Metal Extrusion and

Drawing Processes
and Equipment
Materials Technology
Extrusion and Drawing
• Extrusion and drawing involve, respectively, pushing or pulling a
material through a die basically for the purpose of reducing or
changing its cross-sectional area.
• Typical parts made by extrusion and drawing: Long pieces having a
wide variety of constant cross sections, rods, shafts, bars for
machinery and automotive power-train applications, aluminum
ladders, collapsible tubes, wire for numerous electrical and
mechanical applications and musical instruments.
• Alternative processes: Machining, powder metallurgy, shape rolling,
roll forming, pultrusion, and continuous casting.
Extrusion and Drawing
• In extrusion, a cylindrical billet is forced through a die in a manner
similar to squeezing toothpaste from a tube or extruding Play-Doh in
various cross sections in a toy press.
• A wide variety of solid or hollow cross sections may be produced by
extrusion, which essentially are semi-finished parts.
• Commonly extruded materials are aluminium, copper, steel,
magnesium, and lead; other metals and alloys also can be extruded,
with various levels of difficulty
Extrusion
• Depending on the ductility of the material, extrusion is carried out at
room or elevated temperatures.
• Extrusion at room temperature often is combined with forging
operations, in which case it generally is known as cold extrusion.
• It has numerous important applications, including fasteners and
components for automobiles, bicycles, motorcycles, heavy machinery,
and transportation equipment.
Drawing
• In drawing, an operation that was developed between 1000 and 1500
A.D., the cross section of solid rod, wire, or tubing is reduced or
changed in shape by pulling it through a die.
• Drawn rods are used for shafts, spindles, and small pistons and as the
raw material for fasteners (such as rivets, bolts, and screws).
• In addition to round rods, various profiles can be drawn.
The Extrusion Process
• There are three basic types of extrusion direct, indirect and hydrostatic
extrusion.
• In the most common process (called direct or forward extrusion), a billet
is placed in a chamber (container) and forced through a die opening by a
hydraulically driven ram (pressing stem or punch), as shown in Fig. 15.1.
• The die opening may be round, or it may have various shapes, depending
on the desired profile.
• The function of the dummy block shown in the figure is to protect the tip
of the pressing stem (punch), particularly in hot extrusion.
• Other types of extrusion are indirect, hydrostatic, and impact extrusion.
The Extrusion Process
• In indirect extrusion (also called reverse, inverted, or backward extrusion),
the die moves toward the unextruded billet (Fig. 15 .3a).
• Indirect extrusion has the advantage of having no billet-container friction,
since there is no relative motion.
• Thus, indirect extrusion is used on materials with very high friction, such as
high strength steels.
• In hydrostatic extrusion (Fig. 15.3b), the billet is smaller in diameter than the
• chamber (which is filled with a fluid), and the pressure is transmitted to the
fluid by a ram. The fluid pressure results in triaxial compressive stresses
acting on the workpiece and thus improved formability; also, there is much
less workpiece-container friction than in direct extrusion.
• A less common type of extrusion is lateral (or side) extrusion (Fig. 15.3c)
The Extrusion Process
Process variables in extrusion
• As can be seen in Fig. 15.4, the geometric variables in extrusion are
the die angle, α, and the ratio of the cross-sectional area of the billet
to that of the extruded product, A /Af, called the extrusion ratio, R.
O

• Other variables are the temperature of the billet, the speed at which
the ram travels, and the type of lubricant used.
Extrusion Force
• The force required for extrusion depends on
(a) the strength of the billet material,
(b) the extrusion ratio,
(c) the friction between the billet and the chamber and die surfaces, a
(d) process variables, such as the temperature of the billet and the speed
of extrusion.
• The extrusion force, F, can be estimated from the formula

• where k is the extrusion constant (which is determined experimentally

• The k value is a measure of the strength of the material being extruded
and the frictional conditions
Metal Flow in Extrusion
• The metal flow pattern in extrusion, as in other forming processes, is
important because of its influence on the quality and the mechanical
properties of the extruded product
• The material flows longitudinally, much like incompressible fluid flows in
a channel; thus, extruded products have an elongated grain structure
(preferred orientation).
• Improper metal flow during extrusion can produce various defects in
the extruded product.
• A common technique for investigating the flow pattern is to cut the
round billet in half lengthwise and then mark one face with a square
grid pattern.
• The two halves may be brazed together, after which they are placed in
the chamber together and are extruded.
Process Parameters
• Because they have high ductility, wrought aluminium, copper, and magnesium and their
alloys, as well as steels and stainless steels, are extruded with relative ease into numerous
shapes.
• Other metals (such as titanium and refractory metals) also can be extruded but only with
some difficulty and considerable die wear.
• In practice, extrusion ratios, R, usually range from about 10 to 100.
• They may be higher for special applications (400 for softer nonferrous metals) or lower for
less ductile materials, although the ratio usually has to be at least 4 to deform the material
plastically through the bulk of the work-piece.
• Extruded products usually are less than 7.5 m long because of the difficulty in handling
greater lengths, but they can be as long as 30 m.
• Ram speeds range up to 0.5 m/s. Generally, lower speeds are preferred for aluminium,
magnesium, and copper, higher speeds for steels, titanium, and refractory alloys.
• Dimensional tolerances in extrusion are usually in the range from ±0.25 to ±2.5 mm, and they
increase with increasing cross section.
Hot Extrusion
• For metals and alloys that do not have sufficient ductility at room
temperature, or in order to reduce the forces required, extrusion is
carried out at elevated temperatures
• As in all other hot-working operations, hot extrusion has special
requirements because of the high operating temperatures.
• For example, die wear can be excessive, and cooling of the surfaces of
the hot billet (in the cooler chamber) and the die can result in highly
non-uniform deformation.
• To reduce cooling of the billet and to prolong die life, extrusion dies
may be preheated, as is done in hot-forging operations.
• Because the billet is hot, it develops an oxide film, unless it is heated
in an inert-atmosphere furnace
Hot Extrusion
Cold Extrusion
• Cold extrusion is a general term that often denotes a combination of operations,
such as direct and indirect extrusion and forging
• Cold extrusion is used widely for components in automobiles, motorcycles,
bicycles, and appliances and in transportation and farm equipment.
• The cold-extrusion process uses slugs cut from cold-finished or hot-rolled bars,
wire, or plates.
• Slugs that are less than about 40 mm in diameter are sheared (cropped), and if
necessary, their ends are squared off by processes such as upsetting, machining,
or grinding. Larger diameter slugs are machined from bars into specific lengths.
• Cold-extruded parts weighing as much as 45 kg and having lengths of up to 2m
can be made, although most parts weigh much less.
Advantages of cold extrusion over hot
extrusion
• Improved mechanical properties resulting from work hardening,
provided that the heat generated by plastic deformation and friction
does not recrystallize the extruded metal.
• Good control of dimensional tolerances, reducing the need for
subsequent machining or finishing operations.
• Improved surface finish, due partly to the absence of an oxide film
and provided that lubrication is effective.
• Production rates and costs that are competitive with those of other
methods of producing the same part, such as machining. Some
machines are capable of producing more than 2000 parts per hour.
Extrusion Defects
• Depending on work-piece material condition and process variables, extruded
products can develop several types of defects that can affect significantly their
strength and product quality.
• There are three principal extrusion defects: surface cracking, pipe, and internal
cracking.
• Surface Cracking- If extrusion temperature, friction, or speed is too high, surface
temperatures can rise significantly, which may cause surface cracking and tearing
• These cracks are intergranular (i.e., along the grain boundaries; see Fig. 2.27) and
usually are caused by hot shortness.
• These defects occur especially in aluminium, magnesium, and zinc alloys, although
they may also occur in high-temperature alloys.
• Surface cracking also may occur at lower temperatures, where it has been
• attributed to periodic sticking of the extruded product along the die land
Extrusion Defects
• Pipe. The type of metal-flow pattern in extrusion shown in Fig. 15.6c tends to draw
surface oxides and impurities toward the center of the billet-much like a funnel.
• This defect is known as pipe defect, tailpipe, or fishtailing.
• As much as one-third of the length of the extruded product may contain this type
of defect and thus has to be cut off as scrap.
• Piping can be minimized by modifying the flow pattern to be more uniform, such
as by controlling friction and minimizing temperature gradients.
• Another method is to machine the billet’s surface prior to extrusion, so that scale
and surface impurities are removed.
• These impurities also can be removed by the chemical etching of the surface
oxides prior to extrusion.
Extrusion Defects
• Internal Cracking- The centre of the extruded product can develop
cracks, called centre cracking, center-burst, arrowhead fracture, or
chevron cracking (Fig. 15 .17a).
• These cracks are attributed to a state of hydrostatic tensile stress at
the centre-line in the deformation zone in the die (Fig. 15.17b), a
situation similar to the necked region in a tensile-test specimen
• The tendency for center cracking (a) increases with increasing die
angle, (b) increases with increasing amount of impurities, and (c)
decreases with increasing extrusion ratio and friction
Extrusion Defects
Extrusion Equipment
• The basic equipment for extrusion is a horizontal hydraulic press.
• These presses are suitable for extrusion because the stroke and speed
of the operation can be controlled, depending on the particular
application.
• They are capable of applying a constant force over a long stroke.
• Consequently, long billets can be used, correspondingly larger
extrusions produced per setup, and the production rate thus increased.
• Hydraulic presses with a ram-force capacity as high as 120 MN have
been built, particularly for hot extrusion of large-diameter billets.
Extrusion Equipment
• Vertical hydraulic presses typically are used for cold extrusion.
• They generally have less capacity than those used for hot extrusion,
but they take up less floor space.
• In addition to such presses, crank-joint and knucle-joint mechanical
presses are used for cold extrusion and for impact extrusion to mass-
produce small components.
• Multistage operations, where the cross-sectional area is reduced in a
number of individual operations, are carried out on speciallydesigned
presses.
The Drawing Process
• In drawing, the cross section of a long rod or wire is reduced or changed by
pulling (hence the term drawing) it through a die called a draw die.
• Thus, the difference between drawing and extrusion is that in extrusion the
material is pushed through a die, whereas in drawing it is pulled through it.
• Rod and wire products cover a very wide range of applications, including
shafts for power transmission, machine and structural components, blanks
for bolts and rivets, electrical wiring, cables, tension-loaded structural
members, welding electrodes, springs, paper clips, spokes for bicycle
wheels, and stringed musical instruments.
The Drawing Process
Drawing Force
• The expression for the drawing force, F, under ideal and frictionless conditions is similar to
that for extrusion and is given by the equation

• where Yavg is the average true stress of the material in the die gap.
• Because more work has to be done to overcome friction, the force increases with increasing
friction.
• Furthermore, because of the non-uniform deformation that occurs within the die zone,
additional energy (known as the redundant work of deformation) is required.
• Although various equations have been developed to estimate the force (described in greater
detail in advanced texts), a useful formula that includes friction and the redundant work is

• where α is the die angle in radians.

Drawing Force
• As can be seen from these equations, the drawing force increases as reduction increases.
• However, there has to be a limit to the magnitude of the force, because when the tensile
stress reaches the yield stress of the metal being drawn, the workpiece will simply yield
and, eventually, break.
• It can be shown that, ideally and without friction, the maximum reduction in cross-
sectional area per pass is 63%.
• Thus, a 10-mm-diameter rod can be reduced (at most) to a diameter of 6.1 mm in one
pass without failure.
• It can be shown that, for a certain reduction in diameter and a certain frictional
condition, there is an optimum die angle at which the drawing force is a minimum.
• Often, however, the die force is not the major product quality concern, and the actual
die angle may deviate from this value.
Drawing Defects and Residual stresses
• Typical defects in a drawn rod or wire are similar to those observed in
extrusion especially center cracking.
• Another major type of defect in drawing is seams, which are
longitudinal scratches or folds in the material. Seams may open up
during subsequent forming operations (such as upsetting, heading,
thread rolling, or bending of the rod or wire), and they can cause
serious quality-control problems.
• Various other surface defects (such as scratches and die marks) also
can result from improper selection of the process parameters, poor
lubrication, or poor die condition.
Drawing Defects and Residual stresses
• Because they undergo non-uniform deformation during drawing, cold-drawn
products usually have residual stresses.
• For light reductions, such as only a few percent, the longitudinal-surface
residual stresses are compressive (while the bulk is in tension) and fatigue life
is thus improved.
• Conversely, heavier reductions induce tensile surface stresses (while the bulk
is in compression).
• Residual stresses can be significant in causing stress-corrosion cracking of the
part over time.
• Moreover, they cause the component to warp if a layer of material
subsequently is removed, such as by slitting, machining, or grinding.
Drawing Equipment
• Although it is available in several designs, the equipment for drawing is
basically of two types: the draw bench and the bull block.
• A draw bench contains a single die, and its design is similar to that of a long,
horizontal tension-testing machine.
• The pulling force is supplied by a chain drive or is activated hydraulically.
• Draw benches are used for a single-length drawing of straight rods and tubes
with diameters larger than 20 mm and lengths up to 30 m.
• Machine capacities reach 1.3 MN of pulling force with a speed range of 6 to
60 m/min
• Very long rods and wire (many kilometres) and wire of smaller cross sections,
usually less than 13 mm, are drawn by a rotating drum (bull block or capstan).
• The tension in this setup provides the force required for drawing the wire,
usually through multiple dies (tandem drawing)
Drawing Equipment
Drawing Equipment