John Watton, Author at Hill Engineering

Case Study: Aluminum forging cold-work stress relief

by John Watton

As we discuss in a related case study, aluminum alloy heat treatment is a three-step process designed to achieve the desired properties. The process involves: 1) solution heat treatment (SHT) at an elevated temperature below the melting point, 2) quenching in a tank of fluid (e.g., 140-180°F water), and 3) age hardening. While providing good properties, the heat treatment has the negative side effect of creating bulk residual stress and distortion. One approach to mitigate this problem is the application of a post-heat treatment mechanical stress relief process.

Case Study: Rapid Forge Design

by John Watton

Hill Engineering’s Rapid Forge Design^TMsoftware is an automated tool for fast and reliable design of 2-piece, closed-die impression forgings. Rapid Forge Design^TM reads the final part geometry and automatically designs a forging according to accepted industry guidelines and user inputs. Rapid Forge Design^TM is intended for use by forging suppliers and forging consumers/OEMs.

Case Study: Aluminum forging quench modeling

by John Watton

Aluminum alloy heat treatment is a three-step process designed to achieve the desired properties. The process involves: 1) solution heat treatment (SHT) at an elevated temperature below the melting point, 2) quenching in a tank of fluid (e.g., 140-180°F water), and 3) age hardening. While providing good properties, the heat treatment has the negative side effect of creating bulk residual stress and distortion.

Analysis of distorted aerospace part

by John Watton

We recently uploaded a new case study on the topic of part distortion caused by residual stress during machining. We wanted to dive a little deeper into the topic with an analysis of a distorted aerospace part. Here is what we found. Continue reading Analysis of distorted aerospace part