Thermo-mechanical analysis of a cooling system for hot stamping tools

Several studies of cooling systems for hot stamping tools have already been developed. We know the phase transformations which occur during the process and numerical simulations are now very close to the reality [1]. However these studies are often related to a specific part and can hardly be extrapolated to other parts. This paper presents several results based on a thermo-mechanical analysis which can be used to make a first design of a cooling system for hot stamping tool. A theoretical study describes the heat transfer from the tools to the cooling pipes. Numerical simulation has been carried out to measure cooling rate and maximum stress into the tool. The heat transfer model used for simulation has been validated through experiment. To finish a data analysis describes the relationship between the different parameters in order toknow which parameters must be modified to optimize the cooling system.