Experimental and Numerical Investigation of Liquid Nitrogen Die Cooling for Increased Efficiency in Porthole Aluminum Extrusion Dies
Source abstract
Abstract
Die design plays a critical role in achieving high-quality aluminum extrusion products with optimal efficiency. Porthole dies are widely employed to produce hollow profiles for diverse industrial applications, yet their design parameters significantly influence surface quality, geometry, and productivity. In this study, a two-hole porthole die was investigated using both numerical and experimental approaches. The 6060 aluminum alloy (produced in the foundry of Alumil SA, Kilkis, Greece) was selected as the material of focus. Finite Element Analysis was conducted with HyperXtrude™ 2022 software, while experimental trials were performed on a 35 MN extrusion press. To further enhance productivity, a liquid nitrogen cooling system was integrated into the process. The combined numerical and experimental results demonstrated that the redesigned die and the integration of liquid nitrogen cooling significantly improved process performance. Productivity increased by 8.76%, with ram speed rising from 6.8 mm/s to 9.5 mm/s while maintaining dimensional accuracy and stable extrusion conditions.
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Research context
OpenAlex topics: Metallurgy and Material Forming · Aluminum Alloy Microstructure Properties · Bauxite Residue and Utilization
SciVX discovery tags are terminology-based. OpenAlex topics are source-provided classifications.
Affiliations
Digital Manufacturing and Materials Characterisation Laboratory, School of Science and Technology 14th km Thessaloniki-Moudania, International Hellenic University, 57001 Thermi, Greece
Alumil S.A., Production Division, 61100 Kilkis, Greece
Matrex Aluminum Dies S.A., Block 5B-A Road A8 I.A. Sindos, 57022 Thessaloniki, Greece
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