Forming analysis and process study for a 6082 aluminum alloy automobile control arm in the process of forging

To reduce the weight of vehicles and save on fuel consumption, the forming analysis and process study for a 6082 aluminum alloy automobile control arm were conducted, and the results are reported here. First, the parameters of the constitutive equation of the 6082 aluminum alloy are determined, and the forming process and the dies of the stretch rolling, bending, and die-forging are proposed and discussed according to the given contours of the control arm. Then, the control arm is simulated by means of Deform-3D, the experiment results of the automobile control arm are compared with the simulation results, and the tensile strength, yield strength, and elongation of the test bars obtained from the control arm can meet the mechanical performance requirements based on the tensile test rig. Finally, the relationship of the die load, die wear, workpiece damage, and workpiece equivalent stress with different processing parameters are analyzed, and the effects of different solid solution times on the strength of control arm are discussed. The results show that when the friction coefficient is 0.3, the die temperature is 250°C, the forging velocity is 230 mm/s, the strain rate is 1s−1 and the solid solution time is 30 min, the die load, die wear, workpiece damage, workpiece equivalent stress, and the mechanical strength are then in a good state. The results of this research provide a reliable basis and analysis method for the forging of aluminum alloy automobile control arms.