Experimental and Finite Element Investigation of Liquid Impact Forming for Thin-walled Aluminium AA6063 Tubes

Manufacturing in as short time as possible, with highest quality and at minimal cost, is one of the key factors in industry. As a result, researchers are seeking new methods and technologies to meet such requirements. Liquid impact forming is one of such methods which has received wide currency especially in automotive and aerospace industries. In this method, which is considered as one of tubular hydroforming processes, forming is achieved by using liquid pressure. In this paper, liquid impact forming process was investigated experimentally and numerically for a thin-walled aluminium tube. In experimental part, a die was designed and manufactured to transform the cross section of the aluminium tube into a polygon which at the end of the process changes the cylindrical shape of the tube to a profile almost similar to a trapezoid. Results showed that a die in the form of matrix molding is not suitable for this type of geometry in such a process while using another die which consisted of three parts resulted in a satisfactory forming. Simulation of this process was further implemented using finite element method and results relating to Von Mises stress distribution, displacement, strain energy, internal energy, thickness variation and the force required to implement the process were obtained. Displacement distribution in different regions indicated that no wrinkling occurred in the sample. Comparison between simulation and experimental results indicated that they were in good agreement.