Handling of iron ore pellets is an important part in the converting process for LKAB. Knowledge about this sub process is very important for further efficiency progress and increased product quality. The existence of a simulation tool with modern modelling and simulation methods will significantly increase the possibility to predict the critical forces in product development processes and thereby decrease the amount of crushed pellets (fines). In this work, simulations of granular material flows on a global scale are performed. From the simulations, properties like flow pattern and density distribution are studied. The methodology is suitable for different applications of particle flows. The particles could be stones, ore, ore pellets, metal powder and other granular materials. Previous studies exploring flow patterns and stress fields in granular solids are analysed with experiments or with numerical methods such as discrete element (DE) method or finite element (FE) computations. In this work, the smoothed particle (SP) method is used to simulate granular material flow. It is a mesh-free continuum-based computational technique where each calculation node is associated with a specific mass, momentum and energy. Properties within the flow such as density and movements of the nodes results from summations via a kernel function of the neighbours of each node to solve the integration of the governing equations. The fact that there are no connections between the nodes in the SP method, results in a method that handles extremely large deformations and still has the advantages of a continuum-based method. This is a major advantage versus FE and DE analysis. Within the current thesis, two applications of simulating granular material with SP analysis is presented: iron ore pellets flow in a flat bottomed silo and simulation of shoe filling of metal powder into simple and stepped dies. In the first application, primarily the flow pattern, when discharging a silo with pellets, is studied and compared with experimental results. Next application focuses on the filling behaviour and density distribution in metal powder shoe filling. For trustworthy numerical simulations of iron ore pellets flow, knowledge about their mechanical properties is needed. In this work, an elastic-plastic material characterization for blast furnace pellets is evaluated from experimental data. Constitutive data in vein of two elastic parameters and a yield function for the pellets bulk material is determined. The present study is an important step towards a simulation tool to predict the critical load in different handling systems of pellets. / Godkänd; 2008; 20080428 (ysko)

The rapid development of computing technology has made powerful tools, such as finite element codes, available for more and more companies. The use of simulation tools, predictive engineering, is a prerequisite today in product development. To describe the material deformation a variety of constitutive models, based both on physical foundations and empirical considerations, are available. Common for all models is that they contain material parameters, which have to be estimated by utilising experimental methods. Despite the advanced numerical tools, the most common method to characterise materials in industry today is to use standard tensile tests. Those tests have a major drawback. When the loading is no longer homogenous, and plastic instability has initiated, the stress-strain relationship is no longer valid. The aim for this work is to investigate methods for parameter estimation in material models. The test material used is hot-rolled cold-forming steel. A further aim is to yield stress-strain curves more appropriate for large deformations compared to a standard tensile test. The main features are the use of experiments, finite element analysis (FEA) and inverse modelling combined. The parameter estimation is formulated as an inverse problem and an objective function, describing the residual error between experimental data and data from a FEA of the experiment, is formulated as a least-square functional. The objective function is minimised by an optimisation algorithm yielding a vector of best fit, or estimated, material parameters. Two approaches are investigated. One global, where experimental data from a forming experiment is used. Data is in the form of tool force and displacement, hence global data. This is in contrast with a local approach where in-plane full-field measurements of displacements on a flat specimen (hence, local data), subjected to a tensile test, are collected through the whole deformation history until fracture. The measurements are made with digital speckle photography (DSP). Parameters are estimated for a total of three different material models, assuming isotropic material properties and yield surface according to von Mises. Results from the global approach show significant difference in the stress-strain curves and a force response with optimised models compared to an extrapolated tensile test curve. In the local approach the DSP-technique provided measurements, where the maximum equivalent plastic strain in a specimen was approximately 0.8. The true stress-strain curves based on the estimated parameters are validated in the low strain region by comparison with curves from standard tension tests. / Godkänd; 2004; 20070115 (ysko)

No description available.

Granular materials are very common both in nature and in industry, and their extensive use means that there are financial incentives for increased efficiency. There are huge costs related to their use and handling, which is a major motivation for increased knowledge of the behaviour of granular materials at different loading conditions. The development of tools for numerical simulation of granular materials at diverse flow conditions gives the opportunity to study and optimise various industrial processes. In order for such tools to be trustworthy, calibration and validation against experimental results is essential. Thus, experimental methods for accurate measurement and characterisation of granular material flow are required. The objective of this thesis is to contribute to the knowledge of experimental characterisation and numerical modelling of non-cohesive, dry granular materials, at dissimilar flow conditions. In order to fulfil this objective, an experimental method, able to capture the flow behaviour of granular materials is developed. The method is based on the digital image correlation technique, and it is used for field measurements of displacement and velocity. The devised method is used to obtain field measurements for the flow of sand, tungsten carbide powder and potassium chloride. For modelling and simulation, the smoothed particle hydrodynamics (SPH) method, and a pressure-dependent, elastic-plastic constitutive model are used. In this thesis, experimental characterisation and numerical modelling of granular material flow is performed in a number of applications. An experimental powder filling rig is used to study the flow during filling of sand into a die. A high-speed digital camera is used to record the flow, and the digital image correlation technique is used to obtain field measurements during the filling. This method is also applied in another experimental setup, where flow during filling of spherical tungsten carbide powder into a die is studied. The filling of tungsten carbide powder is simulated using the SPH method, and the results are compared to the field measurements with good agreement. Furthermore, the flow of potassium chloride is studied experimentally in the collapse of a granular column and in the discharge from a flat bottomed silo. The material flow process in both the column collapse and silo discharge are simulated using the SPH method. The results from simulations are found to be in agreement with observations reported in literature, and with experimental measurements obtained in this work. In conclusion, an experimental method for characterising granular material flow through field measurements is presented. The method is used to support the exploration of numerical tools for modelling and simulation of granular material flow. Furthermore, the high accuracy field measurements are used for improved calibration and validation of numerical methods. Reliable numerical simulations allows for study of the mechanisms that are present during granular material flow, mechanisms that might be hard or even impossible to investigate experimentally. The work within the present thesis contributes to the knowledge of both experimental characterisation and numerical modelling of granular material flow.

No description available.

<p>Upprättat; 2016; 20160705 (stegol)</p>

Sintering at high-pressure improves the properties of the material, either through new sintering aids becoming available or through improving intergranular bonding. This gives the manufactured products potential advantages like faster cut rates, and more precise and cleaner production methods that add up to cost efficiency and competitive edge. The production of synthetic diamond products demands tooling that can achieve high pressures and deliver it with a high degree of certainty. The common denominator for almost all high-pressure systems is to use capsules where a powder material encloses the core material. Numerical analysis of manufacturing processes with working conditions that reach ultra high pressure (above 10 GPa) requires a constitutive model that can handle the specific behaviours of the powder from a low density to solid state. The work in this thesis deals with characterization and simulation of the material behaviour during high-pressure compaction in powder pressing. Some of the work was focused on investigating the material when used as compressible gasket in high-pressure systems. The aim was to increase the knowledge of the high-pressure pressing process. This includes a better understanding of how mean stress develops in the compact during pressing and an insight into the development material models concerning highpressure materials. Both experimental and numerical investigations were made to gain knowledge in these fields. The mechanical behaviour of a CaCO3 powder mix was investigated using the Brazilian disc test, uniaxial compression testing and closed die experiments. The aim of the experimental work was to provide a foundation for numerical simulation of CaCO3 powder compaction at higher pressures. Friction measurements of the powder were also conducted. From the experimental investigations, density dependent material parameters were found. An elasto-plastic Cap model was developed for ultra high-pressure powder pressing. To improve the material model, density dependent constitutive parameters were included. The model was implemented as a user-defined material subroutine in a nonlinear finite element program. The model was validated against pressure measurements using phase transitions of Bismuth. The measurements were conducted in a Bridgman anvil apparatus. The simulations showed that thin discs with small radial extrusion generate a plateau at a low-pressure level, while thick discs with large radial extrusion generate a pressure peak at a high-pressure level. The results showed that FE-results can be used to engineer pressure peaks needed to seal HPHT-systems. For compressible gaskets, it was found that diametral support increases the phase transformation load. Higher initial density of the powder compact and diametral support generate higher pressure per unit thickness. The results from the validation using pressure measurements showed that the simulation model was indeed capable of reproducing load–thickness curves and pressure profiles, up to 9 GPa, close to the experimental curves. / Godkänd; 2011; 20111020 (bersve); DISPUTATION Ämnesområde: Hållfasthetslära/Solid Mechanics Opponent: Professor Javier Oliver, Dept of Strength of Materials and Structural Analysis, Technical University of Catalonia, Barcelona, Spain, Ordförande: Bitr professor Pär Jonsén, Institutionen för teknikvetenskap och matematik, Luleå tekniska universitet Tid: Torsdag den 15 december 2011, kl 09.00 Plats: E246, Luleå tekniska universitet

Shearing is the process where sheet metal is mechanically cut between two tools. Various shearing technologies are commonly used in the sheet metal industry, for example, in cut to length lines, slitting lines, end cropping etc. Shearing has speed and cost advantages over competing cutting methods like laser and plasma cutting, but involves large forces on the equipment and large strains in the sheet material. The constant development of sheet metals toward higher strength and formability leads to increased forces on the shearing equipment and tools. Shearing of new sheet materials imply new suitable shearing parameters. Investigations of the shearing parameters through live tests in the production are expensive and separate experiments are time consuming and requires specialized equipment. Studies involving a large number of parameters and coupled effects are therefore preferably performed by finite element based simulations. Accurate experimental data is still a prerequisite to validate such simulations. There is, however, a shortage of accurate experimental data to validate such simulations. In industrial shearing processes, measured forces are always larger than the actual forces acting on the sheet, due to friction losses. Shearing also generates a force that attempts to separate the two tools with changed shearing conditions through increased clearance between the tools as result. Tool clearance is also the most common shearing parameter to adjust, depending on material grade and sheet thickness, to moderate the required force and to control the final sheared edge geometry. In this work, an experimental procedure that provides a stable tool clearance together with accurate measurements of tool forces and tool displacements, was designed, built and evaluated. Important shearing parameters and demands on the experimental set-up were identified in a sensitivity analysis performed with finite element simulations under the assumption of plane strain. With respect to large tool clearance stability and accurate force measurements, a symmetric experiment with two simultaneous shears and internal balancing of forces attempting to separate the tools was constructed. Steel sheets of different strength levels were sheared using the above mentioned experimental set-up, with various tool clearances, sheet clamping and rake angles. Results showed that tool penetration before fracture decreased with increased material strength. When one side of the sheet was left unclamped and free to move, the required shearing force decreased but instead the force attempting to separate the two tools increased. Further, the maximum shearing force decreased and the rollover increased with increased tool clearance. Digital image correlation was applied to measure strains on the sheet surface. The obtained strain fields, together with a material model, were used to compute the stress state in the sheet. A comparison, up to crack initiation, of these experimental results with corresponding results from finite element simulations in three dimensions and at a plane strain approximation showed that effective strains on the surface are representative also for the bulk material. A simple model was successfully applied to calculate the tool forces in shearing with angled tools from forces measured with parallel tools. These results suggest that, with respect to tool forces, a plane strain approximation is valid also at angled tools, at least for small rake angles. In general terms, this study provide a stable symmetric experimental set-up with internal balancing of lateral forces, for accurate measurements of tool forces, tool displacements, and sheet deformations, to study the effects of important shearing parameters. The results give further insight to the strain and stress conditions at crack initiation during shearing, and can also be used to validate models of the shearing process.

No description available.

This thesis presents an optical method to measure the rolling friction coefficientsfor balls rolling freely on a cylindrical surface. Two different models of a ball rollingfreely on a cylindrical surface are established, one is an analytical model and the otheris a numerical model derived from Lagrange equation. The rolling friction coefficientsare evaluated from the position data of the steel balls. The positions data are retrievedfrom images recorded by a high-speed camera. The locating algorithms includingbackground subtraction and ball recognition are presented in detail. The rollingfriction coefficients between different diameter steel balls and a cylindrical aluminumsurface are measured. The angular positions of the balls are predicted by the solutionof the equation of motion (EOM), and good agreements are found between theexperimental and theoretical results. The values of rolling friction coefficientsbetween different diameter steel balls and a cylindrical aluminum surface areevaluated.