Microstructural modelling of metal formability

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Vehicle efficiency (in terms of fuel consumption) and reduction of carbon dioxide emissions continues to be a major challenge. The weight of automobiles can be reduced by using high-strength steels as long as they have the essential ductility required in metal forming operations. Furthermore, light metal alloys (magnesium and aluminum) are of considerable interest to automobile manufacturers because of their low densities and the appreciable weight (and energy) savings that would result from increased use. However, the lower ductility of light metal alloys compared to steel continues to remain a bottleneck for widespread replacement of steel by light metals. Ductility is a microstructure and temperature-sensitive property and enhancement of the ductility of light metals (such as aluminum and magnesium) and high-strength steels (such as dual phase steels) could be achieved through microstrucutural control. The proposed research will combine the latest advancements in the field of micromechanics (advanced realistic material models), finite element methods and supercomputing (parallel computing) for the ultimate goal of numerically engineering microstructures that present the necessary formability desired for any given metal forming operation.