Investigation of Galling In Forming Galvanized Steel Sheet

The major purpose of the present study is to evaluate the performance of various galvanized (GI) or galvannealed (GA) mild steels and AHSS in stamping applications. Finite Element Analysis (FEA) of selected stamping operations was conducted to estimate the critical pressure boundary conditions that exist in practice. Using this information, laboratory tribotests, e.g. Twist Compression (TCT), Deep Drawing (DDT) and Strip Drawing (SDT) Tests, were developed to evaluate the performance of selected lubricants and die materials/coatings in forming galvanized steels of interest. The sheet materials investigated included mild steels and AHSS (e.g. DP600 GI/GA, DP780 GI/GA, TRIP780 GA and DP980 GI/GA). Experimental results showed that galvanized material resulted in more galling, while galvannealed material showed more powdering and flaking. The surface roughness and chemical composition of galvanized sheet materials affected the severity of galling under the same testing conditions, i.e. lubricants and die materials/coatings. The results of this study helped to determine the critical interface pressure that initiates lubricant failure and galling in stamping selected galvanized sheet materials. Thus, to prevent or postpone the critical interface conditions, the results of this study can be used to select the optimum combination of galvanized sheet, die material, die coating and lubricant for forming structural automotive components.