4.

0 Metal working processes

Metal working process:
Metals can be formed into different useful
shapes such as tubes, rods, and sheets by
using two basic ways
By plastic deformation processes in which
the volume and mass of metal are conserved
and the metal is displaced from one location
to another.
By metal removal or machining processes
in which the material is removed in order to
give it the required shape.
Mechanical working processes are of two
types depending on the final product
produced.
Primary mechanical working processes:
These are the working processes which are
designed to reduce an ingot or billet to a
standard mill product of simple shape such
as sheet, plate, and bar.
Secondary mechanical working processes:
These are forming methods which produce
a part to a final finished shape.
The plastic deformation processes can be
further divided into different categories
such as:
Direct-compression type process
Indirect-compression process
Tension type process
Bending process
Shearing process
In direct compression processes the
force is applied to the surface of the work
piece, and the metal flows at right angles
to the direction of the compression.
The chief example of this type of
processes are forging and rolling.
Indirect compression processes include
wire drawing and tube drawing, extrusion,
and the deep drawing of a cup. The primary
applied forces are frequently tensile, but the
indirect compressive forces developed by the
reaction of the work piece with the die reach
high values. Therefore the metal flows under
the action of a combined stress state which
includes high compressive forces in at least
one of the principal directions.
The best example of the tension type
forming process is stretch forming,
where a metal sheet is wrapped to the
contour of a die under the application of
the tensile forces.
In bending process the metal sheet is
subjected to bending moments.

In shearing their will be application of

shearing forces of sufficient magnitude to
rupture the metal in the plane of shear.
Forming processes can be classified into two
types depending on the temperature of the
working.

Cold working

Hot working
Cold working:

It is deformation carried out under

conditions where recovery processes are not
effective. It is carried out at temperatures
less than 0.6 Tm. During cold working,
strain hardening is observed and also grains
become distorted. The mechanical
properties are sensitive to structure and
hence they get affected. Also other
properties get affected due to increase in
defect density during cold working.
Hardness and tensile strength progressively
increases with the increase in the degree of
deformation or the cold working. Internal
stresses also increases due to increase in the
deformation of the lattice and increase in
defect density. This reflects in increase in
electric resistance and decrease in the
corrosion resistance. Due to increase in
hardness, the ductility of the material
decreases. These effects are shown in the
figure.
Property variation during cold working
With cold working metals become hard and
brittle and hence, it is not possible to work
them without cracking beyond a certain
limit. Therefore, if cold working is to be
continued, the metal must be made soft or
ductile by heat treatment process known
as annealing.
Annealing consists of heating the cold
worked metals to some temperature above
the recrystallization temperature. Holding at
this temperature for a definite time, usually
1 hour, and cooling to room temperature.

The various changes that occur during this

process is divided into three steps as

Recovery
Recrystallization
Grain growth
Recovery: In this region, the mechanical
properties remain the same as cold worked
metal. However due to heating, some of the
imperfections such as vacancies and
dislocations get eliminated which lead to
pronounced changes in the internal
stresses, electric resistance and corrosion
resistance of the material.
Recrystallization: In this region, old distorted
grains get replaced by new equiaxed stress
free, strain free grains by a process of
nucleation and growth. Due to this the micro
structure at the end of recrystallization
process is similar to original structure prior
to cold working. Due to change in the
structure, all the mechanical properties are
changed and almost become equal to the
original properties. Also internal stresses
totally get eliminated.
The temperature at which recrystallization is
carried out is known as the recrystallization
temperature. This temperature is a function
of the following factors
Melting point of the metal.
Degree of cold work.
Grain size.
Purity of metal.
Heating rate.
Generally recrystallization temperatures of
most of the metals lie in-between 0.4 to
0.6 of melting point in degree Kelvin. The
grain size obtained at the end of the
recrystallization depends on the
temperature of heating, time of heating,
heating rate, degree of cold work and type
and level of impurities.
Grain growth: If a completely
recrystallized material is heated to a
higher temperature or kept for a long tome
at the annealing temperature, it will show
pronounced grain growth. This type of
grain growth is not desirable because it
decreases useful properties. However this
will be useful in the growth of single
crystals. The driving force for this is the
reduction in the free energy of the system
which is mainly due to the reduction in
grain boundary area.
Large grains formed in the Ti-V alloy
formed after holding for long time at
recrystallization temperature
Changes in properties and microstructures in
various stages of annealing
The following micro graphs illustrate the
progress of recrystallization and grain
growth of cold-worked brass after
annealing at a constant temperature of
10750F at 40x.
Cold worked
Start of recrystallization
After 8 minutes of recrystallization
After 20 minutes of recrystallization
After of 40 minutes of recrystallization
After recrystallization for 50 minutes
After recrystallization for 1 hour
Hot working: It is defined as deformations
under conditions of temperature and strain
rate such that recovery processes take
place simultaneously with the deformation
process so that large strains can be
achieved with essentially no strain
hardening. Hot working processes such as
rolling, extrusion, or forging typically are
used in the first step of converting a cast
ingot into a wrought product. Hot working
is usually carried out at temperatures above
0.6 Tm and at high strain rates in the range
0.5 to 500 s-1.
Effect of grain size on the surface appearance
of brass sheet
Advantages of hot working: The various
advantages of hot working are

It requires less energy to deform the

metal and their will be an increased ability
to flow without cracking.

Rapid diffusion at hot-working

temperatures aids in decreasing the
chemical inhomogeneities of the cast-ingot
structure.
 Blowholes and porosity are eliminated by
the welding together of these cavities.

Coarse columnar grains break down and

get refined into smaller equiaxed
recrystallized grains.

Increase in ductility and toughness.

Disadvantages of hot working: The various
disadvantages of hot working are

Because of high temperatures there will

be surface reactions between the metal and
the furnace atmospheres.

Oxidation may result if carried out at

ordinary atmospheres hence carried out in
an inert atmosphere which is costly.
 The structure and properties of hot-
worked metals are generally not so uniform
over the cross-section.

Grain growth may occur in the interior of

large pieces which reduces the properties of
the given material.
Different mechanical working processes
which are explained here include:
Forging
Rolling
Extrusion
Drawing
Forging:
It is the process by which metal is heated and
is shaped by plastic deformation by suitably
applying compressive force. Usually the
compressive force is in the form of hammer
blows using a power hammer or a press.
Forging refines the grain structure and
improves physical properties of the metal.
With proper design, the grain flow can be
oriented in the direction of principal
stresses encountered in actual use. Grain
flow is the direction of the pattern that
the crystals take during plastic
deformation. Physical properties (such as
strength, ductility and toughness) are
much better in a forging than in the base
metal, which has, crystals randomly
oriented.
Forgings are consistent from piece to piece,
without any of the porosity, voids, inclusions
and other defects. Thus, finishing operations
such as machining do not expose voids,
because there aren't any. Also coating
operations such as plating or painting are
straightforward due to a good surface, which
needs very little preparation.
Forgings yield parts that have high strength
to weight ratio-thus are often used in the
design of aircraft frame members.

A Forged metal can result in the following

Increase length, decrease cross-section,
called drawing out the metal.
Decrease length, increase cross-section,
called upsetting the metal.
Change length, change cross-section, by
squeezing in closed impression dies. This
results in favorable grain flow for strong
parts.
Common Forging Processes:
The metal can be forged hot (above
recrystallization temperatures) or cold.

Depending on the method, forging can be

classified into two types:
Open die forging
Closed die forging
Open Die Forgings / Hand Forgings:
Open die forgings or hand forgings are made
with repeated blows in an open die, where
the operator manipulates the workpiece in
the die. The finished product is a rough
approximation of the die. This is what a
traditional blacksmith does, and is an old
manufacturing process.
Closed die forging:
It is also known as impression die Forgings
or Precision forgings. This is further
refinements of the blocker forgings i.e., the
product of the open die forging is treated
with close die process so that the finished
part more closely resembles the die
impression.
Design Consideration: some design
considerations to be followed while
performing forgings are:
Parting surface should be along a single
plane if possible, else follow the contour of
the part. The parting surface should be
through the center of the part, not near the
upper or lower edges. If the parting line
cannot be on a single plane, then it is good
practice to use symmetry of the design to
minimize the side thrust forces. Any point on
the parting surface should be less than 75
from the principal parting plane.
 As in most forming processes, use of
undercuts should be avoided, as these will
make the removal of the part difficult, if not
impossible.
Recommended draft angles are described
in the following table.
 Material Draft Angle ()

Aluminum 0-2

Copper Alloys (Brass) 0-3

Steel 5-7

Stainless Steel 5-8

 Generous fillets and radius should be
provided to aid in material flow during the
forging process. Sharp corners are stress-
risers in the forgings, as well as make the
dies weak in service. Recommended
minimum radiuses are described in the
following table.
Height of Min. Corner Min. Fillet
Protrusion Radius Radius
mm mm mm
(in) (in) (in)
12.5 1.5 5
(0.5) (0.06) (0.2)
25 3 6.25
(1.0) (0.12) (0.25)
50 5 10
(2.0) (0.2) (0.4)
100 6.25 10
(4.0) (0.25) (0.4)
400 22 50
(16) (0.875) (2.0)
 Ribs should be not be high or narrow, this
makes it difficult for the material to flow.

Tolerances:
Dimension tolerances are usually positive
and are approximately 0.3 % of the
dimension, rounded off to the next higher
0.5 mm (0.020 in)
 Die wear tolerances are lateral tolerances
(parallel to the parting plane) and are
roughly +0.2 % for Copper alloys to +0.5
% for Aluminum and Steel.
Die closure tolerances are in the
direction of opening and closing, and range
from 1 mm (0.040 inch) for small forgings,
die projection area < 150 cm2 (23 in2), to
6.25 mm (0.25 inch) for large forgings, die
projection area > 6500 cm2 (100 in2).
Die match tolerances are to allow for
shift in the upper die with respect to the
lower die. This is weight based and is
shown in the following table.
Flash tolerance:
It is the amount of acceptable flash after
the trimming operation. This is weight
based and is shown in the following table.
 Finished Forging Weight
Trimmed kg (lb)
> 500
< 10 < 50
Material (>
(< 22) (< 110)
1100)
Flash Tolerance
mm (in)
Aluminum,
0.8 3.25 10
Copper Alloys,
(0.032) (0.125) (0.4)
Steel
Stainless Steel, 1.6 5 12.5
Titanium (0.064) (0.2) (0.5)
A proper lubricant is necessary for making
good forgings. The lubricant is useful in
preventing sticking of the workpiece to the
die, and also acts as a thermal insulator to
help reduce die wear.
Press Forgings:
Press forging use a slow squeezing action of
a press, to transfer a great amount of
compressive force to the workpiece. Unlike
an open-die forging where multiple blows
transfer the compressive energy to the
outside of the product, press forging
transfers the force uniformly to the bulk of
the material. This results in uniform material
properties and is necessary for large weight
forgings. Parts made with this process can
be quite large as much as 125 kg (260 lb)
and 3m (10 feet) long.
Different forging operations include
Upsetting
Roll forging
Edging
Fullering
Drawing
Swaging
Piercing
Punching
Upset Forgings:
Upset forging increases cross-section by
compressing the length, this is used in
making heads on bolts and fasteners, valves
and other similar parts.
Roll Forgings:
In roll forging, a bar stock, round or flat is
placed between die rollers which reduces
the cross-section and increases the length
to form parts such as axles, leaf springs
etc. This is essentially a form of draw
forging.
Edging:
This is used to shape the ends of the bars
and to gather the metal. As can be seen
the figure the metal is confined by the die
from flowing in the horizontal direction but
it is free to flow laterally to fill the die.
Fullering:
It is used to reduce the cross sectional
area of a portion of the stock. The metal
flow is outward and away from the
centering of the Fullering die. An example
of the use of this type of operation would
be in the forging of a connecting rod for
an internal combustion engine.
Drawing out:
The reduction in cross section of the work
with concurrent increase in length is
called drawing down or drawing out. This
process resembles to some extent to
rolling process which is going to be
discussed later.
Swaging:
Swaging - a tube or rod is forced inside a
die and the diameter is reduced as the
cylindrical object is fed. The die hammers
the diameter and causes the metal to
flow inward causing the outer diameter of
the tube or the rod to take the shape of
the die.
Piercing :
In this process a tube or rod is forced into
the material and load is applied from the top
so as to make a cavity in the material which
will be the shape of the rod or tube pierced.
Punching
Forging equipment: These are classified
depending on the principle of operation as

Forging hammers

Forging presses
Forging hammers: This the most commonly
used forging equipment. Here the force is
supplied by a falling ram or weight. These
are energy restricted machines since the
deformation results from dissipating the
kinetic energy of the ram.
The two basic types of hammer are

Board hammer

Power hammer
Board hammer: Here the upper die and
ram are raised by friction rolls gripping
the board. When the board is released,
the ram falls under the influence of the
gravity to produce the blow energy. The
board is raised once again for one more
blow. The energy supplied by the blow is
equal to the potential energy due to the
weight of the ram and the height of the
fall.
Board hammer
Power hammer: Greater forging capacity is
achieved with the power hammer in which
the ram is accelerated on the down stroke
by steam or air pressure in addition to the
gravity. These are preferred over board
hammer for closed-die forging as the
energy of the blow can be controlled here.
Power hammer
Forging presses: Hammers do not provide
the forging accuracy hence a new class of
forging equipment are used known as
forging press. These are of two types

Mechanical forging presses

Hydraulic forging presses

Mechanical forging presses: These are
stroke restricted machines since the length
of the press stroke and the available load
at various positions of the stroke
represents their capability. These are best
suited for low profile forgings. The blow of
a press is like a squeeze than like the
impact of a hammer because of this the die
life is longer. One of the examples of
mechanical press is crank shaft.
Crank press
Hydraulic forging presses: These are load
restricted machines since their capability of
for carrying out a forming operation is limited
chiefly by the maximum load capacity. Here
hydraulic pressure moves a piston in a
cylinder. A chief feature is the full press load
is available at any point during the full stroke
of the ram which is ideally suitable for the
extrusion-type forging operations.
Hydraulic press
Forging defects: Typical forging defects
include

Cracking at the flash

Cold shut or fold

Internal cracking due to secondary tensile

stresses
Cracking at the flash: Flash is the thin
ribbon of metal which squirts out when the
dies come together fore the finishing step.
Cracking at the flash is more prevalent the
thinner the flash when compared to the
original thickness of the metal. This can be
avoided by increasing the flash thickness or
by relocating the flash to a less critical
region of the forging.
Cracking at the flash
Cold shut : It is the discontinuity produced
when two surfaces of metal fold against
each other without welding completely. A
common cause of cold shut is too small a
die radius and can be eliminated by
improving die radius.
Cold shut
Internal cracks can be developed during
the upsetting of the cylinder and a proper
design of the dies can minimize the
cracking. In order to minimize bulging
during upsetting it is usual practice to use
concave dies. Internal cracking is less
prevalent in closed-die forging because
lateral compressive stresses are
developed by the reaction of the work
with the die wall.
Cracks due to internal stresses
Shape classification of forging
Shape classification of forging
Net Shape / Near-Net Shape Forging:
In net shape or near-net shape forging,
forging results in wastage of material in the
form of material flash and subsequent
machining operations. This wastage can be
as high as 70 % for gear blanks, and even
90+ % in the case of aircraft structural
parts. Net-shape and near-net-shape
processes minimize the waste by making
precision dies, producing parts with very
little draft angle (less than 1).
These types of processes often eliminate
or reduce machining. The processes are
quite expensive in terms of tooling and the
capital expenditure required. Thus, these
processes can be only justified for current
processes that are very wasteful where the
material savings will pay for the significant
increase in tooling costs.
Rolling:
The process of plastically deforming metal by
passing it between rolls is known as rolling. It
is the most widely used metal working process
because it lends itself to high production and
close dimensional tolerance. In deforming
metal between rolls, the work is subjected to
high compressive stresses from the squeezing
action of the rolls and to surface shear
stresses as a result of the friction between the
rolls and the metal. The frictional forces are
also responsible for drawing the metal into the
rolls.
The various products of rolling are
classified as :

Bloom
Billet
Slab
Plate
Sheet
plate
strip
The initial breakdown of the ingot into blooms
and billets is generally done by hot rolling. This
is followed by further hot rolling into plate,
sheet, rod, bar, pipe, rails or structural shapes.
The cold rolling of the metal has reached a
position of major importance in industry. Cold
rolling produces sheet, strip and file with good
surface finish and increased mechanical
strength and at the same time maintaining
close control of the dimensional tolerances.
Bloom: A bloom is the product of the first
break down of the ingot. Generally the width of
the bloom equals its thickness, and cross
sectional area is greater than 36 in2.

Billet: A further reduction by hot rolling results

in a billet. The minimum cross section of a
billet is about 1 by 1 inch.

Slab: A slab refers to a hot rolled ingot with

cross sectional area greater than 16 in2 and
with a width that is atleast twice the thickness.

Blooms, billets and slabs are known as semi

finished products. The plate and sheet is
determined by the thickness of the product.
Plate: In general plate has a thickness greater
than inch. Depending on the width sheet and
strip refer to rolled products which generally
have a thickness less than inch.

Strip: In general, strip refers to the rolled

product with a width no greater than 24 in .

Sheet: Sheet refers to the product of greater

width.

In conventional hot or cold rolling the main

objective is to decrease the thickness of the
metal so that the increase in length.
Rolling mills:

A rolling mill consist of basically of rolls,

bearings, a housing for containing these
parts and a drive for applying power for the
rolls and controlling their speed.
Rolling mills can be conventionally classified
with respect to the number and
arrangement of the rolls.
Different types of rolling mills are:

Two-high pullover mill.

Two-high reversing mill.
Three-high mill.
Four-high mill.
Cluster mill.
Planetary mill.
Two-high pullover mill:

This is the simplest and most common type

of mill. Rolls of equal size are rotated only in
one direction. The stock is returned to the
entrance, or rear, of the rolls, for the further
reduction by means of a platform which can
be raised to pass the work above the rolls.
Two-high reversing mill:

The productivity of the above mill is less

hence it can be improved by this mill in
which the work can be passed and forth
through the rolls by reversing their direction
of rotation.
Three-high mill:

It consists of an upper and lower driven

rolls and a middle roll which rotate by
friction. first, the material is passed in
between the lower rolls, the obtained
product is directed between the above two
rolls. the upper and lower mills will rotate
in the same direction while., the middle roll
will rotate in either direction depending up
on the friction.
Four-high mill:

A large decrease in the power required for

rolling can be achieved by the use of the
small diameter rolls, however because small
diameter rolls have less strength and rigidity
than the large rolls, they must be supported
by larger diameter back up rolls. The simplest
mill of this type is four-high mill.
Cluster mill:

In which each of the work rolls is supported

by the two backing rolls, is a typical mill of
this kind. The sendzimir mill is the
modification of the cluster mill which is very
useful for thin sheet or file from high
strength alloys.
Planetary mill:

This mill consist of a pair of heavy backing

rolls surrounded by a large number of small
planetary rolls. The chief feature of the
planetary mill is that it hot reduces a slab
directly to strip in one pass through the
mill.
Strip rolling on a four-stand continuous mill
Cold Rolling:
Cold rolling is a process by which the sheet
metal or strip stock is introduced between
rollers and then compressed and squeezed.
The amount of strain introduced determines
the hardness and other material properties of
the finished product.
The advantages of cold rolling are good
dimensional accuracy and surface finish.
Cold rolled sheet can be produced in
various conditions such as skin-rolled,
quarter hard, half hard, full hard
depending on how much cold work has
been performed. This cold working
(hardness) is often called temper, although
this has nothing to do with heat treatment
temper.
Powder rolling:
In this type of rolling a metal powder ins
introduced between the rolls and compacted in
to a green strip', which is subsequently
sintered and subjected to further hot working
and /or cold working and annealing cycles
The major advantage of powder rolling is the
elimination of the initial hot-ingot breakdown
step, with a corresponding large economy is
needed capital equipment.
Skin rolling:
These types of processes often eliminate
or reduce machining. The processes are
quite expensive in terms of tooling and
the capital expenditure required. Thus,
these processes can be only justified for
current processes that are very wasteful
where the material savings will pay for the
significant increase in tooling costs.
Quarter Hard, Half Hard, Full Hard stock
have higher amounts of reduction, upto
50%. This increases the yield point; grain
orientation and material properties assume
different properties along the grain
orientation. However, while the yield point
increases, ductility decreases.
Quarter Hard material can be bent
(perpendicular to the direction of rolling)
on itself without fracturing. Half hard
material can be bent 90; full hard can
be bent 45. Thus, these materials can
be used for in applications involving great
amounts of bending and deformation,
without fracturing.
Rolling of bars and structural shapes
Rolling defects:

A variety of problems in rolling, leading to

specific defects, can arise depending on the
interaction of the plastically deforming work
piece with the elastically deforming rolls
and rolling mill.
Roll bending: The roll gap must be perfectly
parallel, other wise one edge of the sheet
will be decreased more in thickness than
the other, and since volume and width
remain constant, this edge of the sheet
elongates more than the other. A difference
in elongation of 1 part in 10000 between
different locations in the sheet can give rise
to the waviness in a thin gage sheet. The
following figure shows how waviness is
developed.
If the rolls deflect as in the following
figure, the edges of the sheet will be
elongated to a greater extent in the
longitudinal direction than the center i.e.
it has long edges.
If the edges are free to move relative to the
center, the situation will be as in the
following figure. However, the sheet remains
a continuous body and strains readjust to
maintain a continuous body.
The result is that the center portion of the
sheet is stretched in tension and the edges
are compressed in the rolling direction as in
the following figure.
The usual result is a wavy edge or edge
buckle as in the following figure.
Under other conditions the strain
distribution produced by the long edge
could produce short zipper breaks or
cracks in the center of the sheet.
The obvious solution of the roll bending is to
contour the roll parallel to its axis so it is
larger in the center than at the ends. Then
when the rolls deflect, they will present a
parallel gap to the work piece. A better
technique is to equip the rolling mill with
hydraulic jacks which permit the elastic
distortion of the rolls to correct for deflection
under rolling conditions.
Lateral spread: As the work piece passes
through the rolls all elements across the
width experience some tendency to expand
laterally. The tendency for lateral spread is
opposed by transverse friction forces.
Because of friction hill these are higher
towards the center of the sheet so that
elements in the central region spread much
less than the outer elements near the edge.
Because the thickness decrease in the
center of the sheet all goes into a length
increase, while part of the thickness
decrease at the edges goes into the
lateral spread, the sheet may develop
slight rounding at its ends as shown in
the following figure.
Because there is continuity between the
edges and the center, the edges of the sheet
are strained in tension, a condition which
leads to the edge cracking as in the
following figure.
Under severe conditions the strain
distribution shown in above figure can result
in a center split of the sheet as in the
following figure.
Edge distribution resulting from rolling:

When the rolling conditions are such that

only the surface of the work piece is
deformed, the cross-section of sheet is
deformed into a shape shown in the figure.
In subsequent passes through the rolls the
overhanging material is not compressed
directly but is forced to elongate by the
neighboring material closer to the center.
Light reduction
With heavy reductions, so that the
deformation extends through the thickness
of the sheet, the center tends to expand
laterally more than the surfaces to produce
barreled edges similar to those found in
upsetting of cylinder as in the figure.
Heavy reduction
With this type of lateral deformation, greater
spread occurs toward the center than at the
surfaces so that surfaces are placed in tension
and the center in compression. This stress
distribution also extends in the rolling
direction, and if there is any metallurgical
weakness along the center line of the slab,
fracture will occur there as in the figure.
Alligatoring
Extrusion:
It is the process by which long straight
metal parts can be produced. The cross-
sections that can be produced vary from
solid round, rectangular, to L shapes, T
shapes. Tubes and many other different
types. Extrusion is done by squeezing metal
in a closed cavity through a tool, known as a
die using either a mechanical or hydraulic
press.
Extrusion produces compressive and shear
forces in the stock. No tensile is produced,
which makes high deformation possible
without tearing the metal. The cavity in
which the raw material is contained is lined
with a wear resistant material. This can
withstand the high radial loads that are
created when the material is pushed the
die.
Extrusions, often minimize the need for
secondary machining, but are not of the
same dimensional accuracy or surface finish
as machined parts. Surface finish for steel
is 3 m; (125 in), and Aluminum and
Magnesium is 0.8 m (30 in). However,
this process can produce a wide variety of
cross-sections that are hard to produce
cost-effectively using other methods.
Minimum thickness of steel is about 3 mm
(0.120 in), whereas Aluminum and
Magnesium is about 1mm (0.040 in).
Minimum cross sections are 250 mm2 (0.4
in2) for steel and less than that for
Aluminum and Magnesium.
Minimum corner and fillet radii are 0.4 mm
(0.015 in) for Aluminum and Magnesium,
and for steel, the minimum corner radius is
0.8mm(0.030 in) and 4 mm (0.120 in) fillet
radius.
Cold Extrusion:
Cold extrusion is the process done at room
temperature or slightly elevated
temperatures. This process can be used for
most materials-subject to designing robust
enough tooling that can withstand the
stresses created by extrusion. Examples of
the metals that can be extruded are lead, tin,
aluminum alloys, copper, titanium,
molybdenum, vanadium, steel. Examples of
parts that are cold extruded are collapsible
tubes, aluminum cans, cylinders, gear
blanks.
The advantages of cold extrusion are:
No oxidation takes place.
Good mechanical properties due to
severe cold working as long as the
temperatures created are below the re-
crystallization temperature.
Good surface finish with the use of
proper lubricants.
Hot Extrusion:
Hot extrusion is done at fairly high
temperatures, approximately 50 to 75 % of
the melting point of the metal. The pressures
can range from 35-700 MPa (5076 - 101,525
psi). Due to the high temperatures and
pressures and its detrimental effect on the die
life as well as other components, good
lubrication is necessary. Oil and graphite work
at lower temperatures, whereas at higher
temperatures glass powder is used.
The basic extrusion types are:
Direct extrusion
Indirect extrusion
Impact extrusion
Direct extrusion:
here, the metal billet is placed in a container
and driven through the die by the ram. a
dummy block, or pressure plate , is placed at
the end of the ram in contact with the billet .
Direct extrusion
Indirect extrusion:
A hallow ram carries the die, while the other
end of the container is closed with a plate
.frequently, for indirect extrusioin,there ram
containing the die is kept stationary ,and a
container with the billet is caused to move.
Because there is no relative motion
between the wall of the container and the
billet, the friction forces are lower and the
power required for extrusion is less than for
direct extrusion.
Indirect extrusion
Impact extrusion:
This is special type of extrusion process used
to produced shot lengths of hallow shapes
such as collapsible tooth paste tubes, it may
be either indirect or direct extrusion, and it
is usually perform cold. it is restricted to the
softer metals such as lead ,tin, aluminum,
and copper.
Deformation in extrusion:
The pressure required to produce an
extrusion is dependent on the way the metal
flows in the container and extrusion die, and
this is largely determined by the conditions of
lubrication. Certain defects which occur in
extrusion are directly related to the way the
metal deforms during extrusion.
The following figure shows the
characteristic types of deformation in
extrusion. Nearly homogeneous
deformation is shown in the figure (a).
This would be typical of low container
friction with a well lubricated billet,
hydrostatic extrusion in which the billet is
surrounded with a pressurized liquid, or
indirect extrusion as in the figure (d).
Figure (b) represents a case of increased
container-wall friction, as shown by the
severe distortion of the grid pattern in the
corners of the die to produce a dead zone
of stagnant metal which undergoes little
deformation. Grid elements at the center of
the billet undergo pure elongation into the
extruded rod, while elements near the
sides of the billet undergo extensive shear
deformation.
For high friction at the container-billet
interface, flow is concentrated toward the
center and an internal shear plane
develops as in (c). This condition can also
occur when the billet surface is chilled by
a cold container.
Tube extrusion:

With modern equipment, tubing may be

produced by extrusion to tolerances as close as
those obtained by cold drawing. To produce
tubing by extrusion, a mandrel must be
fastened to the end of the extrusion ram. The
mandrel extends to the entrance of the
extrusion die, and the clearance between the
mandrel and the die wall determines the wall
thickness of the extruded die. First the solid
billet is taken and is pierced in a separate press
as shown in the figure. Then this pierced rod is
taken as input material for extrusion.
Piercing
Tube extrusion
Another method of extruding tubing, which
is used with aluminium and magnesium
alloys, is to use a solid billet and a porthole
die with a standard extrusion ram without a
mandrel. The porthole die is shown in the
following figure.
Porthole die
The metal is forced to flow into separate
streams and around the central bridge,
which supports a short mandrel. The
separate streams of metal which flow
through the ports are brought together in
a welding chamber surrounding the
mandrel, and the metal exits from the die
as a tube.
Typical parts produced by extrusions are:
Trim parts used in automotive and
construction applications
Window frame members
Railings
Aircraft structural parts.
Drawing:

In drawing, a blank of sheet metal is

restrained at the edges, and the middle
section is forced by a punch into a die to
stretch the metal into a cup shaped drawn
part. This drawn part can be circular,
rectangular or just about any cross-section.
Drawing can be either shallow or deep
depending on the amount of deformation.
Shallow drawing is used to describe the
process where the depth of draw is less than
the smallest dimension of the opening;
otherwise, it is considered deep drawing.
Drawing leads to wrinkling and puckering at
the edge where the sheet metal is clamped.
This is usually removed by a separate
trimming operation.
Cross section of a drawing die
Wire drawing equipment
Multiple pass wire drawing
Tube drawing process: Three basic types of
tube drawing processes are:
Sinking
Plug drawing
Mandrel drawing
Sinking: Here the inside of the tube is not
supported which results in uneven wall
thickness. Because the shearing at the entry
and the exit are large, the reductant strain is
higher for sinking and limiting deformation is
lower than for other tube-producing
processes
sinking
Plug drawing: Here both the inner and outer
diameters of the tube are controlled. The
plug may be either cylindrical or conical.
The plug controls the size and shape of the
inside diameter and produces tubing of
greater dimensional accuracy than in tube
sinking. We can even use floating plug.
Fixed plug and Floating plug
Mandrel drawing: Problems with friction in
tube drawing are minimized in drawing with
a long mandrel. The mandrel consists of a
long hard rod or wire that extends over the
entire length of the tube and is drawn
through the die with the tube.
Mandrel drawing
Deep drawing
Design Considerations:

Round shapes (cylinders) are easiest to

draw. Square shapes can also be drawn if
the inside and outside radiuses are at least 6
X stock thickness. Other shapes can be
produced at the cost of complexity of tooling
and part costs.
 The corner radiuses can be reduced
further by successive drawing operations,
provided there is sufficient height for the
draw.

Perpendicularity can be held to 1,

flatness can be held to 0.3%. This can be
improved by performing extra operations.
Powder metallurgy:
It uses sintering process for making various
parts out of metal powder. The metal powder
is compacted by placing in a closed metal
cavity (the die) under pressure. This
compacted material is placed in an oven and
sintered in a controlled atmosphere at high
temperatures and the metal powders
coalesce and form a solid. A second pressing
operation, repressing, can be done prior to
sintering to improve the compaction and the
material properties.
The properties of this solid are similar to
cast or wrought materials of similar
composition. Porosity can be adjusted by
the amount of compaction. Usually single
pressed products have high tensile strength
but low elongation. These properties can be
improved by repressing as in the following
table.
 Elongatio Elongation
Tensile
Tensile n as Percent
as Percent
Material MPa in 50 of Wrought
of Wrought
(psi) mm Iron
Iron Tensile
(2 in) Elongation
Wrought Iron, 331
100 % 30 % 100 %
Hot Rolled (48,000)
Powder Metal, 214
65 % 2% 6%
84 % density (31,000)
Powder Metal,
283
repressed, 95 85 % 25 % 83 %
(41,000)
% density
Powder metallurgy is useful in making parts
that have irregular curves, or recesses that
are hard to machine. It is suitable for high
volume production with very little wastage of
material. Secondary machining is virtually
eliminated.
Typical parts that can be made with this
process include cams, ratchets, sprockets,
pawls, sintered bronze and iron bearings
(impregnated with oil) and carbide tool tips.
Design Considerations:

Part must be so designed to allow for easy

ejection from the die. Sidewalls should be
perpendicular; hole axes should be parallel to
the direction of opening and closing of the
die.

Holes, even complicated profiles, are

permissible in the direction of compressing.
The minimum hole diameter is 1.5 mm
(0.060 in).
 The wall thickness should be compatible
with the process typically 1.5 mm (0.060 in)
minimum.

Length to thickness ratio can be upto 18

maximum-this is to ensure that tooling is
robust. However, wall thicknesses do not
have to be uniform, unlike other processes,
which offers the designer a great amount of
flexibility in designing the parts.
 Undercuts are not acceptable, so
designs have to be modified to work
around this limitation. Threads for screws
cannot be made and have to be machined
later.

Tolerances are 0.3 % on dimensions. If

repressing is done, the tolerances can be
as good as 0.1 %. Repressing, however,
increases the cost of the product.
 Drafts are usually not desirable except
for recesses formed by a punch making a
blind hole. In such a case a 2-degree draft
is recommended. Note that the requirement
of no draft is more relaxed compared to
other forming processes such as casting,
molding etc.