Methodologies for Modeling of Solidification Microstructure and Their Capabilities.

Abstract

During the last decade, solidification modeling has known a sustained development effort, supported by academic as well as industrial research. The driving force behind this undertaking was the promise of predictive capabilities that will allow process and material improvement. The most significant recent progress has been incorpoTation of transformation kinetics, for both the I iquid/solid and the solidlsolid transformation, in the macro-transport models. The results of these efforts have materialized in a proliferation of publications and commercial software, some of which have penetrated the industry. Numerous claims are made regarding modeling methods accuracy and capabilities. They include prediction of casting defects, of microstructure length scale and composition, and even of mechanical properties. A reality test of these claims is the subject of the present paper.