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Published online by Cambridge University Press: 21 March 2011
Semisolid alloys exhibit a shear rate history dependent flow behavior. The increasing interest on numerical modeling of thixo-casting processes makes it quite important to understand the flow behavior of semisolids. Its apparent viscosity is the key parameter for the numerical models. In this paper a two phase approach is used to investigate the rheology of semisolid alloys. It is assumed that both, liquid and solid phase, can be regarded as inter-penetrating continua with its own viscosity. Thus, each phase is thought to behave as a Newtonian fluid. The simulation results show that the rheology of the two-phase flow is determined by the interaction between the solid and the liquid, i.e. the momentum exchange between the two phases. Non-Newtonian flow behavior of the solid-liquid mixture is predicted although both phases are considered as Newtonian fluids.