FE simulation and experimental research on cylindrical ring rolling

• A new method for manufacturing the cylindrical ring is proposed and its feasibility is verified.
• A ring height increase of 185% and a cylindrical ring with a height–diameter ratio of 0.9 and thickness–height ratio of 0.027 can be achievable.
• The comparison between conventional ring rolling and cylindrical ring rolling is investigated.
• The effects of the main process parameters on cylindrical ring rolling are numerically revealed.

During the conventional ring rolling process, the ring mainly produces the incremental deformation of wall-thickness reduction and diameter expansion, which makes it difficult to manufacture the cylindrical ring with small diameter and large height. In this paper, a new method for manufacturing the cylindrical ring using a ring blank with smaller height, i.e. cylindrical ring rolling, is proposed and its feasibility is verified. For evaluating the cylindrical ring rolling process and to better understanding its deformation characteristics, a 3D elastic–plastic FE model of cylindrical ring rolling is first established. Then, the comparison between conventional ring rolling and cylindrical ring rolling is investigated using this 3D FE model. Finally, the effects of the process parameters, such as the feed rate of the idle roll, diameter of the idle roll and friction coefficient between the rolls and ring, on cylindrical ring rolling are numerically revealed. The experiment is carried out on a vertical NC ring rolling machine and the good agreements between the experimental and simulation results verify the validity of the established 3D FE model of the cylindrical ring rolling.

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