Investigation on the Hydro-forming of SUS304 Stainless Steel Dome

The dome hydro-forming was studied theoretically and experimentally. The theoretical analysis shows that the process of dome hydro-forming can be divided into two stages, i.e., firstly forming a hemi-sphere and secondly forming a hemi-toroidal. Theoretically, being larger than those in the outer area of a hemi-toroidal shell, the radial tensile stresses take place in the inner area where fracture is more likely to occur in the forming process. The required hydraulic pressure to form the dome should be determined by the deformation in the outer area, hitting about 12 MPa in theory. The experimental results show that the dome could be produced in one operation by hydro-forming which needs a hydraulic pressure of about 9 MPa. The experimental results prove to agree well with the theoretical analysis. In order to avoid wrinkling and fracture, the closing force acted on the die should be adjusted properly in accordance with the hydraulic pressure.