An investigation on the effects of the process parameters of hydro-mechanical deep drawing on manufacturing high-quality bimetallic spherical-conical cups

Abstract

This paper aims to analytically, experimentally, and numerically study the hydro-mechanical deep drawing (HMDD) process of bimetallic specimens. The blank included aluminum and steel sheets used to produce double-layer conical-spherical cups. The punch geometry, maximum fluid pressure, pre-bulge pressure, layer arrangement, and the drawing depth were the process parameters investigated in this article. Two criterions based on the thickness strain and thickness variation were used to assess the effects of these variables on the quality of the final product. The results of the analytical modeling and numerical simulations were verified by comparing with the related experimental data. Different outcomes were in acceptable agreement with each other. Based on the findings obtained, by increasing the fluid pressure up to 15 MPa, the quality of the final product was enhanced. Moreover, by applying the pre-bulge pressure in the HMDD process, the separation between the layers as well as the thickness variation decreased. The highest improvements in the values of the maximum thickness strain and thickness variation in the current investigation were gained to be 57% and 68%, respectively, in comparison with the traditional state of the deep drawing process.