Simulation of Heat Treatment and Materials with the Use of the Abaqus Software

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LATION UDC 621.785.545:621.001.57

SIMULATION OF HEAT TREATMENT AND MATERIALS WITH THE USE OF THE ABAQUS SOFTWARE M. Yaakoubi,1 M. Kchaou,1 and F. Dammak1 Translated from Metallovedenie i Termicheskaya Obrabotka Metallov, No. 7, pp. 41 – 48, July, 2013.

A module supplementing the ABAQUS software is developed for solving a joint heat and diffusion problem with allowance for the phase transformations in materials in the process of induction quenching. The approach provides a deeper study of the structure and properties of materials and makes it possible to develop a method for computing the number of phase components, the size of austenite grains, the hardness, the thermophysical characteristics, and the latent heat of induction quenching. Such computations are impossible on the basis of standard softwares. The adequacy of the simulation tool suggested by the authors is confirmed by matching between simulated and experimental data.

Key words: quenching, phase transformations, hardness, ABAQUS.

variation of the content of austenite during heating and formation of various phases during cooling [3 – 7]. The growth of phases in a diffusion transformation is preceded by an incubation period, the duration of which is estimated by the Scheil rule [8. 9]. If the rate of quenching cooling exceeds the critical value, a martensitic transformation develops, in which the fraction of martensite may be predicted by the Koistinen – Marburger law [3, 10, 11]. The aim of the present work was to develop an additional modulus for the ABAQUS software for solving a joint heat and diffusion problem with allowance for the phase transformations on the surface of a specimen subjected to surface quenching and to compute such variable parameters as the austenite grain size, the content of phases formed during cooling, and the distribution of hardness over the thickness of the specimen after quenching. The applicability of the suggested simulation tool was estimated by comparing computed and experimental data.

INTRODUCTION Surface quenching is widely used in mechanical engineering. Such quenching increases the surface hardness of articles and simultaneously improves their fatigue and wear resistances. The process of induction quenching of a surface consists of rapid induction heating for forming austenite in the surface layer and subsequent rapid cooling accompanied by a martensitic transformation that promotes hardening of the surface layer [1, 2]. Computer simulation is a popular instrument in the field of heat treatment of materials. It makes it possible to estimate the laws of behavior of objects during heating and cooling and to test the algorithms describing such behavior. As an analytical tool, simulation helps to lower the cost and duration of experimental studies by safe and fast computations. Prediction of the distribution of hardness over the thickness of a part requires knowledge of the kinetics of phase transformations and of formation of microstructure in heat treatment. The formation and growth of phases in heat treatment is mod