Int J Adv Manuf Technol (2013) 64:1575–1585
DOI 10.1007/s00170-012-4124-1
ORIGINAL ARTICLE
3D Numerical simulation method of electromagnetic forming
for low conductive metals with a driver
Fenqiang Li & Jianhua Mo & Haiyang Zhou & Yang Fang
Received: 20 November 2011 / Accepted: 29 March 2012 / Published online: 3 May 2012
# Springer-Verlag London Limited 2012
Abstract Electromagnetic forming (EMF) process is a
high-speed forming process which can inhibit warping, re-
duce springback, and improve the formability of material at
room temperature. In general, the electromagnetic forming
process is applied to high-conductive metals such as copper,
aluminum, and their alloys. In order to solve the problem of
the low formability of titanium alloy, the electromagnetic
forming process can be applied to form titanium alloy. The
effects on the forming properties of titanium and other low-
conductive metals must be studied before the EMF process
is used. To that end, this paper presents a tool: a 3D numer-
ical simulation method of electromagnetic forming with a
driver. First, the electromagnetic field distribution and elec-
tromagnetic forces are calculated using the ANSYS/EMAG
software. The resulting data are then imported to ABAQUS/
Explicit software to carry out mechanical analysis. Although
the electromagnetic field calculation does not take the de-
formation of the blank into account, the results accurately
reflect the law of the deformation. This method is especially
suitable for cases involving small deformations, such as tube
compression and embossing. The calculation can also be
used to simulate the impact forming process between the
driver and the blank.
Keywords 3D electromagnetic simulation . Low conductive
metal . Driver . The impact . Free bulging . High strain rate
F. Li (*) : J. Mo : H. Zhou : Y. Fang
State Key Laboratory of Material Processing and Die and Mould
Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology,
Wuhan 430074, People’s Republic of China
e-mail: lfq03@yahoo.com.cn
1 Introduction
With the development of the auto industry and growing
interest in energy saving, the electromagnetic forming
(EMF) process is attracting increasing scientific interest.
The electromagnetic forming process uses high-voltage ca-
pacitor discharge to generate a magnetic field near the tool
coil and an eddy current in the sheet or driver. This action
produces a repulsion force between the sheet metal and coil
to shape the metal. Electromagnetic forming is a high-speed
forming process; forming speed is about 300 m/s. The use of
electromagnetic forming process can improve material
formability while inhibiting warping and springback [1, 2].
The EMF process solves the problem of forming lightweight
metals that are difficult to shape. Application prospects are
excellent.
The electromagnetic forming process, especially with a
driver, is complicated by coupling involving multiple fields:
the electric field, magnetic field, structure field, temperature
field, etc. This interaction represents a major challenge for
electromagnetic forming system design. An effective and
economical method of overcoming this problem is the finite
element method to obtain the forming system’s optimal
parameters through analyzing the magnetic field distribution
and the deformation of the blank during the forming pro-
cess. Numerical simulation technique for the EMF process
currently represents the most promising research area with
potential to solve the coupling problem [3].
Takatsu et al. [4] proposed a numerical simulation meth-
od which coupled the circuit, magnetic field, and the struc-
ture field in the plate bulging process and simultaneously
used the constitutive equation considering the rate of strain
in the mechanical analysis. The simulation result matched
the experimental result well. However, this method is a 2D
simulation method based on the assumption of axi-
1576
symmetry and plane stress. The sheet thickness was simul-
taneously supposed to be big enough, and the magnetic field
was shielded by sheet completely.
Fenton and Daehn [5] took the research a step further and
proposed a CALE numerical simulation method. This meth-
od not only can simulate plate bulging as well as thin tube
expansion process but also model the dynamics of a one-
sided die impact. The material constitutive equation may
include the rate of strain and temperature. This method is
also limited by modeling only the magnetic field and the
structure field’s coupling. The CALE numerical simulation
is also a 2D numerical simulation method based on the axi-
symmetry, the plane strain supposition.
Oliveira et al. [6] proposed a 3D loose coupled numerical
simulation method based on ANSYS/EMAG and the LS-
DYNA. A comparative analysis of sheet free forming and
the cavity filling operation was carried out by this method.
Numerical simulation results were essentially consistent
with the experimental data. However, a contact issue arose
with excessive rebound for the flat-bottomed insert and the
intensive distortion of the driver, which may cause a prob-
lem in air mesh processing during the magnetic field calcu-
lation. To date, none of the literature adopts this method to
carry out the simulation of the magnetic forming process
with a driver.
Yu et al. [7] analyzed the tube compression process using
a loose coupled 2D numerical simulation method based on
ANSYS/MULTIPHYSICAL. The simulation results were
consistent with those produced experimentally. The simula-
tion in this case was more precise than the smooth coupled
method because the effect of the deformation of the blank on
the magnetic field was considered. The improvement of
accuracy is nonetheless limited because the tube compres-
sion is a small deformation process.
Cui et al. [8] proposed a loose coupled 3D numerical
simulation method based on ANSYS/MULTIPHYSICAL
and carried out the simulation of the tube expansion as
described by Suzuki, with favorable agreement between
the simulation and experimental results. Both coupled meth-
ods described above solved the electromagnetic field and
structure field coupling problem based on the physical en-
vironment of ANSYS software. It may realize the simula-
tion of an electromagnetic forming process such as a cavity-
filling operation by making use of the difference in the
discharge time and the time of deformation. This technique
can overcome the problems of abnormal size of air mesh and
abnormally distorted air mesh that arose as a result of the
contact between the sheet and die during the electromagnet-
ic field simulation. However, the techniques described
above cannot simulate the electromagnetic forming process
with a driver.
Svendsen and Chanda [9], Unger et al. [10], and Stiemer
et al. [11] proposed a strong coupled numerical simulation
Int J Adv Manuf Technol (2013) 64:1575–1585
method to model the interaction between the electromagnet-
ic field, structure field, and the temperature field. This
method set the Maxwell magnetic field equation and New-
ton’s equation of motion in the same frame as a means to
consider the mutual influence of each of those parameters
and the deformation of the blank. The joule heat and the
thermodiffusion were considered simultaneously. To date,
this research is the most advanced on the subject interna-
tionally. As far as is known to the author, nothing has been
published to date on 3D strong coupled simulation of elec-
tromagnetic forming process with a driver.
Studies on the phenomenon of impact between the driver
and the blank in the EMF process are limited, largely be-
cause the impact contact brings enormous difficulty in air
mesh processing. Takahashi et al. [12] studied the strain
distribution and formability limit of titanium alloy under
the dynamic bulging process using the plane spiral coil
and the aluminum driver in their experiment. Compared
with quasi-static bulging, the strain distribution is non-
uniform, but the formability limit increases. The impact
between the driver and the blank and the deformation rule
of the blank are difficult to obtain by experiment, but finite
element simulation may be an effective way to determine
the necessary data.
Shin et al. [13] conducted research on low-conductive tube
expansion. A 2D electromagnetic–structure–temperature cou-
pled simulation of the tube electromagnetic expansion was
carried out using COMSOL software. The results indicated
that low-conductive material tube expansion can be enhanced
using an appropriate high-conducting material layer.
Zhang [14] carried out 2D numerical analyses of the
electromagnetic welding of Al6061-T4 tube and tungsten
K1700 bar, Ti-3Al-2.5V tube and Inconel 625 tube using
MPONE software. The MPONE software is based on a
meshless method, thus avoiding the problems of the mesh
size minimizing and abnormal mesh distortion. However,
the MPONE software is inferior to ABAQUS/Explicit for
processing dynamic contact.
Srinivasan [15] conducted a numerical simulation of the
electromagnetic stamping of titanium alloy plate using the LS-
DYNA finite element software to study the influence of the
impact pressure on the forming property of the material. The
coil used was the uniform pressure coil proposed by Kamal.
Load was calculated through the corresponding analysis for-
mula of the pressure distribution provided by Kamal.
Imbert et al. [16] studied the influence of the interaction
between the blank and die on the performance of the blank by
a numerical simulation and an experiment. The electromag-
netic forming simulation used the LS-DYNA software with
the ideal plane coil pressure distribution analysis formula
provided by Al-Hassani. The method assumed that the region
within a 5-mm radius from the center of the blank was not
affected by magnetic pressure. Magnetic pressure only
Int J Adv Manuf Technol (2013) 64:1575–1585 1577

affected the sheet surface near the coil, and the pressure pulse
lasted for 100 μs with a sinusoidal profile. The simulation
results correlated closely with those of the experiment.
Correia et al. [17] considered the electromagnetic and me-
chanical aspects of the process as two independent problems.
The electromagnetic force was calculated using the finite dif-
ference method introduced in the ABAQUS software. Analytic
magnetic pressure distribution that served as the boundary
condition in analyzing sheet deformation was thus determined.
The calculation of electromagnetic pressure took the deforma-
tion of blank into consideration and neglected the speed effect.
The viscoplasticity behavior of a blank in the electromagnetic
forming process was analyzed by this method, which is capa-
ble of simulating the level of complexity involved.
Fig. 2 Curve of current flow through the coil
The purpose of this paper was to propose an electromag-
netic loop coupled method based on the hypotheses of Imbert
and Correia: that the electromagnetic and the mechanical
aspects of the process are two independent problems. This this paper. In the magnetic calculation, the influence of
method can simulate the interaction between the blank and the the sheet velocity on the magnetic force is ignored, as in
die as well as that between the driver and the blank. In the Manea et al. [18]. The authors postulated that when the
electromagnetic field simulation, the coil structure does not sheet velocity was smaller than the order of 109 m/s, the
require simplification, and the simulation analysis is that of variation of the electromagnetic field was negligible
any complex coil structure. Material models of the driver and compared to a stationary workpiece. Applying the elec-
the blank both take the rate of strain into consideration in the tric current load and the magnetic field boundary condi-
mechanical calculation. The simulation of the JIS-A1050-O tion to the magnetic field model in ANSYS, the node
aluminum alloy electromagnetic free bulging is conducted by electromagnetic force on the blank can be calculated.
this method as a means to confirm its reliability. This is The mechanical model is set up in ABAQUS, in which
accomplished by comparing the finite element (FE) predicted the order and serial numbers of the blank elements and
profile of the blank and the distribution of the magnetic field the serial numbers of nodes are the same as those in the
with the experimental data from the literature [4, 5]. The magnetic field separately, which will ensure that the load
numerical simulation of the Ti-6Al-4V alloy plate’s electro- applied in the mechanical model is accurate. Applying
magnetic free bulging with a cooper driver is carried out to the node electromagnetism load and the corresponding
demonstrate the broader application. boundary condition to the structure field, we then calcu-
late the deformation of the blank according to the mate-
rial constitutive equation, as shown in Fig. 1.
2 Model
2.2 Electromagnetic problem
2.1 Flowchart of the simulation method
The transient magnetic field analysis is carried out by solv-
According to the work of Imbert and Correia, in which ing the magnetodynamic equation in terms of the magnetic
the magnetic field and the structure field were recognized vector potential represented by cylindrical coordinates [19].
as two independent problems, the magnetic field and the
structure field are calculated by the ANSYS/EMAG and DAθ 1 2 1 Aθ

σ þ r Aθ
¼ Jex ð1Þ
ABAQUS/Explicit separately in the proposed method of Dt μ μ r2

Ansys/Emag Abaqus/Explicit

Electro- Node Node Load

Current Mechanical Workpiece
magnetic Magnetic Amplitude
Load Model Deformation
Model Force Curve

Fig. 1 Flowchart of calculation

1578 Int J Adv Manuf Technol (2013) 64:1575–1585

Fig. 3 Stress vs. strain curves of material JIS-A1050-O

Fig. 4 Radial distribution of magnetic field in the air gap

where
@ @ @ 2 The wave forms of the discharge currents (Fig. 2) are
r2 ¼ 1r @r r @r þ @z2
@Aθ obtained by solving the above differential equation, providing
DAθ
¼
V  rA
Dt @t qffiffiffi
C
σ is the electric conductivity L
IðtÞ ¼ V0 pffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi2ffi expð
xwt Þ sinðwt Þ ð4Þ
μ is the magnetic permeability 1
x
Jex is the excitation current density in the coil
Aθ is the tangential component of the magnetic vector where V0 is the voltage across the capacitor.
potential According to the literature [4], the R, L, and C compo-
nents of the discharging circuit have the following values:
A second equation is used to calculate the induced cur- C 040 × 10−6 F, R 025.5 × 10−3 Ω, L 02.86 × 10−6 H. The
rent density in the blank. charging voltage is V06×103 V.
According to Eq. 4 and Fig. 2, the primary circuit pro-
@Aθ vides an initial peak current of 22.44 kA with a frequency of
Jind ¼
σ ð2Þ
@t 14.8 kHz, corresponding to a period of 67.2 μs. Only apply
The primary current flowing in the forming coil is gen- the first-and-a-half pulse current to the coil section accord-
erated by the transient phenomenon of discharge from the ing to the literature [6].
capacitor bank. From an electrical perspective, the forming The total force acting on the blank can be expressed by
coil and the blank have transformer coupling. The behavior Eq. 5. This force calculated at each node of the plate is used
of such a system is described by the following differential as the input term for the mechanical analysis.
equation:
ð5Þ
d 2 IðtÞ dIðtÞ
þ 2xw þ w2 IðtÞ ¼ 0 ð3Þ
dt 2 dt
where 2.3 Mechanical problem
I(t) is the current caused by discharging capacitor
qffiffiffi The displacement equation of the blank expanding plasti-
ξ is the damping term given by x ¼ 12 R CL cally is given by the following equilibrium equation:
qffiffiffiffiffi
ω is the natural frequency given by w ¼ LC 1
@ 2 *u *

ρ
rσ ¼ F ð6Þ
R, L, C are the capacitor bank parameters @t 2

Table 1 Material parameters of

aluminum alloy Material ρ (kg/m3) E (GPa) v σ0 (MPa) K (MPa) n C

A1050-O 2,710 69 0.33 20 172.33525 0.353 0.0221

Int J Adv Manuf Technol (2013) 64:1575–1585 1579

The material hardened model of plastic deformation in

the literature [4] is:

!
"
σ ¼ 118:0" 0:27
þ 15:7" log
0:54
ðMPaÞ ð8Þ
10
3

The total stress is:

σtotal ¼ σ þ σ0 ð9Þ
The initial yield strength of material JIS-A1050-O is σ0 0
20 MPa, in accordance with the material handbook. The curve
of stress vs. strain in the literature [4], with the condition of

strain rate " ¼ 100=s , is fitted by the simplified Johnson–
Cook constitutive equation, obtaining the corresponding sim-
Fig. 5 Distribution of magnetic force in thickness direction of the blank plified Johnson–Cook model parameters K0172.33525 MPa,
n00.353, and C00.0221. A comparison between two curves
* derived from different material models at the strain rate
u ¼ ðu; wÞ is the displacement vector, σ is the stress tensor, 
" ¼ 1;000=s shows that stress calculated from the simplified
*
J–C model is slightly lower than that of Takatsu’s model in the
and F is the volume forces vector.
Inserting the stress–strain and strain–displacement rela- high-strain region, but consistently near the low-strain region.
tions gives a system of partial differential equations for the Therefore, the parameters of the simplified J-C model can
* reliably express the behavior of the material (Fig. 3). The
displacement, u ¼ ðu; wÞ. material parameters of aluminum alloy are listed in Table 1.
According to the literature [8, 20], the temperature of the
tube rises from 293 to 298.299 K at 1,000 μs, while the
temperature of sheet metal rises from 293 to 312 K at 300 μs
3 Results and discussion
in the first working cycle. The rise in temperature is small and
the effect of temperature can be safely neglected in most EMF
The numerical simulation of the EMF process must solve
processes. Therefore, temperature effect was disregarded here,
the Maxwell equation and the Newton equation of motion
and the deformation occurs under the isothermal condition. The
simultaneously or calculate the Maxwell equation and the
simplified Johnson–Cook (J–C) constitutive equation is used in
Newton equation of motion alternately. No commercial
this paper to describe the material subjected to large strains,
software is available to simulate the EMF process with great
high strain rates, which is given by [15, 21]:
deformation by solving two equations simultaneously. Us-

!
" ing currently available software, magnetic field analysis
σ ¼ ðσ0 þ K" Þ 1 þ CIn 
n
ð7Þ may encounter minimization of the mesh size and abnormal
"0
distortion of mesh caused by the contact and extensive
Fig. 6 a Model for magnetic
analysis. b One fourth of the
model for mechanical analysis
1580
Fig. 7 Variable curves of the total magnetic force and current
deformation of the driver and the blank in the mechanical
model, leading to a flawed magnetic field analysis. The
objective of this paper was to propose and demonstrate a
simulation method of the EMF process for low-conductive
metals (specifically for titanium alloy with a driver) in
which the Maxwell equation and the Newton equation of
motion are solved separately.
3.1 Preliminary verifications
In order to confirm the magnetic field analysis model, mag-
netic field distribution between the JIS-A1050-O aluminum
alloy, with thickness h03 mm, and the coil is calculated and
compared with the experimental data in the literature [4]. The
coil structure is designed according to the parameters in the
literature [4]: addendum circle radius, R032 mm; number of
windings, n05; and pitch, l05.5 mm. The diameter of Japa-
nese coil #050 is equivalent with the American coil #16 as per
the literature [5]. The section diameter of the American coil
Fig. 8 Profiles of blank during the deformation
Int J Adv Manuf Technol (2013) 64:1575–1585
Fig. 9 Deflection of blank at specified locations as a function of time
#16 is 1.29 mm. The gap distance from the center of the coil
section to the blank bottom is 2.9 mm. The discharge energy is
80 J. A 3D model set up in ANSYS/EMAG according to these
parameters is shown in Fig. 6, in Section 3.2. The structure of
the coil is a real spiral flat coil and not the simplified concen-
tric circle coil, modeled into a conductor block carrying cur-
rent. The parallel boundary condition of the magnetic field is
applied to the outer surface of the air elements.
Figure 4 shows the magnetic field distribution between
the coil and the aluminum blank. The open marks represent
the data from experiments in the literature [4], the triangle
plots on the graph represent the Br distribution, while the
square plots represent the Bz. Solid lines on the graph are the
numerical simulation results. These data indicate that the
simulation has good agreement with those resulting from the
experimental method. The strength of the magnetic field is
greatest in the region near the radius, r020 mm. An impor-
tant feature of EMF that is different from the conventional
process is that the load is the body force instead of the plane
Fig. 10 Total magnetic force of the driver as a function of time
Int J Adv Manuf Technol (2013) 64:1575–1585
Table 2 Material parameters
[22] Material ρ (kg/m3)
Ti-6Al-4V 4,430
OFHC 8,930
force. The distribution of magnetic force density, Fz, along
the Z-direction inside the disk is shown in Fig. 5 at the radial
position, r021 mm. The magnetic force density slightly
exceeds that demonstrated by Takatsu et al. [4]. These
results also show that this magnetic force density dramati-
cally declines along the thickness direction of the blank, and
the maximum value occurs on the bottom surface of the
plate near the coil. The application of force used in this
method enables magnetic force change throughout the entire
thickness of the blank.
3.2 Free bulging of aluminum blank
The EMF numerical simulation model is configured accord-
ing to the parameters in Section 2.2, as shown in Fig. 6. The
magnetic model shown in Fig. 6a is developed using
ANSYS/EMAG. The mechanical model shown in Fig. 6b
uses ABAQUS/CAE. The element of blank is element
C3D8R which matches the element type used in magnetic
field analysis. The material model and the parameters use
the data given in Section 2.3. In order to save computational
resource, the die uses element R3D4. The surface-to-surface
contact model, based on penalty function method, simulates
the contact between blank and die. The friction coefficient is
0.3. The thickness of the blank is h00.5 mm, while the gap
between the blank and coil is dg 01.6 mm; discharge voltage
is V06 kV. The amplitude curves of each node derived from
Fig. 11 Profiles of Ti-6Al-4V
blank during the deformation
1581
E (GPa) v σ0 (MPa) K (MPa) n C
113.8 0.242 200 700 0.22 0.06
110 0.343 90 292 0.31 0.025
the node magnetic force calculated in the electromagnetic
model is used to control the deformation of the blank as a
boundary condition.
3.3 Analysis of magnetic force
In the mechanical model, the load applied on the blank is the
node magnetic force calculated in the magnetic field analy-
sis. The total load is the summation of all node loads in the
total blank volume. The total force is an important consid-
eration for the design of the forming device. In ANSYS/
EMAG, the total magnetic force can also be calculated by
the principle of virtual work. Figure 7 is the total magnetic
force graph with the current data plotted as a function of
time in the first-and-a-half cycle. In the graph, the curve
defined by circle symbols is the total magnetic force calcu-
lated by Takatsu, while the curve defined by squares is the
total magnetic force which changes along with time calcu-
lated in ANSYS/EMAG. According to Section 2.2, magnet-
ic field principle analysis, the current frequency will
decrease if the mutual inductance between the coil and blank
is ignored in the inductance of the forming system, and the
corresponding cycle will increase. Takatsu had taken the
mutual inductance between the blank and the coil as well
as the effect of deflection on the magnetic field distribution
into consideration. Even though the mutual inductance be-
tween the coil and blank decreases as deformation of the
1582 Int J Adv Manuf Technol (2013) 64:1575–1585

blank develops, the inductance used in this paper is still

greater than that used in the literature [4] in the entire
process. The total magnetic force calculated in the literature
[4] reaches the minimum value first, as shown in Fig. 7.
When the deflection is small, the total magnetic force in the
literature [4] is greater than that calculated in this paper. As
the deformation continues, the mutual inductance and the
magnetic field intensity near the blank decreases and the
force becomes less. Generally speaking, in a half cycle, the
total momentum calculated in this paper is slightly greater
than the result reported by Takatsu; therefore, the final
deflection of the blank is slightly greater than the experi-
mental result. However, the difference between them is
small, as shown in Fig. 8.

3.3.1 Mechanical analysis Fig. 12 Displacement in the Z-direction of the driver during the
deformation

Figure 8 is an outline of the blank during deformation,

clearly indicating that the deformation of the blank is closely 3.4 Free bulging of Ti-6Al-4V alloy blank
related to the magnetic field distribution. The magnetic field
strength in the r020 mm region is strongest and the blank The numerical simulation of free bulging Ti-6Al-4V alloy
deforms first, while the middle region deforms later due to blank (thickness, t00.5 mm) with a driver was conducted
kinetic energy. The figure shows that the deformation is using the method mentioned above. Because the yield
complete at 215 μs; the greatest displacement is 23.6 mm. strength of Ti-6Al-4V alloy is higher than that of material
This event displays a discrepancy of 3.6 mm when com- JIS-A1050-O, the discharge voltage was increased to 25 kV
pared to the empirical data in the literature [4] with a relative to obtain sufficient force. Other circuit parameters are the
error of 18 %. This difference can be explained as failure to same as those in Section 2.2. The driver is an OFHC plate
account for the deformation of the blank and the change in with a diameter ϕ080 mm and thickness t00.5 mm. The gap
mutual inductance between the coil and the blank in the between the driver and the coil is dg 01.6 mm. Figure 10 is
magnetic field calculation. the total electromagnetic force exerted on the driver as a
Displacements at different positions along the radius vary function of time in the first-and-a-half pulses. According to
with time, as shown in Fig. 9. In this figure, the solid the literature [14], the driver can have the speed high enough
triangle and square symbols represent the experimental val- to actuate the blank to deform before contacting the blank
ues derived from the literature [4]. Curves defined by the when the gap between the driver and the blank is equal to
open triangle and square symbols are the predicted values
based on the simulation method proposed in this paper. The
FE deflection predicted by the method proposed in this
paper is in good agreement with the experimental data when
the deflection is <10 mm. The comparison suggests that the
simulation method is particularly accurate for the EMF
process involving minor deformation. At increased levels
of deformation, the effect of deformation on the distribution
of the magnetic field increases significantly as deformation
increases. The effect of the deformation is neglected in this
paper, with the result that the simulation deformation is
slightly greater than that found in the experimental results.
Our simulation method deformation results are only quali-
tative in the EMF process with great deformation, but the
distortion rule of the blank is basically consistent. Compared
with the simulated results of Fenton, the method used in our
proposal appears to be less accurate, but it avoids the prob-
lem of the air mesh processing and can simulate the impact Fig. 13 Displacement in the X-direction of the driver during the
contact phenomenon. deformation
Int J Adv Manuf Technol (2013) 64:1575–1585
Fig. 14 FEM prediction profile of the blank and the driver at different time values: t019 μs (a), t095 μs (b), t0135 μs (c), and t0235 μs (d)
the blank thickness. Therefore, the gap between the driver
and the blank is 0.5 mm. The mechanical model is the same
as Section 3.2. The driver is modeled into a deformable
body using element C3D4R. The material constitutive equa-
tion of the driver and the blank is the simplified Johnson–
Cook model; the detailed parameters are given in Table 2.
Figure 11 is the section outline of the Ti-6Al-4V alloy
blank during deformation. The deformation of the titanium
alloy blank is complete at 115 μs and then vibrates to the
final shape as a result of inertia, until kinetic energy diffuses
completely. Figures 12 and 13 are, respectively, the Z- and
X-direction displacements of the OFHC driver at different
times. The solid line in the graphs in Figs. 12 and 13 plot the
outline of the driver moving along Z-direction, while the
dashed line is the outline representing the negative Z-direc-
tion. The figures show that the displacement of the driver
reaches the peak value at 115 μs and then moves in the
reverse direction due to the reacting force of the titanium
Fig. 15 Velocity of the blank and the driver at specified locations as a
function of time
1583
alloy blank. The deformation first occurs in the region
nearby the radius r020 mm, and the blank later deforms in
the r00 mm region. Figure 13 also shows that the edge of
the driver moves toward the center of the driver, causing
folding and warping. To demonstrate the deformation pro-
cess of the Ti-6Al-4V blank, in this paper, the shapes of the
blank and the driver are depicted at four different points in
time, as shown in Fig. 14.
The gap between the driver and the blank is equal to the
thickness of the blank, and at a radius of r020 mm, the
driver contacts the blank at 12 μs after the capacitor dis-
charges, as shown in Fig. 15. An enormous impulse occurs
as the driver contacts the blank, as shown in Fig. 16, and
contact actuates the blank to deform. The center of the driver
and the blank deforms after the deformation of the outside
region. The driver and the blank deform at the same speed in
r020 mm, and the speed varies in the same way with time,
while in the r00 mm region, the difference is substantial.
Fig. 16 Contact force between the driver and the blank as a function of
time
1584
This difference is related to the distribution of electromag-
netic force produced by the plate spiral coil.
As mentioned in Section 3.1, the electromagnetic
force produced by the plate spiral coil is greatest in
the r 020 mm region where the blank first deforms;
therefore, the driver and the blank contact each other
together in this region until rebound occurs. Deforma-
tion in the central region is caused by the deformation
of the r020 mm region. The center parts of the driver
and the blank only make contact in the final stage of
deformation, as the wave peak near 120 μs in Fig. 16
illustrates, after which the distortion is complete.
The simulation allows us to derive important rules in
the distortion process which are especially useful when
choosing a set of optimal parameters. Although the
magnetic field calculation and the deformation of alu-
minum blank have been confirmed by the data in the
literature [4], the reliability of these results requires
confirmation by experimental methods. Our next step,
then, will be to conduct the related experiments and
investigate the formability of titanium blank using the
EMF process.
4 Conclusion
This paper proposes a numerical simulation method of
electromagnetic forming for low-conductive metals with
a driver. Parameters such as magnetic field distribution,
magnetic force distribution, and interaction between the
blank and the driver, all of which are necessary to
understand the EMF process, can be calculated by this
method. Calculation of the magnetic model was com-
pared with the one presented in the literature [4]. The
experiment demonstrates that the calculation of the me-
chanical model is more suitable to the small deformation
processes such as tube compression, embossing, and
plate stamping. Conversely, for large-scale deformation
processes, it can only predict the deformation qualitative-
ly. Additionally, numerical simulation of EMF for titani-
um alloy with a cooper driver was conducted. The speed
with which deformation occurs and special deformation
behavior of the blanks and the driver can be determined
using this method, importantly the behavior of drivers
which are especially difficult to determine experimental-
ly. Although the models presented in this paper are all
circle plates bulging process, the method described
can also be reliably applied to the model of non-
axisymmetric parts.
Acknowledgments This work was supported by the National Natu-
ral Science Foundations of China (no. 50875093 and no. 51175201).
Int J Adv Manuf Technol (2013) 64:1575–1585
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