GOALI: Fundamental Studies and Modeling of Pulsed Tube Hydroforming

该研究项目的目标是：a）对脉冲管液压成形过程中金属的增强成形性有一个基本的了解; B）开发该过程的分析和数值模型，使汽车和航空航天等行业能够利用这种行为。传统上，管材液压成形过程中的载荷是单调施加的。最近，在实际部件上证明，如果以脉冲方式（频率~ 1Hz）施加载荷，则可以获得成形性的显著增益。导致这种改善的机制目前尚不清楚。本研究的第一个目的是通过实验研究不同的假设来阐明这些机制。要检查的材料是先进的高强度钢和铝合金。实验结果将指导研究团队开发工业最终用户所需的分析和数值工具，以实现这些技术。这种先进的液压成形工艺和在本研究中开发的模型将通过减少对环境的影响，并通过实现汽车等产品的更积极的产品设计，造福整个社会。研究生和本科生，包括工程中代表性不足的群体，将受益于该项目的工业重点，并将结果融入课程。NSF本科生研究经验（REU）和教师研究经验（RET）框架将用于吸引有才华的参与者来协助研究任务。RET参与者还将确定高中学生在夏季从事研究，从而吸引更多的学生到STEM学科。最后，将通过与工业合作伙伴（美国铝业、福特、美国钢铁公司）举办的研讨会，向工业界有效地传达本研究的结果。

The objectives of this Grant Opportunity for Academic Liaison with Industry (GOALI) research project are to a) create a fundamental understanding of the enhanced formability of metals during pulsed tube hydroforming, and b) develop analytical and numerical models of the process that will allow industries such as automotive and aerospace to capitalize on this behavior. Traditionally, loading during tube hydroforming is applied monotonically. Recently, it was demonstrated on actual components that if the loading is applied in a pulsed fashion (frequency ~1 Hz), significant gains in formability can be reaped. The mechanism(s) that lead to such improvements are presently unknown. The first objective of this research is to clarify these mechanisms by investigating different hypotheses experimentally. The materials to be examined are Advanced High Strength Steels and Aluminum alloys. The experimental findings will guide the research team into developing the analytical and numerical tools required by the industrial end-users to implement such technologies.This advanced hydroforming process and the models developed in this research will benefit society at large by reducing the environmental impact, and by enabling more aggressive product designs of products such as automobiles. Graduate and undergraduate students, including underrepresented groups in engineering, will benefit from the industrial focus of this project and from the integration of the results into the curriculum. The NSF Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) and Research Experience for Teachers (RET) frameworks will be used to attract talented participants to aid with the research tasks. The RET participants will also identify high-school students to be engaged in research over the summer, thus attracting more students to STEM disciplines. Finally, the results of this research will be effectively communicated to industry through workshops conducted with the industrial partners (Alcoa, Ford, U.S. Steel).