Between forged rolled rings and products created through finish machining, there is a crucial step that calls for expertise to comprehend the ongoing material and structural advancements in parts intended for aerospace, energy, and other final applications.

nails and other forged rolled rings

Why Does Sizing Matter?

Makes the Material Robust and Solid

During the manufacturing process, a heated, toroidal-shaped workpiece is crushed between the rolls of a ring-rolling mill. It expands the part’s diameter and modifies the cross-section according to the tooling shape. Manufacturing of aircraft, industrial gas turbines, pipes, and pressure vessels, which require symmetrical, solid, and robust parts, entails the use of high-capacity ring production equipment. Forged cylinders are essential components in these industrial applications. Over the past 10 years, the demand for rolled rings has remained consistent in construction, aerospace, power and energy, and industrial markets. However, there is one stage of manufacturing that is sometimes overlooked, and that is ring sizing.

Reduce Material Waste

“Sizing” is a part of the procedure before the start of finish machining, and it can reduce material waste. By removing machining allowances to account for out-of-roundness, ring expanders are used to precisely dimension and increase the roundness of cylindrical objects. Alternately, a part can be fully formed on an expander utilizing profiled tooling, which can lessen or even do away with the requirement for final machining. Both scenarios result in decreased cycle times and machining costs.

Reduces Tensions and Corrects Distortions

The expansion process also enhances the material microstructure and other material qualities of a workpiece. For instance, hot expansion causes elongated grains in the circumferential direction, which enhances ductility, whereas cold expansion reduces internal tensions and corrects distortions brought on by heat treatment. The expansion procedure can be advantageous for many forged metals. Titanium, aluminum, stainless steel, alloy steel, and carbon steel are common materials that are sized using expanders. Various applications and industries employ finished machined pieces. Some of the extremely noticeable examples of parts made from seamless rings include enormous bearings for engine parts for spacecraft and aviation, large-diameter pipe flanges, and wind turbines.

junk shop with forged rolled rings

Know More About Forged Rolled Rings

Ferralloy Inc. has engineers with exceptional forging experience. Book an appointment with us!