Numerical simulation of the injection process of pure liquid aluminum into a fibrous preform has been carried out. During the injection process the end of the fibrous preform is allowed to be cooled by a heat sink. The purpose of cooling by a heat sink is to achieve a higher cooling rate, which is essential in obtaining finer microstructures and enhancing the growth of aluminum dendrites. The injection of liquid aluminum is modeled as flow in a porous medium and the heat equation coupled with the Darcy’s equation are simultaneously solved to obtain the temperature and velocity field. There are many different processing parameters influencing the solidification of aluminum. Among these parameters are, but are not limited to, the heat sink temperature, the thermal conductivity and initial temperature of the mold, and the length of fiber that is extending out of the mold. This article presents the simulation results of the effects of these processing parameters on the solidification of pure aluminum during the infiltration process.

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