1st ICAI 2020

International Conference on Automotive Industry 2020

Mladá Boleslav, Czech Republic

consumption and a more complicated production process. In case of processing magnesium alloys by forming, it is necessary to use higher forming temperatures which means higher energy demands compared to aluminum. Recyclability is possible for both metals and is significantly cheaper and energy less intensive than the production of pure metal from the base material. This is also associated with lower environmental impact. The problem with magnesium is that, due to its low corrosion resistance, it is very often coated and the coating has to be removed in the recycling process, which results in a more complex process than aluminum recycling. Table 3: Selected aspect comparison for magnesium and aluminium Magnesium Aluminium Pure metal price higher lower Production energy consumption higher higher Production technical demands – Casting technology higher lower – Forming technology higher lower Production Environmental impact higher higher Recyclability more difficult easy Source: own elaboration It is clear from the Table 4 that the majority of automobile parts it is possible to produce using die casting technologies. Both smaller shape-complicated parts and larger parts of smaller thicknesses can be produced. The second technology used for the production of automobile parts is forming. For flat stampings, sheet metal forming technology at higher temperatures is used which allow sufficient ductility of the material. For volume parts, forging technologies are used as an alternative to die casting. Regarding the economic aspect, which is represented by the energy demand for production, is high for these production technologies and are caused cause by specifics properties of magnesium. Table 4: Technical and economical aspect of individual automobile parts Technical aspect Economical aspect Product Production technology Production energy demand Wheel disc Die Casting / Forging Relatively high Steering wheel frame Die Casting Relatively high Gearbox housing Die Casting Relatively high Dashboard frame Die Casting Relatively high Car body reinforcement Die Casting / Forging Relatively high Car body shaped part Forming Relatively high Source: own elaboration

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