Modeling of Semi-Solid A356 Alloy under Upsetting Process

The flow behavior of a semi-solid A356 alloy at high solid fraction was studied. The mushy zone was considered as an effective two-phase, so that the solid continuum can be compressible porous media, and the liquid phase interaction with the solid skeleton was of Darcy type. The semi-solid flow through the upsetting test was modeled in ABAQUS finite element method software. The Gurson yield criterion has been developed for the modeling process of the flow behavior of solid porous medium. Specimens were globulized by a thermomechanical process and then were tested for various percentages of upsetting. The distribution of solid fraction along the radius of the specimens at different height reduction showed a good correlation with model prediction.