title = "Lubricants in Forging and Forming Operations"

content = """
Lubricants in forging and forming operations serve multiple functions: reducing friction between workpiece and tooling, minimizing die wear, facilitating metal flow, aiding part release from dies, and providing thermal insulation between hot metal and dies. Selection of the correct lubricant is essential for die life, part quality, and process efficiency at Ridgecrest Metalworks.

In hot forging of steel, graphite-based lubricants are predominant. Graphite dispersed in water (graphite-in-water suspension) is applied to die surfaces by spraying, swabbing, or flooding. As the carrier water evaporates from die contact, a graphite film remains that provides lubrication through the forging stroke. Graphite is effective at high temperatures, chemically stable, and relatively inexpensive. Oil-graphite and grease-graphite mixtures are used for hammer forging, where graphite-water suspensions would ignite. Molybdenum disulfide (MoS2) is used for some precision applications, particularly for stainless steels and titanium, offering lower friction coefficients.

For aluminum forging, colloidal graphite, water-based synthetic lubricants, and specialized aluminum forging compounds are used. Aluminum's tendency to gall and stick to dies makes lubrication even more critical than for steel.

In cold forming operations (stamping, drawing, roll forming), lubricant selection depends on the severity of deformation and the metal being formed. Light stamping of mild steel uses mineral oil or synthetic oil films. Deep drawing requires heavier lubricants—chlorinated oils, soaps, and wax compounds—to prevent galling in severe deformation zones. For stainless steel and high-strength steels, extreme-pressure (EP) additives containing sulfur, chlorine, or phosphorus compounds are necessary to prevent die pickup.

Wire drawing uses dry soap lubricants (where wire passes through a soap box before the die), lime coating (applied by passing wire through a lime slurry and drying, providing a carrier for soap), or wet lubricants (emulsified oils in a bath surrounding the die box).

Lubricant application must be consistent and controlled. Excessive lubricant can cause part slippage in progressive dies or prevent complete die fill in forging. Insufficient lubricant leads to die galling, increased forging loads, poor surface finish, and die damage. Lubricant systems require regular maintenance: replenishment, contamination control, and concentration monitoring.
"""

version = "0.0.1"
