Aluminum extrusion end-users and extruders work together to create the most innovative and pioneering design applications. This exclusive “extruders and end-users” track offers a unique opportunity to showcase extrusion solutions designed as and often into products, context studies, streamlined design parameters, material substitution, functionality case studies which could be comparative studies, and more. Abstracts are invited from extruders and end-users alike, covering new and novel extrusion applications, product/component innovations, applications leading to process improvements, etc.

ET Technical Papers are Subject to Copyright
Papers published by the Extrusion Technology for Aluminum Profiles Foundation ("ET Foundation") in The Proceedings of the ET Seminar are subject to copyright. No part of The Proceedings, including individual papers submitted by authors for The Proceedings, may be reproduced in any form without the express written permission of the ET Foundation.

Extruder Design & Innovation (EI) Track

EI369 - Extending the Boundaries for Reinforced EN AW-6082 Profiles by New Lateral Angular Co-Extrusion Processes

Christian Klose, Olexandr Golovko and Florian Schäfke, Institut für Werkstoffkunde, Leibniz University Hannover; Norman Mohnfeld and Johanna Uhe, Institute für Umformtechnik und Umformmaschinen, Leibniz University Hannover, Germany

The combination of aluminum extrusions with steel or titanium offers lightweight structures that have local high strength reinforcements. It was already shown that such compounds can be manufactured by using Lateral Angular Co-Extrusion (LACE), which allowed for the creation of a strong material bond between the joining partners. While the previous LACE process could be used only to extrude coaxial compounds, a new process was developed that was guided by numerical investigations of the tool design and the material flow inside the die. With the aid the new process, laterally reinforced, more complex-shaped compound profiles, which have high bond strength, were realized on a 10MN direct extrusion press. Investigations into the interface properties of the laterally reinforced compound profiles as well as different relevant material combinations such as aluminum-steel and aluminum-titanium will be presented, and a comparison will be drawn to the coaxial compounds manufactured using the previous process.

EI379 - Development of a Porthole Die for Hollow Extrusion Profiles with Axial Asymmetric Variable Wall Thickness

Janne Max Heydrich-Bodensieck, Maik Negendank and Sören Müller, Technical University Berlin, Faculty III-Process Sciences, Institute of Material Science and Technology, Metallic Materials - Extrusion Research and Development Center, Germany

Recently, at the Extrusion R&D Center of Technical University Berlin, a porthole die allowing the variation of hollow profiles wall thicknesses in axial direction during extrusion was developed. Hence, the manufacture of load adapted tailored profiles could be carried out successfully. However, repeatability of the results and profile tolerances were limited and did not meet industrial requirements. Thus, a new die concept was developed, enabling asymmetric changes in wall thickness along axial direction of a two-chamber hollow profile. Development included better controllability of wall thickness transitions for reducing as well as increasing wall thicknesses. By FEA material flow, forces acting on the die as well as on the moveable parts within the die have been investigated prior to die manufacturing. Extrusion experiments were carried out with the new die for proof of concept and the achieved profile wall thicknesses in thin-walled, thick-walled and especially in transition sections were characterized.

EI450 - Alloy Selection for the Heat Exchanger Market

Saurabh Sedha, Rio Tinto – Aluminium, USA; and Nick C. Parson, Rio Tinto – Aluminium, Canada

The 1xxx-series and 3xxx-series alloys are widely used for thin-wall extruded heat exchanger tubing due to their inherent extrudability, acceptable strength and compatibility with brazing.  Aluminum continues to replace copper tubing in many markets and offers cost and weight reduction along with the ability to produce complex microport extrusions or internally enhanced round wall tubing.  In terms of corrosion, aluminum offers superior resistance to formicary corrosion for interior applications but corrosion resistance in external heat exchanger units in a wide range of industrial or coastal environments is also required.  To address this challenge a range of “long-life” alloys for brazed and non-brazed applications have been developed over the last 15-20 years.  This paper presents a historical perspective for these developments and compares their performance with conventional materials such as AA3102 and AA3003.  Developments for applications requiring increased strength are also discussed.

EI452 - "Small but Mighty": 70 Years of Indirect Extrusion Press Technology

Arturo Oliden, Paramount Extrusions, USA

Paramount has been extruding very small profiles through two 3-inch diameter indirect extrusion presses for 70 years. Our development story through the decades illustrates an alternative to more conventional equipment, processes, and tooling. Both the challenges and advantages regarding each of these will be elaborated upon to help to better understand this alternative to conventional larger direct extrusion of profiles.

While these indirect extrusion presses are more limited in circle size, they offer high efficiencies on light weight, complex, thin wall extruded profiles with production rates of 800-1,000 pounds per hour of profiles under 0.100 lbs/ft. The process provides improved cross-sectional tolerances and mechanical properties, all with greater consistency over the lineal’s length than with comparable direct press operations.

EI454 - Solution Development and Profile Design

Ben Kuhn, Almag Aluminum, Canada

Design and availability are key drivers of a product’s success across nearly all markets in today’s fast-paced reality, where innovating into new space can be a bumpy road. Opening communication lines between design, engineering, and manufacturing early on not only increases the chance of timely success, but accelerates innovation, joining the latest manufacturing technology and capability with the creative direction of tomorrow. A collaborative process is highlighted as the catalyst to developing and executing the design, engineering and installation of the floating staircase at Almag headquarters in Brampton, ON. Though structural requirements are blended with target aesthetics creating a profile design over 12” CCD, Almag has overcome the challenge of using 7” and 8” presses. The staircase modernizes headquarters and showcases the benefits of integrated professional inputs at the design stage with its slide fit modular system, making a bold architectural aesthetic possible despite the existing individual profile size limitations.

EI492 - Customer Collaboration and New Alloy Development – Approach, Engagement and Establishing New Billet Alloys

Ram Sandipam Adhikary, Dushyant Kumar Gupta and Anirban Giri, Vedanta Limited, Aluminum & Power, India

Vedanta, with its customer-centric approach, aligned its business model on offering more customized solutions, unique to individual customer requirements. This paper discusses the adopted approach, the customer engagement methodologies, and structured development plan, and finally, how each product development is tailor made based on need and capability of the customer. New alloy development projects based on combining impacts of micro-alloying elements, and optimizing process parameters to attain superior performance is elaborated. First, high-strength 6063 alloy has been developed for structural applications; second, for automotive machined products, lead- and tin-free highly machinable 6xxx-series alloy; and lastly, to improve the performance of crash management system, a new high crash-resistant 6xxx-series alloy is developed. Additionally, more areas of development that are currently under trial are demonstrated.