Optimizing the Fabrication of the Titanium Sections of Pressure Vessels

This article discusses research done on modeling, analyzing, and optimizing the technology used to forge the titanium sections of pressure vessels. The finite-element method was used for computer modeling of the deformation of the material during the forging operation. The study examined the forging force, the uniformity of deformation of the vessel’s walls, the filling of the dies, and the probability of crimping. Consideration was given to the possibility of using the phenomenon of superplasticity to forge the given product. The superplastic flow regime is maintained only during the final stage of the forging operation (the last 20% of the stroke of the die) in order to shorten operation as a whole. This is done by setting the die speed at a value which ensures that the material is deformed within a prescribed rate range and that the limits specified for the maximum forces are observed. Several alternatives were examined for making the vessel, these variants differing in the form of the semifinished product and the configuration of the dies. With constraints on the maximum loads and forging time, the technology that was chosen makes it possible to significantly increase the coefficient that characterizes the utilization of titanium in the production process.