Forging Material - Part One

The forging materials are mainly carbon steel and alloy steel with various compositions, followed by aluminum, magnesium, copper, titanium and their alloys. The original state of the material is bar, ingot, metal powder and liquid metal. The ratio of cross-sectional area of metal before deformation to that after deformation is called forging ratio. Correct selection of forging ratio, reasonable heating temperature and holding time, reasonable initial forging temperature and final forging temperature, reasonable deformation amount and deformation speed have great relations to improve product quality and reduce cost.

General medium and small forgings use round or square bars as blanks. The grain structure and mechanical properties of the bar are uniform and good, the shape and size are accurate, and the surface quality is good, which is convenient for mass production. As long as the heating temperature and deformation conditions are controlled reasonably, forgings with excellent properties can be forged without large forging deformation. Ingots are only used for large forgings. The ingot is as-cast structure with large columnar crystal and loose center. Therefore, the columnar crystal must be broken into fine grains through large plastic deformation, and loose compaction can obtain excellent metal structure and mechanical properties.