Mechanisms of Grain Size Evolution during Aluminum Spray Forming

A numerical approach is implemented to analyze the evolution of grain size during spray forming of 5083 Al. The evolution of grain size is investigated at two different thicknesses corresponding to 400 C and 602 C on the deposited material's surface. Nucleation behavior and nuclei growth in individual droplets are computed during the flight and deposition stages. Based on the measured temperature history, nuclei coarsening during slow solidification of remaining liquid phase and grain growth during solid-state cooling are analyzed in detail. The calculated results indicate bimodal and relatively uniform grain morphology corresponding to the deposited material's surfaces with 400 C and 602 C, respectively.