Evolution of microstructure and material properties during combined stamping-forging of aluminium and magnesium alloys

• Main Author: Tay, Stanley Wei Liang
• Other Authors: Castagne Sylvie Jeanne Constance
• Format: Final Year Project
• Language: English
• Published: 2016
• Subjects: DRNTU::Engineering
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10356/67099
• Institution: Nanyang Technological University

In recent years, there has been an increasing demand for light weight products of intricate geometrical complexities. Currently, the existing sheet-bulk metal forming processes have the capability of producing thin walled metal parts of near net shape sizes. However, the conventional methods of forming i.e., forging or drawing, often have limitations. These methods face challenges such as high loading pressure and also the possibility of having defects due to the forming behaviour of the material. In order to cope with these issues, a new form of manufacturing process involving multiple stages, combined stamping-forging, has been introduced. In this study, the concept of a multiple step combined stamping-forging process is evaluated by investigating its effectiveness on aluminium and magnesium alloys. Furthermore, hardness testing and metallography techniques are employed to understand the evolution of microstructure and material properties of these alloys during the process. This research has found the effectiveness of combined stamping-forging on aluminium alloy 1100. However, forming with magnesium alloy AZ31 serves as a challenge due to its low formability properties. The feasibility of forming with magnesium alloy AZ31 should be experimented in future with a reduced strain rate during the operation. This aims to increase the fracture toughness for a defect-free fabrication.