Abstract
A finite element method (FEM) was employed to aid in the thermodynamic analysis of the cooling process of steel containing nonmetallic inclusions in a homogenous, isotropic, single-phase steel matrix. Three different contact techniques available in ANSYS were used in a 2-D model of Al2O3 inclusions in a 1010 steel grade to define different types of inclusion-steel interfaces. Comparisons of these numerical techniques examine the effect of the characteristic of the interface on the residual stress concentration zone around inclusions embedded in a steel matrix with an initially free stress state and their thermal interaction during the cooling process from 1300°C. Results are presented to discuss the significance of the inclusion surface and boundary conditions (axisymmetric and fully constrained) on the stress distribution within the stress concentration zone in the vicinity of the interface.