In this tutorial, the simulation of friction stir welding (FSW) of acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) polymer in Abaqus is presented.
Polymers are increasingly used in manufacturing industries due to their excellent strength-to-weight ratio, toughness, and low cost. Polymer joints are widely applied in automobiles. For example, automotive tail-lights and indicators often join a clear or tinted polycarbonate (PC) part to an opaque ABS body.
Polymers have different rheological properties compared to metals, especially in terms of melt viscosity. This difference affects flow behavior and leads to diverse process parameters in FSW. Polymers with higher melt temperature and viscosity require higher tool rotational speed and lower tool traverse speed to generate sufficient heat and achieve strong joints.
Joining dissimilar polymers is challenging because of differences in mechanical, chemical, thermal, and physical properties. In contrast, similar polymers show better compatibility, resulting in more efficient joining.
In the simulation:
The ABS part is modeled as a three-dimensional Eulerian domain.
The tool is modeled as a three-dimensional solid part.
Steel material properties (elastic-plastic data and thermal parameters) are used for the tool.
ABS material is defined with elastic data, Johnson-Cook plasticity, thermal conductivity, and specific heat.
A dynamic temperature-explicit step is applied for the analysis.
Contact properties include friction coefficient and heat generation.
A rigid body constraint is applied to the tool to reduce computational cost.
Fixed boundary conditions are assigned to the sides of the Eulerian part, while axial and rotational velocities are applied to the tool.
Uniform material assignment is used for the Eulerian material location.
A fine mesh is recommended for accurate results.
After the simulation, results such as temperature distribution, nodal temperature, stress, and strain can be obtained. Figures of these results are shown below.
Reviews
There are no reviews yet.