Mats Oldenburg

Modelling and simulation of metal powder die pressing with use of explicit time integration

The pressing of hard metal components is analysed with numerical methods. The analysed components are selected from produced components for which the density distribution in the material after pressing has been measured. The expected results from the analyses are the density distribution and the springback after unloading and ejection of the components. The highly non-linear quasistatic problem is analysed with the use of explicit integration of the equations of motion. A contact constraint method based on direct integration of the equations of the contact interface is used in the analyses. The contact and friction algorithms have been developed in earlier work and are further verified by analyses of a test problem that has an analytical solution. The behaviour of the powder is described by a special cap plasticity material model developed for powder applications. In one example the results obtained using the cap model are compared with results obtained with a multisurface plasticity model. The parameters of the constitutive models are fitted to triaxial experimental data through optimization methods. The presented methods are evaluated by comparing the results with experimental data from density measurements where a technique based on gamma ray absorption is used. The density distributions are qualitatively in good agreement with experimental results. The springback obtained in the simulation of unloading and ejection is in good agreement with measured values.

Testing and evaluation of material data for analysis of forming and hardening of boron steel components

Finite element modelling and simulation is becoming an increasingly important tool in the development process for structural automotive components, manufactured using thermo-mechanical forming techniques. Accurate and reliable analysis of coupled thermo-mechanical processes requires efficient simulation tools as well as good quality and relevant material data, usually obtained by experimental testing of the mechanical and thermal properties. The work present in this paper concerns methods for obtaining and evaluating the mechanical properties, required for modelling the high-temperature forming of a high-strength boron-alloyed steel. The material data was obtained from high temperature compression tests and dilatometric measurements made using a Gleeble 1500 thermo-mechanical simulator. Two examples of finite element simulations using the data obtained are also presented. The first example is an isothermal finite element simulation of a thin-walled tubular beam subjected to high-temperature bending. The predicted press force showed acceptable agreement with experimental results in the initial part of the process. In the second example, a cylindrical specimen compressed during continuous cooling was simulated, and the press force and radial displacement were compared with experimental results. Again the simulations showed acceptable agreement with experimental results but indicated the need for further improvements in the simulation technology and methods used for material parameter evaluation.

Numerical implementation of a constitutive model for simulation of hot stamping

In order to increase the accuracy of numerical simulations of the hot stamping process, an accurate and robust constitutive model is crucial. During the process, a hot blank is inserted into a tool where it is continuously formed and cooled. For the steel grades often used for this purpose, the initially austenitized blank will decompose into different product phases depending on the cooling and mechanical history. As a consequence, the phase proportions change will affect both the thermal and mechanical properties of the continuously formed and cooled blank. A thermo-elastic–plastic constitutive model based on the von Mises yield criterion with associated plastic flow is implemented into the LS-Dyna finite element code. Models accounting for the austenite decomposition and transformation induced plasticity are included in the constitutive model.The implemented model results are compared with experimental dilatation results with and without externally applied forces. Further, the calculated isothermal mechanical response during the formation of a new phase is compared with the corresponding experimental response for two different temperatures.

Identification of lumped parameter automotive crash models for bumper system development

During the design and development process of bumper systems for the automotive industry, information about the future car model is limited. Normally, iterative finite element (FE) analyses of different crash loading tests are used to find an appropriate bumper system to the coming car model. Because of the lack of information, only a rough model of the car is normally utilised in the FE simulations. This leads to uncertainties in the bumper design since the dynamic response of the car is dependent on the load case and the properties of the actual bumper system. This paper presents a method for identification of lumped parameter models based on results from crash tests of a Volvo S40. The ability to predict the measured results for models with different number of degrees of freedom (DOF) is investigated. Also, a validation of the model together with an FE mesh of the bumper system is presented. The results clearly show that a linear mass spring damper model with 2 DOF can be used to predict the response from the measurements in case of symmetric loading. Further increase of the number of DOF only causes small or no improvements of the agreement between the predicted and measured crash response.

Material parameter estimation for boron steel from simultaneous cooling and compression experiments

In order to increase the accuracy of numerical simulations of the hot stamping process, reliable material data is crucial. Traditionally, the material is characterized by several isothermal compression or tension tests performed at elevated temperatures and different strain rates. The drawback of the traditional methods is the appearance of unwanted phases for some test temperatures and durations. Such an approach is also both time consuming and expensive. In the present work an alternative approach is proposed, which reduces unwanted phase changes and the number of experiments. The isothermal mechanical response is established through inverse modelling of simultaneous cooling and compression experiments. The estimated material parameters are validated by comparison with data from a separate forming experiment. The computed global response is shown to be in good agreement with the experiments.

Numerical simulation of powder compaction for two multilevel ferrous parts, including powder characterisation and experimental validation

Abstract The paper presents a summary of two case studies that were carried out by the scientific team in the Thematic Network PM Modnet. During the life of this project, the compaction of complex multilevel ferrous components was investigated. These formed a vehicle to explore methods to characterise the yield and friction properties of the powder, perform simulation of the compression stage of the forming process, complete experimental trials, and compare experimental and simulated results. Density comparisons were made with results from Archimedes, quantitative metallography, and computerised tomography and force levels were compared with recordings from the pressing trials. The results highlight differences between equipment and experimental techniques used in characterising powders. They also show that hardness, metallographic analysis, and computerised tomography may be used to measure density variations throughout the compact. The prediction of density variation was reasonably consistent when using different simulations, whereas punch force prediction showed good consistency. It was found that predicted and measured density distributions agree within 0·05 to 0·5 g cm-3 and that punch force levels may be predicted within 10 to 30%. The study effectively establishes a benchmark with which to compare and improve future simulations.

Experimental and Numerical Evaluation of the Heat Transfer Coefficient in Press Hardening

When producing thin ultra high strength steel components with the press hardening process, it is essential that the final component achieves desirable material properties. This applies in particular to passive automotive safety components where it is of great importance to accurately predict the final component properties early in the product development process. The transfer of heat is a key process that affects the evolution of the mechanical properties in the product and it is essential that the thermal contact conditions between the blank and tool are properly described in the forming simulations. In this study an experimental setup is developed combined with an elementary inverse simulation approach to predict the interfacial heat transfer coefficient (IHTC) when the hot blank and cold tool are in mechanical contact. Different process conditions such as contact pressure and blank material (22MnB5 and Usibor 1500P) are investigated. In the inverse simulation, a thermo-mechanical coupled simulation model is used with a thermo-elastic-plastic constitutive model including effects from changes in the microstructure during quenching. The results from simulations give the variations of the heat transfer coefficient in time for best match to experimental results. It is found that the pressure dependence for the two materials is different and the heat transfer coefficient is varying during quenching. This information together with further testing will be used as a base in a future model of the heat transfer coefficient influence at different conditions in press hardening process.

Smoothed Particle Hydrodynamic Simulation of Iron Ore Pellets Flow

In this work the Smoothed Particle Hydrodynamics (SPH) method is used to simulate iron ore pellets flow. A continuum material model describing the yield strength, elastic and plastic parameters for pellets as a granular material is used in the simulations. The most time consuming part in the SPH method is the contact search of neighboring nodes at each time step. In this study, a position code algorithm for the contact search is presented. The cost of contact searching for this algorithm is of the order of Nlog2N, where N is the number of nodes in the system. The SPH‐model is used for simulation of iron ore pellets silo flow. A two dimensional axisymmetric model of the silo is used in the simulations. The simulation results are compared with data from an experimental cylindrical silo, where pellets are discharged from a concentric outlet. Primary the flow pattern is compared.

Modelling and simulation of seat-integrated safety belts including studies of pelvis and torso responses in frontal crashes

Abstract The aim of the present study is to investigate how the physical properties influence the interaction of the seat back frame and the safety belt. Seat-integrated 3- and 4-point configurations with both non-rigid and rigid seat back frames were compared with common 3-point configurations with anchor points on the car body. The LS-DYNA FE-analysis software was used in order to perform frontal crash simulations with a belted 50th percentile Hybrid III FE-dummy model as occupant. The belt-webbing distribution between the lap and the torso belts via a slip-ring and in combination with a non-rigid seat back frame increases the ride-down efficiency compared to a system with no belt-webbing distribution. No tendencies of pelvis submarining were observed regardless of belt configuration. The dynamic response of the seat back frame has some influence on the ride-down efficiency.

VERIFICATION OF THERMOMECHANICAL MATERIAL MODELS BY THIN-PLATE QUENCHING SIMULATIONS

A computational model for quenching simulations of thin plates has been developed. The model is examined by comparisons with experiments with one-sided water spray cooling. With this experiment, th ...