Simulation of bulk metal forming processes using the reproducing kernel particle method

A new approach based on the utilization of the reproducing kernel particle method is put forwards for the numerical simulation of bulk metal forming processes. The approach is based on the utilization of the reproducing kernel particle method in conjunction with the flow formulation for slightly compressible rigid-plastic materials. The effectiveness of the proposed methodology is discussed by comparing theoretical predictions with finite element calculations and experimental data. The later were obtained by means of simple metal forming experiments that were performed under laboratory-controlled conditions using aluminium Al6060 (natural aged). The overall comparisons comprise a wide range of topics such as material flow, geometry, forming load, strain and stress distributions. As results show, the proposed approach is capable of efficiently handling large plastic deformations without the need of remeshing procedures and providing results that are in close agreement with both finite element predictions and experimental measurements.