Numerical simulation on temperature field for arc spray rapid prototyping

In a typical arc spray prototyping process, two metal wires was melt by electric arc at certain distance and sprayed to the mold surface with high speed compressed air from the jet. To prevent failures such as deformation and cracking, homogeneous temperature field distribution was required for every spray layer. This can be achieved by optimizing the processing parameters using numerical simulating of the temperature distribution. The 3-D temperature simulating technology in the rapid prototyping process using arc spray was introduced. A 3-D model for temperature distribution was established using finite element method. In this model, arc spray rapid prototyping is considered as a process in which every molten drop moves along the path and overlays one another. The movement of the heat source was defined by a function. The temperature evolution as a function of time and the temperature distribution gradient of the sprayed layer were simulated. A real-time measurement of the temperature field was also conducted using infrared thermal imaging system. Results show that the simulating fits well with the experimental data.