Ductility of a magnesium alloy in warm forging with controlled forming speed using a CNC servo press

The influence of press ram motion on forging performance for magnesium alloys was examined at elevated temperatures using an upsettability test on a CNC servo press. The forging limit of a wrought AZ31B (Mg–3 mass%Al–1 mass%Zn) magnesium specimen, forged using applied deceleration of the press ram motion, was found to be 30% higher than the forging limit achieved without press ram motion control. A finite element analysis was conducted to model the experimental results. The calculated temperature distribution was relatively uniform during upsetting with decelerated ram motion, and the maximum equivalent strain was maintained at a low level. Experimental and simulation results suggested that the influence of the press ram motion on the ductility of the Mg specimen could be described by a strain localization model. Furthermore, the ductility of Mg specimens during decelerated ram motion was improved in backward extrusion.