Numerical Study and Experimental Investigation on Electromagnetic Crimping for Tube-to-Rod Configuration

Abstract

Using low-density material like aluminum to reduce the weight of airframe structure becomes prominent and requires effective joining technology. Electromagnetic crimping is a high-speed joining method that deforms electrically conductive material by discharging high-voltage from the capacitor bank at room temperature. In this study, the effect of discharge energy on joint quality and process parameters is investigated numerically and experimentally. Finite element simulation and analysis were carried out using LS-DYNA™ software by its electromagnetic module. Effects of energies on the effective plastic strain, resultant velocity, displacement, Lorentz force, current densities, magnetic field densities, and maximum shear stress were predicted numerically to determine best energy levels. Based on the result obtained from numerical simulations, three levels of energy were chosen to conduct the experiment. Pull-out strength of the crimped sample was found 95% compared to the strength of the tube. A tube thickness reduction at groove edge, radial displacement of the tube, and groove filling obtained numerically were compared with experiment and found to be in a good agreement. The developed model can be used as a preliminary study to investigate the effect of groove and process parameter on joint quality.