Description of the simulation program MAGMA5 Rel. 5.2 5
MAGMA is a comprehensive and powerful tool for the foundry man to improve his casting quality, optimize process conditions and to substantially save costs in the 5 design and production of castings. MAGMA is a software package designed to simulate heat-flow and fluid flow phenomena in the casting process. 5
MAGMA is modular and consists of: ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬
Common graphical user interface for all modules Project management perspective for handling of project versions Geometry perspective: geometry modeling and optionally import/export of CAD data Mesh perspective: automatic enmeshment of the geometry for the simulation Definition perspective: complete definition of the relevant material, heat transfer, process and simulation parameters Simulation solvers for the calculation of fluid flow, heat flow and series casting simulation Result perspective: comprehensive visualization and evaluation of simulation results Database module for handling of thermo physical and other process relevant data required for simulation
The package MAGMA5 can be used to simulate the entire casting process, casting filling, solidification, feeding and cooling behavior. It also permits simulation of general heat-flow and fluid flow processes. General: ¬ All MAGMA5 modules are integrated into one common user interface. ¬ It is possible to open and use more than one of the perspectives in MAGMA5 simultaneously using the perspective navigator ¬ Activation of user licenses via license keys with in-built license administration tool. ¬ Each MAGMA5 module can be used separately depending on the number of user licenses. ¬ Simulation runs can be interrupted and partially run simulations restarted at any time. ¬ Comprehensive context sensitive help menus and on-line documentation. ¬ Determination and display of relevant economic and technical information such as pour weight, cast yield, metal-mold surfaces and gating cross sections, die and mold sand volume. ¬ Feeding conditions and average mold sand temperature are shown during simulation ¬ The heat flow in the die as well as the heat flux between casting, die, cooling and ambient is determined and can be visualized for one or multiple casting cycles. ¬ The current status of the simulation will be displayed. ¬ The current project conditions will be monitored and can be stored in a file.
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Project Perspective The features of the project perspective include: ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬
Management of all projects in a database, including visualization of saved projects in the 'project explorer' with the corresponding directory structure ® 5 Importing MAGMASOFT Rel. 4.4 and MAGMA Rel. 5.0 and Rel. 5.1 projects Display of important project information (process, alloy, etc.) and geometry without opening the project List of 'recent projects' and ability to add preferred project locations for quick access Creation of new projects or new versions within a project with selection of the casting process and alloy type Support for deleting and renaming projects Visualization of the history of project versions in a 'project tree' structure Possibility to add notes, photos and images and descriptions to each project version
Geometry Perspective The geometry perspective is a CAD-like volumetric geometry modeler with extensive functionality to create or import all types of geometry required for modeling the casting process. This perspective provides various windows for input and display: menu bar, tool bar, workspace for creation of the 3-D model, geometry tree, material list, information window, command line and status bar. The geometry work area can be divided in up to 9 views. The features of the geometry perspective are: ¬
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Import and export of geometry data with optional CAD interfaces (options: STL, STEP, CATIA, Pro/Engineer read only), CAD geometries and/or finite element meshes (additional MAGMAlink module required) can be combined with MAGMA5 geometries Geometry input through a dialog or by selecting geometry entities (points, surfaces, volumes, macros) in the work space Working on entire geometry or different work sheets The current geometry workspace can be displayed with the following functions: free rotation (including user defined rotation point), zooming, panning, zoom of a specified area; different options for geometry display (wire frame, shaded, shaded with edges, transparent) and dynamic sectioning (clipping) of the geometry In the geometry tree: editing of defined geometry; renaming, copy/paste of geometry elements; drag and drop modification of the geometry order, options to view/hide geometry objects or select/unselect geometry objects for the simulation In the material list: selection and addition of required material groups, including sub-groups; selection of material data, assignment of process features (e.g. permanent mold, core, filter, ingate, gating) Direct modeling of the geometry features: cube, (truncated) cylinder or cones, cylinder on a surface, extrusion of user defined or geometry profiles along a defined vector, sphere, torus, sweep with constant or variable cross-section, bodies of rotation with arbitrary profile and axis, creation of connecting skins between two surfaces Creation of surfaces and curves for creating spatial geometry: open and closed curves (polygon, radii, splines, surfaces extracted from existing bodies), surfaces (circle, rectangle, polygon contour, radii, spline, extracted from geometry), special macro for creation of runner geometries
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Creation of Boolean bodies to model complex geometry: Boolean operations unite, subtract and intersect; splitting of geometry into individual volumes Geometry manipulation by: translation, mirroring, rotation, scaling; creation of reference copies to allow simultaneous editing of several bodies; combining geometry in macros; undo / redo for steps used in creating geometry Storage, reading and merging of entire geometry or different work sheets Input of boundary conditions for the simulation: creation of vents; definition of location of entrance of metal stream into geometry, including automatic definition of tracer particles (with / without mass and size); symmetry boundaries to reduce model size and calculation times; Input of sensor locations for recording information during simulation: creation of control points as points or on a surface for recording temperatures, velocities, pressures; definition of tracer particle release locations (options: with / without mass and size); definition of 1-D lines for result profiles Length measurement; determination of centre point and radius Calculation of volumes and masses at pouring and room temperatures Selection/storage and manipulation of all types of entities from a geometry data base invoking standard cast components or a user defined geometry data base Standardization of geometry design using script files and option to record geometry input into a script file Geometry can be visualized in stereo mode (options: red/cyan anaglyph or shutter glasses, specific hardware required) Image and movie generation
Mesh Perspective In the mesh perspective, a finite volume mesh with a given number of elements for use in subsequent simulations can be created. Main features of the mesh perspective are: ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬
automatic generation of Finite-Volume meshes with user-defined accuracy for the main axes Automatic meshing for a given number of control volumes Advanced meshing mode with flexible generation of sections for enmeshment, based on the solid model; local mesh refinement and coarsening for different domains Generation of additional mesh information regarding the position of metal/mold boundaries for consideration in simulations using the optional Solver 5 various options for optimizing enmeshment Direct visualization of the generated mesh in the workspace with up to 4 different views simultaneously Generation and visualization of mesh quality criteria, visualization of control point locations (defined in the geometry perspective) in the mesh Zooming, panning and rotation of visualized enmeshment and mesh criteria Selection of materials to be displayed X-ray visualization for mesh quality criteria and control points Dynamic sectioning (clipping) the visualized mesh, with information regarding the size of the currently mesh layer sectioning Animation definition and control (animated sectioning or rotation) User defined background and light settings Mesh can be visualized in stereo mode (options: red/cyan anaglyph or shutter glasses, specific hardware required) Image and movie generation
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Definition Perspective The definition perspective supports the definition of the casting process parameters as well as definitions required for the simulation. The appearance of the perspective changes based on the selected casting process (options: sand casting, die casting). Regardless of the casting process to be simulated, this perspective provides various windows for input and display: menu bar, tool bar, definition navigator, workspace with an interactive process timeline, as well as consistency checks and error/warning information for the definitions. The steps in the casting process and other simulation definitions are ordered in a tree structure to allow direct access: ¬
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Material definition: a table of the material groups defined in the geometry, the corresponding materials can be assigned via mouse click from the material database; the initial or pouring temperatures of the materials can be defined; other parameters of the material dataset for each material can be visualized; selected material parameters can be modified directly in the material definition table Heat transfer definition: a table of the material interfaces pairings which are present in the geometry, the corresponding heat transfer coefficients can be assigned automatically through the definition of templates or via mouse click from the database; parameters of the heat transfer coefficient dataset can be visualized in the table Casting process definitions (see below for process specific definitions): display of all process phases and steps using pictograms, durations and points in time in an interactive process timeline; definition and activation of individual process steps through entries in the process navigator and/or in the process timeline Result definitions: specification of the results to be written for time-dependent or time-independent results, separately for the simulation of mold filling and solidification Simulation settings: specification of physical models or phenomena to be considered in the simulation, coupled to the corresponding process and result definitions; specification of simulation to be carried out (options: filling only, solidification only, combined); consideration of sand permeability or mold venting; result selection and options for preparing faster visualization.
For gravity sand castings, the casting process definitions allow the specification of: ¬ ¬ ¬
Pouring conditions at the inlet (options: pouring time, pouring flow rate or pressure head as a function of time); ladle wizard to support the definition of pouring conditions for bottom pour ladles Stop conditions for the solidification simulation (options: casting plus rigging completely solidified, casting completely solidified, specified time, casting plus rigging below a specified temperature) Shake out conditions from the mold (options: time, temperature for a specific material group) and quenching
For die castings, the casting process definitions allow the specification of: ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬
Number of heating cycles and production cycles to be simulated Die close time and delay between die closing and pouring Pouring conditions at the inlet (options: pouring time, pouring flow rate or pressure head) Die opening times for each die sub-group individually Delay between die opening and casting ejection
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For any process the treatment after casting definitions allow the specification of ¬ ¬ ¬
Separation of casting from gating system or feeders (options: time, temperature for a specific material group) Quenching conditions (option: quench medium, quench temperature and time) Multiple machining steps after shake out (option: material group to be machined, time).
Simulation Perspective and Simulation Solvers The simulation perspective allows for the control and observation of simulations. For all simulations it is possible to: ¬ ¬ ¬
Start, stop, dump or restart the simulation at any time View the current status of the simulation on-line Continue a simulation by adding process steps or cycles including variations in process conditions
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Optional: Selection of the number of processor cores or CPUs to be used for the simulation
The following sections describe the simulation capabilities for mold filling and solidification in more detail. Mold and Die Filling Simulation Mold and die filling simulation can be used to investigate the flow pattern and temperatures during the mold filling sequence. The mold filling simulation is based on the solution of the Navier-Stokes' equations for general mold filling and fluid flow processes using SOLA-VOF technology for the tracking of the metal free surface. The melt viscosity and special boundary conditions to determine free surfaces are taken into account. With the Solver 5 option, the local position of the metal/mold interface is considered using a more accurate methodology. The filling simulation algorithm performs the following tasks: ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬
Calculate the temperature distribution of the melt and the mold during the filling sequence. Track the movement of the liquid metal free surface during filling of the mold cavity. Consider single-phase flow behavior (liquid metal). Automatic time step control procedure. Multiple inlet with different pouring rates and different starting time of pouring; the number of gates is unlimited. Heat transfer by convection, conduction and radiation. Solidification during filling and incomplete filling ‘short cast’ is taken into account Conditions and impact of filters can be taken into account. Counter pressure of gases in the mold cavity can be calculated during filling based on the venting conditions and/or permeability of the sand mold. Special filling criteria are calculated (local filling time, flow length, temperature or velocity when an element has been initially filled, air entrapment and maximum counter pressure in the mold or die, filling behavior of the gating system, erosion criteria).
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Monitoring of the entire filling sequence by tracer particle tracking, with the ability to assign a mass and size to the particles. The tendency to form sand inclusions and their movement with the melt is monitored. All physical values (temperature, velocity, pressure) can be visualized in three dimensions (sectioned or entire casting). For the filling Solver 5 option, an advanced turbulence model considers the temperature dependent viscosity is considered based on the current local temperature of the melt and the effect of surface tension on the free surface os also included.
Solidification Simulation This solidification simulation is used to investigate heat flow during solidification of the casting and subsequent cooling to obtain information about the solidification pattern and the feeding of the solidification shrinkage. The features of the heat flow, solidification and feeding analysis include: ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬
Control volume based transient heat conduction solver with consideration of temperature-dependent thermo-physical properties Automatic time step procedure Determination of combined heat conduction and feeding for castings, taking into account temperature-dependent, material-specific, liquid metal shrinkage and solidification shrinkage Temperatures at the end of mold filling simulation (when available) taken as starting point for solidification simulation Temperatures can be visualized in three dimensions (sectioned or entire casting), two dimensions (any section through the casting), or at any point (sensor) Investigation of feeder neck freezing, taking into account additional heat flows caused by mass transport of the melt from the feeder into the casting Topping off of risers (options: at a given time, as function of the feeding volume, or topping volume) Consideration of the heat released by exothermic reactions in sleeves (where material data is available) Visualization of non-fed and porous parts of the casting, taking gravitydependent feeding conditions into account Heat release of mold and molten pool surface is taken into account by temperature-dependent radiation and convection term Automatic determination of local thermal modulus for the casting Special solidification criteria to indicate the tendency to form burn-on or penetration defects, centerline or micro porosity as well as the identification of local hot spots, gradients and cooling rates
Series Casting Simulation for Die Casting Process To allow the simulation of permanent mold casting applications, the following additional features are included: ¬
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Prediction of cyclic temperature distribution of permanent mold by combining various mold filling and solidification calculations in a batch simulation of a sequence of different casting cycles. Optional transfer of mold-filling temperature distribution for each casting cycle. Writing results of mold filling and solidification calculation can be activated for each casting cycle separately
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Result Perspective In the result perspective, simulation results can be visualized in three-dimensions, as curves or in tabular form. This perspective is divided into a menu bar, tool bar, a workspace for result visualization, a selection window with result and material lists and a control window with animation control, general tools and result control panels. Results and/or views for up to four different simulations (project or versions) can be displayed simultaneously in the workspace. All results can be visualized in stereo mode. General features of the result perspective include: ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬
Selection of any domain and materials to be visualized Rotation, panning, zooming, zooming to a selected area, and fitting of the geometry to the selected view Dynamic sectioning of any domain (options: along the main axes, by angle or on screen) Automatic or user defined color scaling (options: continuous and discrete color and grey scaling , scale transparency and position [top, bottom, left, right]) X-ray option for selected ranges (options: filled/empty mode, upper/lower bounds) All results can be visualized in stereo mode (options: red/cyan anaglyph or shutter glasses, specific hardware required) Parallel visualization of different results of one version or multiple projects/versions in up to four windows Synchronization of results/settings/mouse operations for all windows Create temporary or create/load saved animations over a series of results or with animated slicing/rotation/x-ray range for one or multiple windows (options: single or all active windows) Change background colors and text sizes in workspace Results can be displayed in different unit systems (option: MAGMA, SI or US/Imperial) Automatic screenshot generation for a predefined suite of results for one or multiple windows (options: single or all active windows, standard or red/cyan stereo mode) Automatic generation of movies for predefined animation sequences for one or multiple windows (options: single or all active windows, standard AVI, anaglyph or AVI3D) Automatic preparation of project results for fast evaluation Automatic preparation of project results directly coupled to the simulation run Capability to save and load result settings, view settings and animation settings Import and export of settings (views, results) Selection and display of point value, result ‘picking’ and display of result values Automatic curve generation over multiple results for picked locations (for a single or multiple opened versions) Automatic 1-D result profiles for a line between two picked points Curves can be exported as text files Option to add annotations to results using a marker Option to show coordinate system Scale and result description can be shown/hidden Adjustable light settings Export of geometry from the result perspective (formats: MAGMA format, SAT, STL)
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Filling Visualization In order to visualize the results of the filling simulation, the following capabilities for investigating the flow patterns and filling progress are offered: ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬
Combined visualization of melt flow and temperature distribution during the filling sequence for different time steps Visualization of melt pressure and velocity (also as vectors with adjustable length) at any time Simultaneous display of vectors and scalar results for temperature, pressure or velocity Animation of the filling sequence by tracer particles (time of entry, age and flow length); selection of particle size and tracer length; visualization with and without melt flow front Animation of the generation and transport of sand inclusions with the melt flow as tracer particles
Additional filling criteria provide information about possible difficulties and defects: ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬
Local filling time in the casting Mold erosion tendency and sand inclusion distribution Trace of material from each ingate Flow length from the inlet and from each ingate Temperature or velocity when an element has been initially filled Length of time that a melt volume is in contact with atmosphere in the mold cavity Length of time that the melt is in contact with the mold wall Length of time that a melt volume is in the mold cavity Maximum air counter pressure in mold cavity (requires consideration of mold venting/permeability) Concentration of air entrapped by melt due to collapsing air cavities (requires consideration of mold venting/permeability) option: end of filling stage or progressive Length of time that a melt volume is in the mold cavity
Solidification Visualization The primary visualization of the solidification simulation occurs through investigation of the solidification pattern of the casting (in x-ray mode). The following capabilities support this analysis: ¬ ¬
Visualization of temperatures in all materials during solidification and cooling Visualization of the fraction liquid or fraction solid variation in the casting during solidification
In order to identify defects and problem locations in the casting the following criteria can be visualized: ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬
Local solidification time and cooling rates Temperature gradients (options: for a specific temperature or for all times) Direct visualization of non-fed casting parts (so-called hot-spots) Soundness and porosity criteria (option: at the end of solidification or progressive) Local thermal modulus Niyama criterion for steel castings Shrinkage micro porosity criterion for steel and aluminum castings Tendency for sand penetration or burn-on defects
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User results Comprehensive tools to create user specific results based on MAGMA5 results using an equation editor ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬
Powerful and user friendly equation editor to create own criteria or user functions User results can be calculated automatically during a simulation run User results can be calculated after the simulation run based on existing results User results can be visualized and assessed like any other MAGMA result User results definitions can be imported/exported 5 A data base with selected predefined user results is part of MAGMA
Cooling Curves and Other Curve Information In addition to three-dimensional information, information regarding changes in selected results at user-defined points in the casting system can be plotted as a function of time: ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬
Temperatures, velocities and pressures during filling can be visualized Temperatures during solidification can be visualized Visualization of different curves in one plot Visualization of cyclic heating and cooling behavior in batch production for permanent molds Visualization of the rate of filling of different parts of the casting geometry and the flow rate through individual ingates
General Information Information regarding the casting system is available in the form of tables: ¬
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Determination and display of practically relevant economical and technical information, e.g. casting weight/volume (options: liquid metal consumption, casting at room temperature), casting yield, metal-mold surface areas and gating area cross sections, mold and core sand volume Feeding conditions during the solidification Sand temperature histogram for mold and core sand
Database for Thermophysical or Process Data A selection of thermophysical data required for casting process simulation are available in datasets. These datasets are stored and managed in a comprehensive and dedicated database which allows: ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬
Application of temperature-dependent thermophysical data for heat capacity, fraction solid, latent heat of fusion, heat conductivity, density and viscosity Input of user specific temperature dependent thermophysical data Optional access to specific data bases for filter data (pressure loss) and sleeve materials (insulating and exothermic) Heat transfer coefficients that are functions of time or temperature, or constant values Database is split into four differently accessible areas: 1. MAGMA data, 2. globally accessible data, 3. user specific data and 4. project5 specific data data base is prepared to provide data required for MAGMA add-on modules
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On request the modular architecture allows the upgrade of the MAGMA5 5 configuration with the following MAGMA add-on modules or options: Modules: MAGMAstress MAGMAsteel MAGMAhpdc MAGMAiron MAGMAnonferrous MAGMAc+m MAGMA HT thermal MAGMAdisa MAGMAlpdc MAGMAwheel MAGMApermanent mold MAGMAlostfoam MAGMApre/post MAGMAstl MAGMAstep MAGMAcatia MAGMApro/E MAGMAlink 5 MAGMA API
stress simulation module steel casting process module high pressure die casting process module cast iron micro modeling module aluminum micro modeling module Sand simulation (core blowing, gassing, purging and hardening/thermal control) heat treatment module DISAMATIC process module low pressure die casting process module low pressure die casting process module for wheels permanent mold process module lost foam module separate pre / post processor CAD interface for import and export of STL files CAD interface for import and export of STEP files CAD interface for import and export of CATIA V5 files CAD interface for import of Pro/E files module for FE mesh and result conversion library to access the MAGMA5 data structure and parameters
Options: MAGMAtilt MAGMAroll-over MAGMArotacaster MAGMAinvestmentcasting MAGMAdip MAGMAspray/coating MAGMAplug MAGMApressurize
tilt casting process option Roll-over process option Rotacaster process simulation option automatic shell generation and special consideration of radiation mold dipping process option option to consider mold spray and or coating option to control the flow through a bottom pouring ladle activation of feeding against gravity
MAGMA5 is available as node locked as well as floating license MAGMAfloat for local area networks and as site license (MAGMAsite) for global license exchange. MAGMA5 and its modules are available for Windows 7 as well as for selected Linux operating systems. The software is parallelized and can be used on single, dual and multi core (shared memory architecture) as well as on Cluster hardware (distributed memory architecture) according to the current distribution list (special licenses required). For details of supported hardware and operating systems please see separate MAGMA5 distribution list. MAGMA develops and customizes user specific software modules that can be easily integrated into the MAGMA5 program. - MAGMA reserves the right to make modifications without prior notice. – ®
MAGMA and MAGMASOFT are registered trademarks of MAGMA Gießereitechnologie GmbH. The trademarks of all other products listed in this document are claimed as the trademarks of their respective owners.
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