• Transactions of Materials Processing
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• v.23 no.6
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• pp.357-362
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• 2014

The purpose of the current study is to predict the hardness distribution in steel products after hot stamping using a quench factor analysis(QFA) coupled with FE-simulations. QFA is a method to predict properties such as hardness and tensile strength based on time-temperature-property(TTP) curves and can determine properties based on the temperature histories. The constants($K_1{\sim}K_5$) of QFA were determined using hardness data obtained after various cooling rates. In the current study, a rear side member was selected for evaluation and FE-simulations were performed to obtain the temperature histories during hot stamping. The predicted temperature data were imported into the QFA to calculate the hardness distribution of the hot stamped parts. A hot stamping experiment of the rear side member was conducted to verify the predicted hardness. The simulation results show good agreement with the experimental measurements.