Elasto-plastic finite element simulation of rolling and compression between wedge-shaped dies

Many problems arise when simulating large strain and metal forming applications using Lagrangian and Eulerian finite element (FE) formulation methods. A more general method, the arbitrary Lagrangian–Eulerian (ALE) method is developed to overcome such difficulties. A brief description of the ALE formulation is given with emphasis on the underlying differences between the developed formulation and existing formulations in the literature. The general ALE method is applied to simulate compression between wedge-shaped dies. A plane-strain strip rolling example is also investigated with emphasis on the practical simulation of various rolling parameters. The example is analyzed using an Eulerian formulation which is degenerated from the general ALE formulation. The results are compared with available numerical and experimental results. Special attention is given to the numerical characteristics of the simulation, the application of the boundary condition and their effect on the results.