TECHNICAL DEVELOPMENT REPORT THIRTY YEARS OF CASTING PROCESS SIMULATION
E. Flender and J. Sturm Magma GmbH, Aachen, Germany
Copyright © 2010 American Foundry Society
Editors Note: The main intention of this paper was to provide an easy to read overview for foundries addressing the development, current state, and future of casting process simulation including quite a bit of personal opinion from the authors. Consequently, the paper is written from the subjective standpoint of the authors from a European point of view. The authors are well aware of early work which was done in the United States and are close friends to many of those who have championed these efforts. As this paper was not intended as a scientific summary, the authors simply told their personal story. Other European and Japanese scientists and research groups, not mentioned in this report, have been just as instrumental in the casting modeling ball rolling.
Abstract
Not many developments in recent decades have changed the understanding of the metalcasting process as fundamentally as casting process simulation has. The main intention of this paper is to provide an easy to read and attractive overview for foundrymen addressing the development, current state, and future of casting process
Introduction
The well-known book about the foundry history, “5000 Years of Metal Casting”, details the tremendous capabilities of foundrymen, as well as their important contributions to the development of civilization. It also describes their enor- mous endurance and perseverance, as their ability to achieve progress was through the painstaking process of trial and er- ror. Not until the development of simulation methods was it possible to replace the hands-on practice of trial and error with numerical modeling, using science to replace what was once perceived of as a “black art”.
The description of the metal casting process in a physical- mathematical model and its calculation in a computer de- manded the quantification of process parameters and process steps as they impact the casting quality. Instead of drawing conclusions from conventional casting results on potential process modifications, i.e., scrap castings showed that the last iteration didn’t work, simulation results display cast- ing quality as the combination of a multitude of parameters, which can be manipulated individually (Figure 1).
The idea of utilizing numerical models to predict the filling and solidification of castings came from physicists, mathematicians, and mechanical engineers. Initially, there was substantial skep- ticism from within the foundry community: Comments such as, “I don’t need a computer to predict hot spots,” and “We deliver good castings already” were abundant. Nevertheless, casting process simulation has gained acceptance as a tool in foundries,
International Journal of Metalcasting/Spring 10
simulation from the point of view of the European authors.
Keywords: simulation, filling, solidification, modeling, autonomous optimization, thermophysical, microstructure, heat treatment, stress, distortion
especially in the last fifteen years. Foundry engineers, manage- ment and even customers have recognized that simulation tools provide more than just a look into a black box. Today, casting process simulation is utilized to develop a technical knowledge database, as a management tool to provide training and edu- cation to foundry personnel, and to facilitate communications both within a corporation as well as with customers. A com- ment frequently made by foundry managers who successfully implemented simulation, is: “I never imagined that simulation would change our company so dramatically.”
Figure 1. The biggest benefit of the casting process is its ability to perform many tasks at the same time. However, it is also its biggest drawback, as many process parameters are linked to each other and have to
be considered simultaneously. 7
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