Effect of Grain Size and Dimple Density on Micropattern Forming Process of Zircaloy‐4 Alloy

Micropattern forming process is a high‐efficiency and cost‐effective process for fabricating multifunctional surfaces in microelectronics, fuel cells, biomedicine, and aerospace. Conventional finite element method models are no longer capable of describing the micropattern forming process because the dimension of textures approaches the grain size of zirconium alloys. Currently, few size‐effect models exist to describe the fabrication of surface texture, and the relationship between forming texture density and zirconium alloy grain size has not been explored. Herein, high‐density dimples with different spacing are fabricated on the zirconium alloys surface with different grain sizes. A crystal plasticity finite element method simulation model for micropattern forming process is developed based on crystal plasticity kinematics and constitutive model to investigate the effects of various dimples spacing and grain sizes on forming depth and forming quality. The developed simulation model can predict forming depth, surface morphology, and formed feature profile. This work further explores the process of preparing microdimples on zirconium alloy surface, which expands the application of zirconium alloys and is of great significance for the design of forming dies and the process optimization.