high-and low-pressure velocity’s switching position, and high-pressure velocity. Experimental results show that the higher injection temperature and lowpressure velocity can mitigate the pre-crystallization of the injection chamber. However, when the low-pressure velocity exceeds 0.2 m·s-1, the air entrapment in the chamber occurs. Besides, when the high-pressure velocity is greater than 2.5 m·s-1, the overflow channel at the final filling position is covered by the liquid metal too early. Finally, the injection temperature of 650 °C, the low-pressure velocity of 0.2 m·s-1, the high-and low-pressure velocity’s switching position of 320 mm and the high-pressure velocity of 2 m·s-1 are obtained as the optimal parameters by the software simulation, which has been verified by actual production.

Carbide Coating Preparation of Hot Forging Die by Plasma Processing

To meet the performance requirements of hot forging die heat resistant layer, the Ni60-SiC coating, Ni60-Cr3C2 coating, and Ni60-WC coating were prepared using W6Mo5Cr4V2 as substrate material with 30%SiC, 10%Cr3C2, 30%WC powder by means of plasma spraying and plasma spray re-melting and plasma spray welding, respectively. Microstructure of each carbide coating was analyzed, micro-hardness was tested, and mainly thermal parameters of coating were detected. The experimental results show that using plasma spray welding, the performance of 70%Ni60/30%SiC powder is the best, and its micro-hardness can achieved 1100HV, showing good thermal-physical property.

Effects of process parameters and die geometry on longitudinal welds quality in aluminum porthole die extrusion process

By using the rigid-visco-plasticity finite element method,the welding process of aluminum porthole die extrusion to form a tube was simulated based on Deform-3D software.The welding chamber height(H),back dimension of die leg(D),process velocity and initial billet temperature were used in FE simulations so as to determine the conditions in which better longitudinal welding quality can be obtained.According to K criterion,the local welding parameters such as welding pressure,effective stress and welding path length on the welding plane are linked to longitudinal welds quality.Simulation turns out that pressure-to-effective stress ratio(p/σ) and welding path length(L) are the key factors affecting the welding quality.Higher welding chamber best and sharper die leg give better welding quality.When H=10 mm and D=0.4 mm,the longitudinal welds have the best quality.Higher process velocity decreases welds quality.The proper velocity is 10 mm/s for this simulation.In a certain range,higher temperature is beneficial to the longitudinal welds.It is found that both 450 and 465 ℃ can satisfy the requirements of the longitudinal welds.

Heat Transfer between Casting and Die during High Pressure Die Casting Process of AM50 Alloy-Modeling and Experimental Results

A method based on die casting experiments and mathematic modeling is presented for the determination of the heat flow density （HFD） and interfacial heat transfer coefficient （IHTC） during the high pressure die casting （HPDC） process.Experiments were carried out using step shape casting and a commercial magnesium alloy,AM50.Temperature profiles were measured and recorded using thermocouples embedded inside the die. Based on these temperature readings,the HFD and IHTC were successfully determined and the calculation results show that the HFD and IHTC at the metal-die interface increases sharply right after the fast phase injection process until approaching their maximum values,after which their values decrease to a much lower level until the dies are opened.Different patterns of heat transfer behavior were found between the die and the casting at different thicknesses.The thinner the casting was,the more quickly the HFD and IHTC reached their steady states.Also,the values for both the HFD and IHTC values were different between die and casting at different thicknesses.

Design of Quenching Process for Large-sized AISI P20 Steel Block Used as Plastic Die

For large-sized AISI P20 steel block used as plastic die with a thickness of more than 200 mm, appropriate quenching processes are the key to obtain much thick hardened layer. In this paper, different quenching processes of AISI P20 steel block such as oil quenching, direct water quenching, water quenching with precooling and water quenching with pre-cooling and self-tempering were numerically investigated by computer simulation based on the detailed discussion on the mathematical models of quenching processes including partial differential equations of heat transfer, thermal physical properties, latent heat, heat transfer coefficient and calculation of phase transformation, The results show that the water quenching with pre-cooling and self-tempering process can not only effectively avoid quenching cracks, but also obtain deeper harden depth than oil quenching.

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.

Composition,Processing Technology and Property of Ceramic Die Materials Containing Rare Earth Additives

Development and application of new ceramic die materials is one of the important topics in the field of die research. The composition, processing technology, mechanical property and engineering performance of the ceramic materials such as cermet, ZTA, TZP, TZP/Al2O3, TZP/TiC/Al2O3, PSZ and Sialon, etc., with rare earth yttrium, lanthanum and cerium, and so on working as additives, were investigated and analyzed in the present study. Problems existed in the research and application of rare earth ceramic die materials were discussed. Rare earth additives can effectively improve the mechanical property and engineering performance of ceramic die materials. Thus, it will have further perspectives of wider application. More attention should be paid in the future to the toughening and strengthening of the ceramic die materials, the adding forms and kinds of rare earth elements and acting mechanisms of rare earth additives in ceramic die materials.

Effect of Deformation Condition on Axial Compressive Precision Forming Process of Tube with Curling Die

The effect of the deformation condition on the axial compressive precision forming process of tube with curling die was investigated by using a rigid-plastic FEM. The results show that the forming accuracy depends mainly on geometric condition rp/d0, little on tube material properties and friction condition; the relative gap △/2rp of double-walled tubes obtained decreases with Increasing rp/d0, and there is a parameter k for a given to/do or rp/t0, when rp/d0 >k, △/2rp< 1, otherwise △/2rp>1.

Neuro-Knowledge-Based Expert System (NKBES) for Optimal Scheming of Die Casting Process

We develop a neuro-knowledge-based expert system (NKBES) frame in this work. The system mainly concerns with decision of gating system and die casting machine based on a neuro-inference engine launched under the MATLAB software environment. For enhancement of reasoning agility, an error back-propagation neural network was applied. A rapidly convergent adaptive learning rate (ALR) and a momentum-based error back-propagation algorithm was used to conduct neuro-reasoning. The working effect of the system was compared to a conventional expert system that is based on a two-way (forward and backward) chaining inference mechanism. As the reference, the present paper provided the neural networks sum-squared error (S5E) and ALR vs iterative epoch curves of process planning case mentioned above. The study suggests that the neuro-modeling optimization application to die casting process design has good feasibility, and based on that a novel and effective intelligent expert system can be launched at low cost.

An Industrial Perspective on Magnesium Alloy Wheels: A Process and Material Design

Light weights wheels improve vehicle performance with respect to road handling, cornering as well providing fuel economy and reduced greenhouse gas emissions. Aluminum wheels are currently used in many models and are produced usually by low pressure assisted gravity casting. Important property requirements are fatigue strength, pressure tightness, tensile strength, impact resistance, and corrosion resistance. Many attempts have been made to convert aluminum road wheels to magnesium. Race cars and some of the high end models (Porsche, Ferrari, etc.) have used magnesium wheels. These wheels have been gravity cast or forged. Viable corrosion protection systems have been developed and magnesium wheels have been used with success on these models. To use magnesium on more modest models is a challenge due to cost issues. Higher productivity casting processes or more cost effective coating systems need to be utilized. The project consists of selecting magnesium alloys for road wheels, examining the possible cost effective casting processes and corrosion protection systems, evaluating the cost per one wheel and comparing it to aluminum wheel costs. The wheels will also be compared with respect to fatigue and impact properties, pressure tightness, and corrosion.

Humanoid Based Intelligence Control Strategy of Plastic Cement Die Press Work-Piece Forming Process for Polymer Plastics

The plastic cement belongs to a sort of polymer material, the chemical composition is very complex, and the plastic cement work-piece is generally manufactured by die press forming. Aimed at being difficult to control in parameters of forming process, the paper explored the humanoid based intelligence control strategy. In the paper, it made the anatomy in control puzzle resulted in uncertainty such as chemical component of plastic cement etc., summarized up the characteristic of cybernetics in forming process, researched on the humanoid based intelligence control strategy, and constructed the control algorithm of forming process in plastic cement work-piece. Taking the process experiment of temperature and pressure control as an example, it validated the good dynamic and static control quality through simulation of control algorithm constructed in this paper. The experimental results show that the control algorithm explored in this paper is reasonably available.

水箱安装支架级进模设计

通过对安装支架的冲压工艺及单工序模成形进行分析,确定采用11道工序的级进模进行成形。为保证条料的同步移动和送料顺畅,下模采用浮动顶料机构,还介绍了条料的粗定位和精定位。模具经试冲,结果表明:设计的排样方案和模具结构合理可行,能满足安装支架的大批量生产需求。

高压线束支架多工位连续模设计

该文分析高压线束支架的冲压成形工艺及排样方法,阐述该连续冲裁模的结构及工作零件的加工方法,凹模采用镶拼结构,节约模具钢,零件加工难度降低,制造成本降低。实践证明,该模具结构合理,冲件质量稳定,较好地满足冲件精度和批量生产的要求。

基于专利视角下分析国内模具产业发展现状与分布情况

结合国家关于模具产业方面的鼓励政策和模具产业领域的专利申请趋势,对国内模具产业技术及地域分布进行分析,通过信息采集、数据处理、数据可视化等方法,分析模具产业发展态势、技术热点研发趋势、产业高端人才情况,并重点分析了模具产业领域专利申请数量排名靠前的5位申请人,为模具产业发展提供知识产权支撑。

一种新型受电弓接线头的加工工艺及温挤压模具设计

介绍城轨车辆中的一种新型受电弓接线头,分析其结构特点和技术要求,提出一种新的加工工艺及关键的温挤压模具设计方案。实际应用表明,该设计方案可保证零件的成形质量及生产使用要求,对类似零件的模具设计与制造具有一定的参考作用。

基于正交试验的铝合金减速机壳体低压铸造工艺优化

利用数值模拟方法对铝合金蜗轮减速机壳体低压铸造过程进行分析,预测壳体中可能产生的缩松缩孔缺陷及位置分布,并分析其形成原因。在此基础上,通过改进冷却方案,并基于正交试验对工艺参数进行了多目标优化。得到的最优工艺参数为:浇注温度740℃、模具预热温度240℃、冷却水温度20℃。结果表明,优化后的壳体无缩松缩孔缺陷。通过生产试制和金相分析,验证了此优化工艺的可行性。

汽车车灯支架压铸工艺CAE分析及模具设计

分析了汽车车灯支架的结构特点,进行了压铸工艺设计,并应用ProCAST软件对该铝合金压铸件的充型过程、压铸模具热平衡和温度场进行了数值模拟分析,预测缺陷产生的位置及原因,根据预测结果对模具结构进行了优化。实际生产表明,采用优化后的模具设计方案提升了铸件质量。

塑料压花辊模具的加工工艺研究

通过分析塑料压花辊模具的加工工艺和优化切削加工参数,选用五轴数控机床完成模具的数控加工实践,有效解决塑料压花辊模具凹模型高硬度难加工问题。经过塑料压花辊模具现场使用验收,尺寸精度与表面粗糙度均达到使用性能要求,验证了模具数控加工工艺的合理性。塑料压花辊模具的加工工艺对类似辊类模具的加工具有一定的借鉴指导意义。