Application of Finite Volume Method Based on the C-N Format with Parallel Algorithms in Metal Thermal Phase Transition Coupled Field

The numerical simulation of metal heat treatment is of great significance for the development of new materials or processes. The complex coupling relationship in metal heat treatment poses a huge challenge to the overall solution. A finite volume method based on the Crack–Nicolson (C-N) scheme with parallel algorithms is proposed for solving the coupling of metal thermal phase transition. Taking the quenching simulation problem of bearing rings as an example, the calculation accuracy and speed of this method were evaluated by comparing the results of the temperature field and phase transformation field obtained from the literature. In addition, grid independence analysis was conducted to demonstrate the rationality of the established model. The finite volume method using a hexahedral mesh C-N format improves the accuracy of calculations. Optimizing the equation form and using parallel algorithms have improved computational speed. In the trial example, in the 850 °C quenching simulation of GCr15, the outer ring of the bearing is composed of 89.1% martensite and 10.9% residual austenite. The results compare with test verification, which shows that the model performs well in the numerical simulation of metal heat treatment.