A deformation prediction based on deep learning for sintering process of ceramic core

Abstract

Ceramic cores play a significant role in determining the cavity structure of hollow turbine blades during precision casting. However, the sintering process in preparing ceramic cores may result in shrinkage and deformation due to high temperature, presenting significant challenges in controlling the dimensional accuracy of ceramic cores. In this work, we develop a framework based on deep learning to predict the three-dimensional deformation of ceramic cores during sintering under varied sintering parameters. A finite element thermo-elasto-viscoplastic model is developed to compute sintering deformation and generate the three-dimensional deformation database. The numerical model is validated using a sintering experiment, and the maximum deviation in the deformation between the numerical and experimental results is 0.383 mm, which is 3.19% relative to the diameter of the largest inscribed circle of the ceramic core section, and satisfies the precision requirement of the third level of dimensional casting tolerance grade (DCTG3). The developed framework slices each of the three-dimensional shapes of the sintered ceramic core in sequence to obtain the two-dimensional image data for training the deep learning network. A parameter-embedded U-net network is established and trained to learn the intricate relationship between sintering parameters and deformation in sliced images. A VTK reconstruction algorithm is applied to the slice sequence to restore the predicted images from the U-net to the three-dimensional shape of the ceramic core. A metric for evaluating the model accuracy based on the error of deformation prediction (EDP) is proposed specific to the image character of ceramic core sintering, and the score of EDP for the developed U-net is 4.31%, indicating a high accuracy in predicting the sintering deformation in sliced images. An unseen combination of process parameters is numerically computed, and the entire three-dimensional deformation is compared to the prediction from the developed framework. The result shows that the relative maximum deviation in deformation is 2.93%, demonstrating the overall good performance of the developed framework in predicting sintering deformation.

Keywords

Ceramic core sintering / Deformation prediction / Deep learning / Numerical simulation

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Funding

the National Natural Science Foundation of China (52274386)

the Shanghai Municipal Commission of Economy and Informatization(GYQJ-2022-2-02)

the United Innovation Program of Shanghai Municipal Education Commission

RIGHTS & PERMISSIONS

Shanghai University and Periodicals Agency of Shanghai University and Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature