Objective
The main objective of this project is to develop a computer aided decision support system for improving the service life of production tools which are exposed to severe temperature changes and are therefore sensitive to thermal fatigue failure. Hot forging, die casting and glass forming operations are typical process where these phenomena occur and strongly affect the economy of production and quality of products.
The research and development activities will include fundamental investigations by micromechanical modelling and laboratory experiments as well as development of a computer aided decision support system which will be assessed in industrial practice.
Micromechanical modelling will be performed by a discrete element approach in order to improve fundamental understanding of the mechanics influencing thermal fatigue failure. Theoretical
investigations will be supported by experimental tests which are often very expensive since thousands of thermomechanical loading cycles need to be performed for different combinations of materials and contact conditions.
Therefore, an economically efficient laboratory test which represents a wide range of industrial processing conditions will be developed. Te expertise gained in the combined micromechanical and experimental approach will enable formulation of a sound constitutive model which will be implemented into a finite element based decision support system for predicting risks related to thermal fatigue.
The decision support system will be applied to optimise tool service life in hot forging, die casting and glass forming operations
Funding Scheme
CSC - Cost-sharing contractsCoordinator
SA2 8PP Swansea
United Kingdom
Participants (6)
1102 Ljubljana
2800 Lyngby
33085 Maniago
10051 Torino
35131 Padova
08034 Camp Barcelona
