Mensuration and simulation of mold filling process in semi-solid die-cast of aluminum alloy

To understand the flow trace of semi-solid slurry in mold cavity, some thermocouples were inserted in mold cavity, and the reaction timing of thermocouples showed the arrival of fluid. The filling time and rate were estimated by comparison between the experiment and calculation. The introduction of computer simulation technique based on ADSTEFAN was to predict injectionforming process and to prevent defects during trial manufacture of various parts. By comparing the formed appearance of parts in experiment and in simulation, and observing the relationship between internal defects inspected by X-ray or microscope and the flow field obtained in simulation, it was indicated that both have quite good agreement in simulation and experiment. Right predictions for cast defects resulted from mold filling can be carried out and proper direction was also proposed. The realization of numerical visualization for filling process during semi-solid die-cast process will play an important role in optimizing technology plan.