This article presents a sequential model of the heating-remelting-cooling of steel samples based on the finite element method (FEM) and the smoothed particle hydrodynamics (SPH). The numerical implementation of the developed solution was completed as part of the original DEFFEM 3D package, being developed for over ten years, and is a dedicated tool to aid physical simulations performed with modern Gleeble thermo-mechanical simulators. Using the developed DEFFEM 3D software to aid physical simulations allows the number of costly tests to be minimized, and additional process information to be obtained, e.g. achieved local cooling rates at any point in the sample tested volume, or characteristics of temperature changes. The study was complemented by examples of simulation and experimental test results, indicating that the adopted model assumptions were correct. The developed solution is the basis for the development of DEFFEM 3D software aimed at developing a comprehensive numerical model allows the simulation of deformation of steel in semi solid state.
The paper presents a multi-scale mathematical model dedicated to a comprehensive simulation of resistance heating combined with the melting and controlled cooling of steel samples. Experiments in order to verify the formulated numerical model were performed using a Gleeble 3800 thermo-mechanical simulator. The model for the macro scale was based upon the solution of Fourier-Kirchhoff equation as regards predicting the distribution of temperature fields within the volume of the sample. The macro scale solution is complemented by a functional model generating voluminal heat sources, resulting from the electric current flowing through the sample. The model for the micro-scale, concerning the grain growth simulation, is based upon the probabilistic Monte Carlo algorithm, and on the minimization of the system energy. The model takes into account the forming mushy zone, where grains degrade at the melting stage – it is a unique feature of the micro-solution. The solution domains are coupled by the interpolation of node temperatures of the finite element mesh (the macro model) onto the Monte Carlo cells (micro model). The paper is complemented with examples of resistance heating results and macro- and micro-structural tests, along with test computations concerning the estimation of the range of zones with diverse dynamics of grain growth.
This research is focused on the analysis of heat-affected sub-zones in 2 mm thick steel S960MC samples, with the aim of observing and evaluating the mechanical properties after exposure to temperatures corresponding to individual heat-affected sub-zones. Test samples were prepared using a Gleeble 3500 thermo-mechanical simulator. The samples were heated in the range from 550°C to 1350°C and were subsequently quickly cooled. The specimens, together with the base material, were then subjected to tensile testing, impact testing, and micro-hardness measurements in the sample cross-section, as well as evaluation of their microstructure. Fracture surfaces are investigated in samples after impact testing. The heat-affected sub-zones studied indicate high sensitivity to the thermal input of welding. There is a significant decrease in tensile strength and yield strength at temperatures around 550°C.