This study presents a finite element method (FEM) optimization strategy to enhance the solidification of molten aluminum alloy in the HPDC process for the production of bulk metal matrix composites. A Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) approach based on the Explicit Volume Fluid Multiphase (EVFM) model was applied in the ANSYS FLUENT software environment to analyze the effect of pressurized melt infiltration and thermal loading on deformation, heat flux variations and solidification profiles during solidification processing of aluminum alloy composite in a squeeze cast die of varying thicknesses ranging from 3-24 mm. The associated turbulence was accounted for by the k-ϵ model. The results indicate that the resistance to deformation was not significant for die thicknesses within the 5-15 mm range, but this property increases sharply at a constant rate as the die thickness exceeds 15 mm. The heat transfer characteristics for the 15-21mm die are considered as optimal for controlled melt solidification. The solidification profiles suggested that heat flux variations were most critical for the 3, 6 and 9mm die thicknesses, while the capacity to dissipate heat at a constant rate was achieved for die thicknesses of 12, 15 and 18 mm. The experimental validation of the numerical analysis suggested that mechanical properties of the castings vary non-linearly with the applied squeeze pressure.
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