B5 - Bionic Thin Layers
Application of Nanostructured Bionic Thin Layers to Enhance the Wear and Friction Behavior of Forming Tools by Thin-walled Sheet Forming
Project Status: finished
Last Update: 07.05.2021
Members
Subproject B5 deals with the targeted influencing and controlling of the forming processes of sheet-bulk metal forming by tool-sided surface modifications in the form of bionic structures and Cr-based hard coatings. This is done by adapting the tribological conditions in order to promote the workpiece-side three-dimensional material flow of the sheet metal material into the filigree functional elements and to enable a high degree of form filling of the cavities of the forming tool. The required animal and plant bionic structures for this were developed in the first two funding periods and their property profiles were characterized. The Cr-based nitridic and carbo-nitridic thin films used to protect the filigree elements proved to be a suitable instrument, although there are geometric limitations inherent in the process due to the line-of-sight character of the coating of complexly designed surfaces of the SBMF tools.

Figure 1: Bionic surface structures a) scarab beatle b) Sasa palmata (bamboo plant), c) Oryzia sativa (rice plant)
On the basis of the results presented, research activities for the third funding period will focus on improving the performance and service life of tool surfaces on the coating side. On the one hand, this is to be achieved by the development of CrAlN and CrAlCN thin films using HiPIMS technology, which, due to the high degree of ionisation, enables an almost geometry independent coating of the bionic structures with PVD layers true to the final contour. On the other hand, the structural adaptation possibilities resulting from the high degree of ionization are to be used to deposit layers with a higher hardness and simultaneously lower modulus of elasticity compared to conventional magnetron sputtering layers. In addition to the improved mechanical properties, the HiPIMS layers are intended to achieve a better adhesion of the layer to the substrate and a resulting low roughness profile due to the dense, almost defect-free morphology. This property profile is to be adjusted for both the highly wear-resistant CrAlN and the low-friction CrAlCN layers in order to increase the performance of the BMU processes. In addition, the influences and alternating effects of the mechanical processing steps, which result from upstream processes, on tool areas close to the surface will be taken into account in addition to the requirement-specific design of the tribo-mechanical coating properties. The bi-directional interactions resulting from the production process on the residual stress state of the coating-base material composite are fundamentally investigated. The available different plasma etching methods, which are upstream of the coating process, are to be used to modify the stress state and to ensure a high coating adhesion. These investigations will be supplemented by post-treatment of the coatings in the form of wet-blasting chips, which should lead to a targeted adjustment of the roughness profile of the thin coatings and to the formation of a hardness and residual stress gradient. These tool-side surface modifications are used to meet the process-adapted tri-bological requirements of the forming projects. The durability tests are to be evaluated under practical conditions in wear test benches, which for the first time will enable the SBMF to make a statement on the load and performance capacity of thin layers in long-term investigations. Furthermore, the interactions of different structure-layer combinations will be investigated in order to identify and analyse the limiting factors on the service life. The knowledge gained will be transferred to real forming tools and the influence of the developed surface modification on the process control and the real formed components will be investigated.
Publications
2021
- Tillmann, W.; Stangier, D.: Application of Nanostructured Bionic Thin Layers to Enhance the Wear and Friction Behavior of Tools for Sheet-Bulk Metla Forming. In: Merklein, M.; Tekkaya, A. E.; Behrens, B.-A. (Edt.): Sheet Bulk Metal Forming, (2021), Springer, pp. 216-238
- Wernicke, S.; Hahn, M.; Detzel, A.; Tillmann, W.; Stangier, D.; Lopes Dias, N. F.; Tekkaya, A.: Force Reduction by Electrical Assistance in Incremental Sheet-Bulk Metal Forming of Gears. In: Journal of Materials Processing Technology, 296(2021), Elsevier, pp. 117194
2020
- Tillmann, W.; Stangier, D.; Hagen, L.; Biermann, D.; Freiburg, D.; , .: Tribological investigation of surface structures processed by high-feed milling in HVOF sprayed WC-12Co coatings. In: Surface & Coatings Technology, 395(2020), pp. 125945
- Weikert, T.; Tremmel, S.; Stangier, D.; Tillmann, W.; Krebs, E.; Biermann, D.: Tribological Studies on Multi-Coated Forming Tools. In: Journal of Manufacturing Processes, 49(2020), pp. 141-152
- Denkena, B.; Breidenstein, B.; Lucas, H.; Keitel, M.; Tillmann, W.; Stangier, D.: Influence of Residual Stresses in heat-treated High-Speed Steels on the Adhesion of CrAlN Coatings. In: Journal of Heat Treatment and Materials, 75(2020), pp. 163-176
- Behrens, B.; Tillmann, W.; Biermann, D.; Hübner, S.; Stangier, D.; Freiburg, D.; , .; Koch, S.; Rosenbusch, D.; , .: Influence of Tailored Surfaces and Superimposed-Oscillation on Sheet-Bulk Metal Forming Operations. In: Journal of Manufacturing Materials Processing, 4(2020), pp. 41
- Behrens, B.; Meijer, A.; Stangier, D.; Hübner, S.; Biermann, D.; Tillmann, W.; Rosenbusch, D.; , .: Static and oscillation superimposed ring compression tests with structured and coated tools for Sheet-Bulk Metal Forming. In: Journal of Manufacturing Processes, 55(2020), pp. 78-86
2019
- Löffler, M.; Schulte, R.; Freiburg, D.; Biermann, D.; Stangier, D.; Tillmann, W.; Merklein, M.: Control of the material flow in sheet-bulk metal forming using modifications of the tool surface. In: International Journal of Material Forming, 12(2019), pp. 17-26
- Tillmann, W.; Hagen, L.; Stangier, D.; Krabiell, M.; Schröder, P.; Tiller, J.; Krumm, C.; Sternemann, C.; Paulus, M.; Elbers, M.: Influence of etching-pretreatment on nano-grained WC Co surfaces and properties of PVD/HVOF duplex coatings. In: Surface and Coatings Technology, 374(2019), pp. 32-43
- Tillmann, W.; Stangier, D.; Roese, P.; Shamout, K.; Berges, U.; Westphal, C.; Debus, J.: Structural and mechanical properties of carbon incorporation in DC/HiPIMS CrAlN coatings. In: Surface & Coatings Technology, 374(2019), pp. 773-783
- Tillmann, W.; Hagen, L.; Stangier, D.; Paulus, M.; Tolan, M.; Sakarowski, R.; Biermann, D.; Freiburg, D.: Microstructural characteristics of high-feed milled HVOF sprayed WC-Co coatings. In: Surface & Coatings Technology, 374(2019), pp. 448-459
- Behrens, B.; Biermann, D.; Tillmann, W.; Krimm, R.; Meijer, A.; Schewe, M.; Stangier, D.; Commichau, O.; Müller, P.; Rosenbusch, D.; Menzel, A.: Untersuchungen strukturierter Werkzeugflächen und der Einfluss auf den Werkzeugverschleiß. In: 4. Industriekolloquium Blechmassivumformung 2019 – DFG Transregio 73, (2019), pp. 7-30
2018
- Krebs, E.; Wolf, M.; Biermann, D.; Tillmann, W.; Stangier, D.: High-quality cutting edge preparation of micromilling tools using wet abrasive jet machining process. In: Production Engineering, 12(2018), pp. 45-51
2017
- Sieczkarek, P.; Wernicke, S.; Gies, S.; Tekkaya, A.; Krebs, E.; Wiederkehr, P.; Biermann, D.; Tillmann, W.; Stangier, D.: Improvement strategies for the formfilling in incremental gear forming processes. In: Production Engineering – Research and Development, 11(2017), Springer, pp. 623-631
- Tillmann, W.; Stangier, D.; Lopes-Dias, N.-F.; Biermann, D.; Krebs, E.: Adjustment of Friction by Duplex-Treated, Bionic Structures for Sheet-Bulk Metal Forming. In: Tribology International, 111(2017), pp. 9-17
- Tillmann, W.; Stangier, D.; Lopes-Dias, N.-F.: Influence of PVD-PVD-treated, Bionic Surface Structures on the Wetting Behavior for Sheet-Bulk Metal Forming Tools. In: Journal of Bionic Engineering, 14(2017), pp. 520-531
- Tillmann, W.; Stangier, D.; Hagen, L.; Schröder, P.; Krabiell, M.: Influence of WC grain size on the properties of PVD/HVOF duplex coatings. In: Surface and Coatings Technology, 328(2017), pp. 326-334
Presentations
2020
- 15.09.2020: Tillmann, W.: Moderne Beschichtungsverfahren für nachhaltige Anwendungen in der Fertigungstechnik und im Maschinenbau, Akademie der Wissenschaften, Düsseldorf
2018
- 29.03.2018: Stangier, D.: Strukturelle und mechanische Eigenschaften von kohlenstoffdotierten CrAlN Dünnschichten abgeschieden mittels DC/HiPIMS hybrid Prozessen, Incheon, SurfCoat Korea
- 26.04.2018: Stangier, D.: Bionisch inspirierte Oberflächenstrukturen und nanostrukturierte PVD-Hartstoffschichten für die Blechmassivumformung, Sigmaringen, 5te BisOn Netzwerksitzung