Modelling of Flow Behaviour and Rheological Properties of M2 Steel in Semisolid State

The present study develops a model to investigate time dependent behaviours of M2 steel in semisolid state during step-change in shear rate. The Couette flow of the semisolid material between two parallel plates is considered. The flow field is presented by momentum conservation equation. The non-Newtoniun behaviour of the semisolid material is expressed by the Herschel-Bulkley model. The agglomeration and de-agglomeration phenomena of the suspended particles in semisolid state under shear are represented introducing a time dependent structural parameter. The proposed model fitted well with existing work in a wide range of shear rates and could predict the flow and apparent viscosity of semisolid M2 steel. Finally, the work involves prediction of the flow field, rate of strain and apparent viscosity of the semisolid material under transient condition. It is observed that the time dependent viscosity is highly non-linear during step-change in shear rate. It is noticed that the structural parameter decreases as the shear rate is increased. Whereas, the apparent viscosity decreases with increasing shear rate but shows an undulation and after that gradually rises to a higher steady value as the plate velocity decreases suddenly.

Effect of Casting Conditions on Fluidity of Aluminum Alloy in Die Casting

The fluidity of pure aluminum and Al-Si alloys was investigated for casting thin products using a spiral die in die casting. An aluminum alloy with good fluidity can be die-cast into thin products. For a Si content of less than 6 mass%, the fluidity increased with decreasing Si content. For a Si content of greater than 6 mass%, the fluidity increased with increasing Si content. The fluidity was affected by latent heat, flowability in the semisolid state, and heat transfer between the die and metal. For pure aluminum, the latent heat is small and there is no semisolid state. However, pure aluminum has excellent fluidity because the heat transfer between the die and metal is small. For Al-25%Si, the latent heat is very large and flowability increases in the semisolid state. Therefore, the fluidity of Al-25%Si is high. Fluidity typically increases with increasing die temperature. The increase in fluidity due to an increase in die temperature for the pure aluminum is small compared with that for hypoeutectic Al-Si alloys. This means that the heat transfer between the pure aluminum and the die is smaller than that for hypoeutectic Al-Si alloys. Therefore, the influence of die temperature on the fluidity of the pure aluminum is small. It is estimated that the chill layer of the pure aluminum rapidly peels from the die, decreasing the heat transfer between the pure aluminum and the die.

INDUSTRIAL SEMISOLID CASTING PROCESS FOR SECONDARY ALUMINIUM ALLOYS FOR DECARBONISING LIGHTWEIGHT PARTS IN AUTOMOTIVE SECTOR

The life cycle holistic approach for the automotive sector highlighted how much important is working on decarbonisation of Al casting processes to produce vehicle components. Broadening the use of recycled aluminium alloys, instead of high energy intensive primary aluminium alloys, is key for environment preservation. While primary aluminium alloys are preferred by automotive original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) because impurities (mainly Fe) present in secondary aluminium alloys might cause fatigue properties decay, a new semisolid state process route has been developed at Brembo to drastically reduce the sensitivity of cast aluminium to Fe impurities. Based on these premises, during the CRAL European project in the framework of the LIFE Programme, an industrial prototype machinery - a vertical high pressure die casting machine - has been designed and constructed to inject secondary aluminium in the semisolid state. A number of A357 Fe-enriched brake callipers manufactured via the new process route have been fully investigated by fatigue tests, SEM and OM analyses in order to validate the new eco-sustainable product compared to conventional ones manufactured with primary aluminium by gravity casting.

Semisolid State Sintering Behavior of Aluminum–Stainless Steel 316L Composite Materials by Powder Metallurgy

Aluminum (Al)-stainless steel 316L (SUS316L) composites were successfully fabricated by the spark plasma sintering process (SPS) using pure Al and SUS316L powders as raw materials. The Al-SUS316L composite powder comprising Al with 50 vol.% of SUS316L was prepared by a ball milling process. Subsequently, it was sintered at 630 °C at a pressure of 200 MPa and held for 5 min in a semisolid state. The X-ray diffraction (XRD) patterns show that intermetallic compounds such as Al13Fe4 and AlFe3 were created in the Al-SUS316L composite because the Al and SUS316L particles reacted together during the SPS process. The presence of these intermetallic compounds was also confirmed by using XRD, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), and EDS mapping. The mechanical hardness of the Al-SUS316L composites was analyzed by a Vickers hardness tester. Surprisingly, the Al-SU316L composite exhibited a Vickers hardness of about 620 HV. It can be concluded that the Al-SUS316L composites fabricated by the SPS process are lightweight and high-hardness materials that could be applied in the engineering industry such as in automobiles, aerospace, and shipbuilding.

Thixoforming of Semisolid Slurry with High Fraction Solid Fabricated by Partial Melting of Commerical Wrought Aluminum Alloys

Semisolid slurries of four wrought alloys were fabricated via partial melting of commerical wrought aluminum alloy. Thixoforming experiments of four typical parts were performed. The results showed that a large amount of equiaxed grains before soaking in semisolid state were created due to recrystallization occurred in the continuous heating from room temperature to a given temperature above recrystallization temperature. It provides a desirable microstructure to form spheroidal grains during the next soaking process in semisolid state. The microstructure of the 2A12,7A04 and 7075 semisolid slurry consisted of fine and spheroidal grains. The elongation of the thixoformed parts were higher those of the hot-rolled plate. The UTS of the thixoformed parts were close or ever higher than those of the hot-rolled plate. Although the grain size and roundness of the 5A06 semisolid slurry are not very desirable, the mechanical properties of the thixoformed part are close or ever than those of the hot-rolled plate. The high mechanical properties of the thixoformed parts further confirmed the feasibility of short-process thixoforming route

A Study on Bar Drawing Process of A356 Alloy in Semisolid State

A bar drawing process of an aluminium alloy in semisolid state is presented in the work. The drawing process depends on various parameters such as temperature, die-angle, shear rate etc., accordingly a study is considered. The work involves development of a model to investigate the drawing process of A356 alloy in semisolid range. The rheology of the alloy in semisolid state shows a distinct behaviour and reduces energy requirement during the drawing process. In the context, a model suitably represents the rheology of the alloy is considered to perform a study of the process in details. An analytical and a numerical solutions are combined together to solve the governing equations. Finally, in the work, the distribution of velocity, viscosity variation and drawing power of the semisolid alloy under shear are predicted in the domain. It is found that the energy requirement is reasonably less in case of semisolid bar drawing process compare to a conventional bar drawing process. Finally, the drawing power required to deform a conventional solid A356 alloy is compared with that of the semisolid A356 alloy.