Metal matrix composite processing: numerical study of heat transfer between fibers and metal

Abstract

PurposeTo study heat transfer kinetics at the fiber scale in order to describe injection of liquid metal through a fibrous perform initially situated in a preheated mould, which is one of the various methods used in order to produce metal matrix composite materials (MMCs).Design/methodology/approachThe first part presents a preliminary study in a static case to describe heat transfer kinetics between a fiber and the matrix in the case of a sudden contact of both components initially set up at different temperatures. This model enables to study the influence of the various parameters of the problem on heat transfer kinetics with phase change. In the second part, we present a modeling which takes into account the metal convection within the pores of the preform.FindingsThe numerical results of these two models justify the instantaneous thermal equilibrium assumption classically admitted to describe MMCs manufacturing methods. The results of this dynamic microscopic model are compared with the results issued from a single temperature macroscopic model to justify the methodological approach and the choice of the microscopic domain geometry representative of the MMCs manufacturing process.Research limitations/implicationsThis first numerical model at the microscopic scale deals with the study of heat transfer between fibers and a pure metal. Next step will be the extension of this study to the preform infiltration by a metal alloy. Injection of matrix alloy implies the appearance of phenomena generated by segregation during phase changes.Originality/valueThe results of simulation tests, making use of the usual conditions of MMCs processing, show pretty good agreement with those of macroscopic models describing the anisothermal flow of a pure metal through a porous medium. From this coherence and from the results of the microscopic models as well, the hypothesis of instantaneous thermal equilibrium between fibers and metal (widely used in the literature to study the production of MMCs by infiltration of the liquid metal through the fibrous reinforcement) is justified. Moreover, it will be possible to extend it to the study of infiltration by an alloy, taking then into account thermal and solutal coupled transfers inside the study domain defined in the present work.

Entropy Generation During Natural Convection in a Porous Cavity: Effect of Thermal Boundary Conditions

“…Natural convection in fluid-saturated porous materials is encountered in many applications such as molten metals infiltration in porous media [9][10][11][12], drying and transport of gases in porous media [13][14][15], enhanced oil recovery by hot-water flooding in porous beds [16], combustion of heavy oils in porous reservoirs [17,18], etc., where the thermal boundary conditions play a significant role in the overall process. Effects of thermal boundary conditions, such as sinusoidal heating and discrete heating, are reported in the literature [19][20][21].…”

Application of Control Volume Method Using the Voronoi Tessellation in Numerical Modelling of Solidification Process

“…Knowledge of the thermal conduction phenomena and their effective description is important for the analysis of the heat transport processes occurring in heterogeneous media. An example of industrial importance is the solidification process of metal matrix composite (MMC) [1][2][3][4][5][6][7]. The formation of microstructures can be controlled during the solidification process, as e.g.…”

Efficient Methodologies for Processing of Fluids by Thermal Convection within Porous Square Cavities

“…Enhancement of oxygen transport in liquid metal by natural convection during oxidation of liquid lead and lead-bismuth eutectic in a discretely heated enclosure was investigated by Ma et al 37 Studies on natural convection in porous media due to discrete heat sources are mainly focused on electronic cooling applications. [38][39][40][41] However, thermal treatment of various fluids in porous media have several other important applications such as molten metal infiltration in porous media, [42][43][44][45] drying and transport of gases in porous media, [46][47][48] enhanced oil recovery by hot-water flooding in porous beds, 49 combustion of heavy oils in porous reservoirs, 50,51 etc. Thus, an understanding of the role of discrete heating for various fluids in porous media is important and such studies are yet to appear in the literature.…”