Hot Gas Forming of Aluminum Alloy Tubes Using Flame Heating

Hot metal gas forming (HMGF) is a desirable way for the automotive industry to produce complex metallic parts with poor formability, such as aluminum alloys. A simple hot gas forming method was developed to form aluminum alloy tubes using flame heating. An aluminum alloy tube was heated by a flame torch while the tube was rotated and compressed using a lathe machine and simultaneously pressurized with a constant air pressure. The effects of the internal pressure and axial feeding on expansion and wall thickness distribution were examined. The results showed that the proposed gas forming method was effective for forming aluminum alloy tubes. It was also indicated that axial feeding is a vital parameter to prevent reductions in wall thickness by supplying the material flow during the forming process.