Maldistribution of fluids in extrudates

Solid–liquid pastes featuring high volume fractions of particulates are frequently used in ceramic forming operations. When pastes are used it is important that the particulate distribution remains uniform throughout the body. The stresses imposed during extrusion processing can, however, promote differential flow between the solid and liquid phases giving rise to product and processing problems. Reliable models for predicting phase distribution changes in these multi-phase systems are in their infancy.This paper reports progress towards developing simulation techniques and practical systems to verify the numerical approaches. Pastes containing glass spheres suspended in a highly viscous Newtonian fluid have been extruded at various speeds and solids loadings. Load and liquid content data are presented which form the basis for model verification. Soil mechanics approaches are used here to encapsulate the inherently multi-phase nature of these systems. The modified Cam–Clay model has been implemented in a finite element analysis simulation of ram extrusion using the ABAQUS platform. The simulation requires regular and extensive remeshing and monitoring of the conservation of mass. Predictions of extrusion pressures and deformation behaviour are compared with the experimental data for a series of square-ended and conical dies.