171 / 1 Industrial Application of Thixoforming at SAG Josef Wöhrer
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Industrial Application of Thixoforming at SAG Josef Wöhrer and Andreas Kraly Salzburger Aluminium AG in Lend (Austria) Abstract SAG is a producer of thixoforming raw material for worldwide use at different producers of Semi Solid Metalforming serial parts. The SAG subsidiary Thixalloy® Components Company produces by itself complex designed Thixoforming parts in Alloy A356/A357 for different applications. The production of weldable structure parts and weldable pressure tight parts plays an important role as well as the production of surface treated parts for industrial use. The customer benefits are tight dimensional tolerances, superior weldability with high process ability, good mechanical properties in the thixoformed condition with and without heat treatment, pressure tightness up to 80 bar after welding, good surface quality and good behaviour in plating. Yield strengths of 200 MPa can be reached with a very cost efficient T5 heat treatment on TX 540 AlMg5Si2Mn or TX630 AlSi7Mg0.8. The so called Silicon Spheroidization Treatment (SST) is described which enables real parts to fulfil the high demands and to reach the values which are needed on suspension parts and wheels. Additionally in this paper are shown parts which are produced with alloy type MAXXALLOY TX540 Al5Mg2Mn in Thixoforming. So Thixoforming works out as a more and more cost efficient process for Aluminum parts with high quality requirements. Key words: Thixalloy, Thixoforming, SST, Serial parts, Structure parts, Maxxalloy 171 / 1 Introduction The increasing need of lighter and safer cars is the driving force behind research in the area of high strength light metal safety part applications. This also influences dramatically the technological changes to the automobil and has consequences for manufacturers, component suppliers and equipment manufacturers (Figure 1). Since 1898 the Salzburger Aluminium AG (SAG) in Lend, Austria has been a competent partner in aluminum processes. SAG has been on the forefront when it comes to introducing new technologies in smelting, casting and treating aluminum. SAG prides itself in continuously building upon experience and innovation in both technological advances as well as human resources. The close cooperation with universities, research centers and partners constantly keeps the company abreast with the latest findings in development and know-how resulting in state-of-the-art applied technologies mirrored in the high standard and range of the products. The plant has an annual capacity of 45,000 tons whereas 25,000 tons are solely based on recycling activities. Furthermore, SAG has a casting line, independend from regular production, equipped with own furnace and horizontal casting machine for training as well as research and development purposes. Process-ability and quality control are of highest importance to the company leading to the following process steps: • Scrap material control by melting tests; • Alloy determination; • Melting in any one of the three hearth furnaces or the closed well furnace; • Metal treatment and stirring; • Metal quality control; • Casting process on the horizontal casting machines with continuous metal treatment (degasser, filter box and rod feeder); • Product quality control by analysis of material density, conductivity, • Stacking and packaging including marking ready for transport. The process leads to the high quality of the products such as foundry alloys, extrusion billets, thixotropic and cast forging billets/slugs, cast plates and bus bars. SAG has a recognized experience in casting special alloys, specifically using billets the standard diameters varying from 67 up to 203 mm, with developed technology to cast 50 or 32 mm diameter. The reasons for the excellent quality and variety of the products are based on the long-time experience of SAG and the advanced constructions and designs of casting moulds. Based on comparing investigations with other casting processes (e.g. vertical die casting) the horizontal casting technology gives SAG further advantages in their production. E.g. to a length of 18 m, enabling cutting billets to length during the casting process according to customer requirements. Other benefits include the well known economical aspects such as low energy consumption, low 171 / 2 investment costs, lower necessity of consumables. The duration of the cast can last up to 120 hours casting time and more. The mould technology with high cooling rate and optimized lubrication assures a high productivity and quality. The mould design furthermore allows a higher number of strands on smaller equipment sizes. Process control automation and documentation, automatic starting programs are standards. Starting Material – Billets – Slugs The future development of lightweight construction (automotive and transport industry) depend especially on material properties of the used components. The claim of better material properties with simultaneous weight reduction gives rise to the development of technologically advanced casting and forming methods. Horizontal continuous casting (HCC) and thixoforming meet these requirements. SAG has 30 years of experience in HCC and more than 10 years with HCC materials. (One by SAG registered THIXALLOY® material). Starting material for the thixoforming process billets with a uniform and finely globulitic structure are produced by magnetically stirred HCC process according to the MHD technique (Magneto-Hydro-Dynamic Stirring), in diameters from 2.5 up to 6 inches. Although alternative processes have recently appeared, they havenot yet made any decisive impact in the industrial context because the quality of the starting material is decisive for that of the components produced. In SAG’s case the process is mainly used for weldable structure parts, surface treated parts, suspension parts and wheels in the automotive industries. In-line melt treatment and the continuous control of all the casting parameters ensure that the structure is the producible. Since no melting is involved in the thixoforming process, no metal purification and structure adjustment measures are needed there either. The main characteristics of billets made by the company’s MHD-process are: • Extremely fine grained billets: max. 130 µm grain size; • Good billet surface: max. class 2 (according to SAG’s internal standard); • High process ability and high metal purity during billet production; • Non-metallic inclusions: max. 40 µm; • Content of hydrogen: DI max. 5 %; • Porosity: max. 100 µm; • Peripherical zone: max. 7 mm. A list of available diameters of the billets for industrial processing depends on the used thixoforming process and mainly on the locking forces of their machines. (See Table 1) 171 / 3 Table 1: A list of available diameters of the billets for industrial processing depends on the used thixoforming process and mainly on the locking forces of their machines. Diameter 2.5 inch 3 inch 3.5 inch 4 inch 5 inch 6 inch Metric in 63.5 76.2 88.9 101.6 28 152.4 mm Locking 300-700 500-800 700-100 800-1200 100-1600 1600-2700 Force tons tons tons tons tons tons Shot 1.0-2.0 kg 1.5-3.0 kg 2.0-4.0 kg 3.5-7.0 kg 6.0-12.0 kg 10.0-20.0 Weight kg A list of available alloys mainly used for industrial thixo-processing with respecting reached mechanical properties in raw-parts can be found in Table 2. Table 2: A list of available alloys mainly used for industrial thixo- processing with respecting reached mechanical properties. Alloy Alloy Type Condition F: Thixalloy ® 615 AlSi7Mg0.15 Rp0.2: 100 Mpa Rm: 180 Mpa A: 15% Thixalloy ® 630 AlSi7Mg0.30 Rp0.2: 120 Mpa Rm: 230 Mpa A: 12% Thixalloy ® 640 AlSi7Mg0.40 Rp0.2: 130 Mpa Rm: 240 Mpa A: 10% Thixalloy ® 650 AlSi7Mg0.55 Rp0.2: 140 Mpa Rm: 250 Mpa A: 8% Thixalloy ® 680 AlSi7Mg0.80 Rp0.2: 150 Mpa Rm: 260 Mpa A: 5% The continuously cast billets are sawn into slugs within close weight tolerances. The slugs are dispatched to the further processors in containers optimally adapted for their machine loading logistics. The customer benefits with MHD stirred billets are mainly given by: • A homogenous distribution of silicon and accompanied alloyed elements in the cross section of the billet; • A low free liquid phase at the end of the heating cycle; • Saving of induction heating time during the preheating of slugs in the followed thixoforming process; • Reduced investment for induction furnaces; • A low scrap rate; and at least above all; • Better mechanical properties of parts; • High and constant serial quality -> 1 batch = 10,000 slugs and constant properties through the MHD process. 171 / 4 Thixoforming Process Between molten and solid state, alloys show thixo-tropic behavior. The homological basis of this behavior is due to the fact that with increasing shear forces, the solid-phase skeleton of the metallic structure can be completely dismantled (2) This is the most important precondition to achieve low-viscous flow, which finally allows the production of extremely complex shaped parts with very small forming forces. Under low shear forces, the material shows a solid-state behavior and therefore can be handled like a solid part. SAG heats slugs while positioned horizontally in an inductive heating unit for individual billets. This avoids having to tilt them (as would be necessary in a carousel unit) once they have been softened. The power input is determined and controlled by a computer system. This enables the required homogeneous molten fraction to be produced in the slug with pinpoint accuracy, even without temperature measurements. The final adjustment of the structure is carried out during this heating process. The α-phase is of globular shape, and the metal will only behave thixotropically if this is so. The benefits of induction billet heating and characteristics of the company’s thixoforming process compared to other processes (e.g. die casting units) lies mainly in: • No liquid metal process (therefore less hydrogen); • No melt house, dross, fumes and losses in process environment; • Horizontal billet heating and sure handling; • Exact heat content billet by billet; • Semi solid forming under low shear stress.