Simulation on extrusion process of TiAl alloy

The rigid-plastic finite element Deform-3D software was employed to describe the plastic deformation behavior of TiAl billet (Ti-46.5Al-2.5V-1.0Cr-0.3Ni alloy) during its axisymmetric extrusion through a conical die. Under various extrusion conditions, the present numerical analysis investigated the strain distribution, the damage factor distributions and the die load during the extrusion process. The relative influences of the die semi-angle and the extrusion ratio were examined. The results show that the extrusion force was enhanced from 1.54 × 10⁶ N to 2.81 × 10⁶ N with a certain slop coefficient (about 0.04) when die semi-angle increased in the range 40°≤ α ≤ 70°. The uniform effective strain and the lower propensity for fracture could be obtained at the 60° die semi-angle. The 60° die semi-angle will be an appropriate choice for the extrusion of TiAl alloy. With the raising of extrusion ratio, the effective strain, extrusion load and the damage factor in billet would also be increased.