Predicting the bending limit of AA8112 tubes using failure criterion in Hydro-Rotary draw bending process

Nowadays thin-walled tube rotary draw bending in small bending ratio is a production process widely used in advanced industries such as aerospace and automotive. Cross section ovality, wall thickness changing during tube bending are the main inevitable defects in this process. The purpose of this research is to obtain the smallest bending ratio and maximum pressure applicable in hydro-rotary draw bending of thin-walled aluminum alloy 8112 tube using failure criterion. For this purpose, the equivalent plastic strain at the critical extrados region used for necking prediction. Concluded results showed that this failure criterion by a maximum difference of 12.5% from experimental tests, is a useful method for predicting the necking onset in the bending process. Moreover, the effects of bending ratio and internal pressure on the defects such as cross section ovality and thickness changing are investigated with simulation in the ABAQUS software and experimental methods. The maximum ovality is not located at the mid-cross section of bent tube unexpectedly and regardless of the internal pressure and bending ratio, occurs at the cross-section with an angle of approximately θ=33°. The minimum achievable amounts of ovality at R/D1.6, R/D1.8 and R/D2 were 11.42%, 7.72% and 4.35% respectively. Furthermore, bending ratio and internal pressure had noticeable effects on the cross section of the bent tubes, so that as the bending ratio or pressure increased, cross-section ovality and the thickening of the tube wall at the intrados decreased, but contrary to bending ratio, as the internal pressure increased, extrados thinning increased.