Stress Analysis and Failure Mechanism of H13 Steel Hot-Forging Die for Automobile Engine Crankshaft

Abstract

The hot forging process of automobile engine crankshaft was simulated in the present study on the basis of the finite element software DEFORM-3D. The materials of die and crankshaft workpiece are H13 steel and L1438 steel, respectively. The material flow in the die, contact pressure distribution and temperature distribution of the die were investigated. The interaction forces between the workpiece and the dies were mapped onto die faces to serve as load boundary conditions for die stress analysis. The results showed that the die stress reduces with increasing temperature and increases with increasing strain rate. Such behavior is likely associated with flow stress of the workpiece, which reduces with increasing temperature and increases with increasing strain rate. High flow stress results in high die stresses and hence more easily leads to die failure.