Temperature Modeling of AZ31B Alloy Plate during open-Roller Conveying Process Considering Air-Cooling Characteristics

Abstract

In the process of open-roller conveying, magnesium alloy plates easily produce temperature drops and uneven temperatures. Ignoring the heat dissipation caused by the contact between the plate and the roller table, the process can be described as a process of air cooling. The present study aimed to investigate the temperature distribution and evolution of a magnesium alloy plate during the process. The air-cooling process of the AZ31B magnesium alloy plate was investigated and analyzed in detail under different initial temperatures and plate thicknesses, with a specific focus on the temperature distribution along both the width and thickness directions. The results show that the temperature-difference curves between the end face and the center under different air-cooling conditions appeared to have four stages: rapid increase, slow increase, basic stable and slow decline. To facilitate the establishment of the temperature model, the whole air-cooling process was approximately divided into two independent one-dimensional heat-conduction processes in the thickness direction and the width direction. Subsequently, one-dimensional steady-state heat-conduction models were developed in various directions, based on the fundamental principles of heat transfer and assuming that the adjacent temperature-drop layer satisfied the quadratic function distribution. Through the superposition of cooling with time in two directions, the temperature evolution at different positions in the process of air cooling can be solved accurately.