Characteristics and precautions of aluminum alloy forging process
Aluminum alloy, as one of the most widely used materials in the world, is widely used in various industrial fields due to its lightweight, high strength, and good processing performance. Aluminum alloy forging, as an important processing technology, has many unique process characteristics.
Although the density of aluminum alloy is low, its strength is close to or even higher than that of high-quality steel, while having good plasticity and processability. In addition, aluminum alloy also has excellent conductivity, thermal conductivity, and corrosion resistance, making its industrial usage second only to steel. By appropriate heat treatment, aluminum alloys can achieve good mechanical properties, physical properties, and corrosion resistance.
In the design of aluminum alloy forgings, not only the shape and structure of the parts need to be considered, but also the material's deformation resistance and flowability and other ductility indicators need to be taken into account. Although aluminum alloy is a material with good malleability, special attention still needs to be paid in the forging design of certain special structures. For example, streamline distribution is an important feature in the design of aluminum alloy forgings, especially in the design of short transverse streamline directions that are sensitive to stress corrosion.
High strength aluminum alloys are particularly sensitive to stress corrosion, and the exposure of the flow line end on the fly edge will accelerate stress corrosion. Therefore, when designing the parting surface and mold for such aluminum alloy forgings, full attention should be paid to the issue of exposed streamlined ends. The design principle of aluminum alloy pre forging die is consistent with that of steel forgings, but due to the narrow forging temperature range of aluminum alloy, it needs to be reheated after pre forging. Therefore, pre forging dies for aluminum alloys are usually designed and manufactured separately, and have flash grooves.
Aluminum alloy forgings have poor rigidity and are prone to deformation when removed from the mold. For the convenience of extracting forgings, the complex side of the forging is usually placed in the lower mold. A forging with symmetrical parting surface shape can increase the forging slope of the upper die or decrease the forging slope of the lower die, which helps to keep the forging on the lower die.