Computer Modeling: an Important Tool in Materials Processing

The development of techniques to control and use materials, especially metallic materials continues to play a key role in the technological advancement of modem day society. A variety of materials processes have been developed overtime, and are applied to design and fabricate products. Heat treatment of metallic materials has been the method of choice applied to improve mechanical properties such as strength, hardness, and toughness, as well as to improve the homogeneity of properties in materials such as corrosion resistance. The molt significant success stories in the application of materials processes involve the heat-treatment of steel. The reasons for this largely lie in the ease with which steel microstructures can be altered by controlled heating and cooling. The objective of computer modeling of materials processes is to maximize on the beneficial factors while keeping to a minimum the negating effects such as components distortion and residual stresses. Computer modeling is a powerful tool in achieving this objective in the sense that with it, the effect of parameters associated with materials processes can be analyzed systematically in order to optimize them before actual production begins.