APPLICATION OF COMSOL SOFTWARE TO SIMULATE INDUCTION HEATING PROCESS OF THE SEMISOLID STATE OF A356 ALUMINUM ALLOY IN THIXOFORMING PROCESSES

Thixoforming techniques require metal alloys to be cast when they are partially liquid and partially solid. Before a material flows into a die cavity under pressure, the temperature distribution must be uniform within the billet at the end of heating in order to obtain a good microstructure. In this study, we use theoretical heat transfer and numerical methods in combination with COMSOL simulation to develop practical strategies aimed at saving the crossexamination time of the calculation process by numerical methods. This will form the basis for technology development atthe industrial level and create the basic premises for further studies of applications of induction heating in general and thixoforming techniques in particular.