Lecture No 4

Goal of Lecture
To provide an overview of material forming and shaping process fundamentals To understand the important factors in casting metals
Physical Operational Economics

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Some Useful Links

American Foundrymans Society
http://www.afsinc.org

Ductile Iron Society

http://www.ductile.org

American Metalcasting Consortium

http://amc.aticorp.org

Ferroalloys Association
http://www.amc.scra.org/tfa

Cast Metals Institute

http://www.castmetals.org

National Center for Excellence in Metalworking

http://www.ncemt.ctc.com

North American Die Casting Nonferrous Founders Association

http://www.diecasting.org

Society

http://www.nffs.org

Steel Founders of America

http://www.sfsa.org

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Casting Processes
Some Web pages of casting sources
Some cast houses
http://www.solidiform.com/ www.reliance-foundry.com/ http://www.qesc.com/third.htm
this has some nice images of large castings

The future of casting

http://www.oit.doe.gov/metalcast/

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Casting
The conversion of raw materials into useful shapes using phase transformations One of the first steps in converting raw materials into useful products Applicable to most materials
Metals Ceramics Plastics Glass

Also includes mixtures

Ceramic slips and slurries

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Casting - a Form of Phase Change Forming

The use of changes of phase to create intricate shapes
Molten metals Monomer solutions Slips Slurries

Form the shape in the liquid state in a mold or container

Change the liquid into a solid

Remove heat Remove suspending liquid Initiate a reaction
apply heat inject reactants irradiate with photons

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Other Forms of Phase Change Forming

Plasma spraying Spray forming Stereolithography http://www.solutionsin3d.com/main.htm http://www.protocam.com/art_to_part/fslide2.htm Selective Laser Sintering http://lff.me.utexas.edu/sls.html Fused deposition modeling http://nasarp.msfc.nasa.gov/fdm.html Single crystal growing Inorganic glass forming Liquid metal jet printing http://arri.uta.edu/lmj/

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Casting Fundamentals
Casting advantages
High shape complexity with internal cavities Large shape size and variety Wide variety of materials Ease of production Variety of materials that can be cast Close tolerances (some processes) High surface finish (some processes) Excellent mechanical properties (some processes) Economics (for some lot sizes)
Kalpakjian pp 262-263

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Casting Fundamentals
Casting disadvantages
High setup costs Low tolerances (some processes) Low surface finish (some processes) Porosity (some processes) Inhomogeneities (some processes) Poor mechanical properties (some processes)

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Casting Fundamentals
Overall Process:
Make mold Pour in liquid Cool/solidify Remove shape from mold

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Types of Casting
Molten materials which solidify on cooling
Metals, ceramics, glasses

Liquids which solidify by reactions with light, activators/hardeners or moisture

Plastics

Slurries which solidify by the extraction of the suspending medium (usually water)
Ceramics

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Casting Fundamentals for Molten Material

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Factors affecting solidification characteristics from the molten state

Fluidity
Flow of molten material into the cavity

Kalpakjian p 265

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Fluidity of Molten Metal

Fluidity is dependent on:
Characteristics of the fluid Casting parameters

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Fluidity - Characteristics of the fluid

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Basically, Fluidity is the ability of the liquid to flow into the mold

Viscosity and sensitivity to temperature Surface tension Inclusions Freezing range

Kalpakjian pp 274-275

Fluidity

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Theory of Fluid Flow

Theory has three components:
Bernoulli's theorem Continuity law Laminar vs turbulent flow

Kalpakjian pp 272-275

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Bernoulli's theorem
2 v p h + ---- + ---- = constant rg 2g
Where: h is the elevation above a reference plane, p is the pressure at that elevation, v is the velocity of the liquid at that elevation, r is the density of the liquid and g is the gravitational constant
For zero velocity, pressure is proportional to height and density For a constant height, Velocity is proportional to the square root of pressure etc

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Continuity Law
For an incompressible liquid: Av = constant, the flow rate
Where A is the cross sectional area and v is the velocity

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Laminar vs Turbulent Flow

Laminar flow is preferred
Reynolds number less than 2000

Turbulent flow (Re >20,000) can cause air entrapment and dross (oxide) formation
results in defects

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Practical Fluid Flow

Pouring basin
where the molten metal enters the mold

Gating system
connects the pouring basin to the rest of the mold through
Sprue connects the pouring basin to the runners Runners carry the molten metal to the mold

Risers
act as reservoirs to supply molten material as it solidifies and shrinks

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Casting Parameters Affecting Fluidity

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Mold design Mold material Mold surface characteristics Degree of superheat Rate of pouring Heat transfer

Kalpakjian p 275

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Casting Fundamentals for Molten Material

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Factors affecting solidification characteristics from the molten state

Fluidity
Flow of molten material into the cavity

Heat transfer During solidification and cooling

Kalpakjian p 265

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Heat Transfer
Very complex phenomenon Very simple process
A cold mold extracts heat from the melt causing it to solidify

Critical to design of mold Can compute a relative time for solidification

Kalpakjian p 275

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Heat Transfer - Solidification Time

Proportional to the square of the volume/ surface area ratio
A sphere will have a much longer solidification time than a complex shape of the same volume

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Effect of Cooling Rate

Rate of cooling critical for the structure of the material and hence its properties
Slow cooling (~100K/s) gives large grain sizes Fast cooling (~10 k/s)gives small grain sizes Very fast cooling rates (>10 K/s)produce amorphous materials

Implications: Should design artifact to be thin and not massive Require "chills" to control cooling rate

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Casting Fundamentals for Molten Material

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Factors affecting solidification characteristics from the molten state

Fluidity
Flow of molten material into the cavity

Heat transfer
During solidification and cooling

Solidification

Kalpakjian p 265

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Solidification Effects
This is where the material comes important
Plastics
Not as critical as for metals

Semiconductors
Specialty crystal growing Single crystal so no microstructures

Glass
No microstructure

Kalpakjian pp 263-277

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Solidification Effects - Metals

Molten metal solidification events depend on the type of material
Pure metals Alloy

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Solidification of Pure Metals

Solidification occurs from the mold walls to the center in a plane front Grains tend to be equiaxed and grow outward from the mold wall in a columnar structure Nucleation agents can cause a more equiaxed structure (more uniform grains and size distribution)

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Crystallization Phenomena

Kalpakjian p 267

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Solidification of Alloys
Eutectics behave similarly to pure metals but Cast grain structure depends on phase diagram

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Solidification of Alloys
Alloys with liquidus and solidus temperatures have a physical mushy zone Mushy zone has solid particles and liquid co-existing Solid particles tend to be dendritic (tree form) in nature and grow from the mold wall Microstructure highly dependent on cooling rate Freezing range is the difference between the liquidus and solidus temperatures Ferrous alloys tend to have small freezing ranges Aluminum and magnesium alloys tend to have wide freezing ranges

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Copper-Nickel Phase Diagram

Kalpakjian p 120

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Why is solidification so important for metals?

Grain size Grain distribution Grain morphology Grain boundaries Grain composition Porosity content and type

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The solidification events determine the microstructure of the product:

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More Crystallization Phenomena

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Influence of Grain Size on Microstructure

Strength Ductility

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Grain size Microporosity

Cracking tendency
Kalpakjian p 269

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Structure-Property Relationships
Slow cooling - uniform composition Normal cooling - microsegregation and Macro segregation Microsegregation
Segregation of alloying elements within the grains or dendrites Dendrites are the columnar grains that typically grow from the mold surface Dendrite surface has higher concentration of alloying elements than core

Macrosegregation
Segregation of alloying elements across the casting itself.

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Structure-Property Relationships
Macrosegregration
Normal
Lower melting constituents driven away from the mold wall
higher concentration at center

Inverse
melt enters the cavities among the dendrites formed at the surface

Gravity
Heavy elements sink to the bottom

Macrosegregation gives rise to poor microstructures

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Avoidance of Macrosegregation
Use
Nucleation agents Create more grains by mechanical means
Rheocasting - stir the metal while it is in the mushy zone Vibration Electromagnetic stirring

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Solidification Effects - Shrinkage

The metal shrinks as it cools
in the melt as it solidifies as a solid (largest)

Volume Solid Contraction of some metals:

Aluminum Carbon Steel Copper Gray iron

Kalpakjian p 279

6.6% 2.5-3% 4.9% -2.55

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Impact of Shrinkage on Mold Design

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Dimensions of mold Molds must be constructed to be larger than the final product because the metal shrinks as it cools
Patternmakers ruler

Warpage due to differential shrinkage Defects due to induced stresses Porosity

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Solidification Effects - Defects

Defects caused by
materials part design processing techniques

No simple answers

Kalpakjian pp 278-282

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Projections Cavities

Defect Classes

fins, flash, swells (massive), rough surfaces internal, exposed, blowholes, pinholes

Discontinuities
cracks, cold and hot tearing, cold shuts

Defective surface
folds, laps, scars, adhering sand, oxide scale

Incomplete casts
insufficient metal, leaky molds

Incorrect dimensions or shape

improper shrinkage allowance, warping, etc

Porosity
T

See Kalpakjian pp 279-281

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Porosity
A special kind of cavity Caused by shrinkage or gases Detrimental to the ductility of the metal, the surface finish and pressure integrity of the part

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Shrinkage Porosity
Caused by differential cooling Thin sections cool faster than thick sections leading to too little material in the thick sections When the thick sections begin to solidify, porosity develops Mold designers avoid this by the use of chills and proper flow channels and riser placement

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Gas Porosity
Liquid metals have greater solubility for gases than solid metals Any gas in the melt appears as spherical cavities Melt treatment must include various degassification processes Can also have gases arising from reactions (melt - mold)

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Impact of all these factors on mold design

Very complex, Empirical Best left to experts There are some general guidelines, see later

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Casting Fundamentals for Molten Material

Fluidity
Flow of molten material into the cavity

46

Factors affecting solidification characteristics from the molten state

Heat transfer effects
During solidification and cooling

Solidification effects The type of mold material

Kalpakjian p 265

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Influence of the Mold Material

Mold material impacts:
The heat transfer rate The surface finish The number and hence grain size of the microstructure

Selection of the mold material is strongly influenced by the process

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Casting Processes for Liquid Metals

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There are two classes of processes:

Ingot casting - simple shapes for subsequent processing Net shape casting

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Semicontinuous casting of ingot

No complete mold Bottom of mold moveable Skin forms the mold
Water in

The Casting Process for Rolling and Extrusion

Molten metal

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Melt

Water out
Solid material

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Ingot Cross-Section
Rolling Ingot

Extrusion Ingot

Disadvantage of ingots
Often need scalping to provide good surface finish Require energy to homogenize/reheat Handling 20-40 ton slabs is difficult It is an extra step which adds costs

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Continuous Casting
Remove bottom of mold and continually pull slab out of mold - a continuous billet Advantages
Lowers cost Continuous production

Disadvantage
Difficult to control Grain structure of cast material not entirely eliminated because the hot deformation is less Difficult to change material Difficult to start and stop

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Continuous Casting Equipment

Kalpakjian p 160

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Net Shape Casting Processes

Major Categories
Expendable mold
made of sand, plaster, ceramics with binders mold broken up to remove cast shape

Permanent mold
used repeatedly designed for ease of casting removal typically fabricated of high temperature metals typically provide higher quality castings because of the high rate of cooling

Composite mold
uses the advantages of both expendable and permanent molds

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Expendable Molds
Sand Casting Lost Foam
Expendable pattern casting

Plaster Mold Ceramic Mold

Cope and drag investment casting

Vacuum casting

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Sand Casting
Most ancient process Still most prevalent ~15 million tons produced each year Typical products include:
machine tool bases, engine blocks, cylinder heads, pump housings

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Sand Casting
Advantages
Can be applied to all commercially used metals Can obtain intricate shapes Can apply to large objects Is economical for small production runs Equipment costs are generally low

Disadvantages
Surface finish depends on the mold material Dimensional accuracy not as good as other casting processes

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Sand Casting Process

Create pattern of desired shape Place in box of sand to create an imprint (mold) Incorporate a gating system Fill imprint with molten metal Solidify and cool Break away the mold and remove casting

Kalpakjian Ch 11.3

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The Sand Casting Process

Kalpakjian p 298

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Overall Shrinkage

Metal
Gray Cast iron White Cast Iron Malleable cast iron Aluminum alloys Magnesium Yellow brass High manganese steel

Percent
0.83-1.3 2.1 0.78-1.0 1.3 1.3 1.3-1.6 2.6

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The Sand
Mostly silica sand (silicon dioxide)
Naturally bonded or bank sands Synthetic or lake sand preferred because its composition can be controlled more accurately

The factors
Fine round grains give smooth surfaces Permeability allows gasses to escape Good collapsibility to avoid defects in the casting

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Types of Sand Molds

Green sand molding
Least expensive Poor dimensional accuracy Skin drying improves
strength, dimensional accuracy surface finish

Cold Box molding

Uses sand plus binders Stronger molds Dimensionally more accurate

No-bake molding
Sand plus resins Best strength, dimensional accuracy and finish

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Sand Mold Components

Flask (container) Mold itself
Cope on top Drag on bottom

Pouring basin or cup Sprue Runner system Risers Cores Vents

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Patterns
Patterns are used to mold the sand to the required shape May be made of wood, plastic or metal Material selection depends on
casting size and shape required dimensional accuracy quantity to be produced molding process

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Cores
Used to form interior cavities Really just another specialized word for a pattern

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Sand Molding Machines

Purpose is to compact the sand around the pattern
Hand hammering Squeezing Jolting Vertical flaskless molding (automated) Sandslinging Impact molding Vacuum molding

Kalpakjian pp 294-297

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Shell Mold Casting

A mounted pattern is coated with a parting agent and clamped to a box containing fine sand with a binder Box is turned upside down to allow the sand to coat the pattern Assembly is placed in an oven to allow the binder to act and the sand hardens around the patterns Two half shells made by this method are clamped together to form the mold into which the molten metal is poured

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Shell Mold Casting

Advantages
Can produce casting with sharper corners, smaller projections, and thinner walls than green-sand molds Is somewhat lower in cost than other sand casting techniques Produces casting with excellent surface finish Process can be automated

Disadvantages
Unless properly vented, can have severe gas entrapment problems

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Lost Foam Process

The pattern is formed from polystyrene and the sand is formed around it. On pouring the molten metal into the mold, the polystyrene evaporates and is replaced by the melt It is probably one of the most important process for the ferrous and non-ferrous metals industry
Particularly important for the automotive industry.

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Lost Foam Process

Advantages
A relatively simple process No parting lines Flasks or containers can be inexpensive Requires minimal finishing operations Can be automated Can be used for long production runs Complex patterns may be made by bonding polystyrene components together

Disadvantages
Fluidity is lower than in conventional sand casting because of large temperature gradients

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Plaster Mold Casting

In this process the mold is made of plaster of paris instead of sand The rest of the process is similar to sand casting in that the two halves of the mold are clamped together and the molten metal poured in Often referred to as "precision casting"

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Plaster-Mold Casting
Advantages
Slower cooling gives a more uniform grain structure and less warpage Can produce casting with fine details and good surface finish Casting can have wall thickness as low as 1 mm Casting has high dimensional accuracy

Disadvantages
Can only be used for Aluminum. Magnesium, zinc and some copper based alloys because of the max temperature capability of the mold

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Investment Casting (Lost wax)

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Very old process Pattern made by injecting molten plastic or wax into a metal die. This pattern is then assembled onto a "tree" with several patterns This tree is dipped into slurry of refractory material and coated with it This mold is then dried and heated to melt the wax which then runs out leaving the cavity. The mold is then heated to ~1000oC to "fire" the refractory and bond it into a solid The molten metal is poured in, cooled, and the mold broken to remove the castings

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Investment Casting Process

Kalpakjian p 306

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Investment Casting
Advantages
Wide range of sizes possible Intricate shapes possible Wax can be reused Good surface finish Close tolerances Applicable to a wide variety of metals and alloys

Disadvantage
Molds require careful handling because they are brittle

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Permanent Mold Casting

Molds made in two halves from cast iron, steel, bronze, graphite or refractory hard alloys Surfaces coated with refractories to increase die life, control heat transfer and help separate casting from mold

Kalpakjian Ch 11.9

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Permanent Mold Casting

Advantages
Good surface finish Close tolerances Uniform mechanical properties Fine details Thin walls High production rates Automated version have low labor costs Large size range (few gms to >=100kgs)

Disadvantages
High equipment costs Not economical for small production lots Cannot do intricate shapes

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Types of Permanent Mold Casting

Gravity feed Pressure-casting
Die casting
Hot chambers

Cold chambers Insert molding (cast in place inserts) Centrifugal Casting Squeeze casting Semisolid metal working (forging in the slushy state)

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Die Casting (Pressure Die Casting)

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Molten metal is forced into the die at high pressure (up to 100ksi) Two basic types of machines
Hot chamber Cold chamber

Typical parts are carburetors, motors, appliance components and hand tools Size ranges from 90 gm to 25 kg

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Die Casting
Hot Chamber
The chamber where the hot molten metal is kept is next the die machine and automatically fills the "shot" chamber from which it is injected under pressure into the mold

Cold Chamber
The molten metal is delivered via a ladle to the shot chamber from which it is injected into the injection machine.

These machine are very similar to plastic injection molding machines but have to be able to handle higher temperatures.

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Hot Chamber Die Casting

Kalpakjian p 313

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Die Casting
Advantages
Multiple dies allow higher production rates Thin wall, intricate parts Fine surface detail possible High production rates with automated machines Inserts such as fasteners may be die cast integrally Good dimensional accuracy Fine grained, high strength skin results

Disadvantages
Die costs are high Clamping force to keep the two halves of the die together ranges from 25 to 3000 tons

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Casting Practices
Casting practices are the techniques, methods and operations used in casting. It includes things like safety, fluxes, master alloys, furnaces,. All of which contribute to producing a quality part in a safe manner Safety is extremely important in a cast house because molten metal is very dangerous

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Safety in Casting
Concerns
Splashing of molten metal Fumes from the molten metal Dust from the sand Fuels for the furnace, their control and proper operation of the equipment supplying them to the furnace Water
Water and molten metal is extremely explosive since the high temperature of the melt rapidly converts it to steam

Handling of fluxes which can absorb water Faulty equipment especially cracks in molten metal containers such as ladles

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Fluxes and Slags

Fluxes are inorganic compounds that
refine the molten metal by removing dissolved gases and impurities perform other functions
Prevent oxidation (aluminum casting) Cleaning Wall cleaning Slag forming

Fluxes are mostly compounds of chorides, fluorides and borates of aluminum, calcium, magnesium potassium and sodium. Some fluxes form an insulating cover for the melt to prevent oxidation. They form Slags

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Master Alloys
Really a misnomer They are alloys of those alloying elements required for a particular alloy which do not readily dissolve in the melt By alloying these elements in a low melting alloy, they can be more readily dissolved into the melt.

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Melting Furnaces
Most common types are:
Electric Arc
have higher melting rate and lower pollution than most others

Induction
Coreless induction furnaces provide excellent mixing Cored induction furnaces typically used for superheating and holding furnaces

Crucible
heated by oil, gas or electricity may be stationary, tilting or moveable

Cupola
Large furnaces for making steel with layers of iron, coke and flux Operate continuously

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Single Crystal Casting

Creates single crystals for special applications
Jet engine blades - superalloys Semi-conductor material
Chrochalsky process

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Design Guidelines for all Casting

General Design Principles
Avoid sharp corners, angles and fillets Avoid sharp section changes (blend smoothly) Avoid large flat areas (use ribs and serrations) Allow for shrinkage Design parting line in appropriate location Design in draft angles (for release of casting from mold) Do not ask process to deliver higher tolerances than it can deliver Allow extra material for finishing Consider stress relieving Enlist the help of a casting company

Kalpakjian Chapter 12

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General Casting Economics

Process Sand Shell-mold Plaster Investment Permanent mold Die Centrifugal
Kalpakjian p 347

Die L L-M L-M M-H M H M

Cost Equip Labor L L-M M-H L-M M M-H L-M H M L_M H L-M H L-M

Production Rate (Pc/hr) <20 <50 <10 <1000 <60 <200 <50

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Plastics

Other forms of Casting

solidification occurs by a reaction

with added hardener/activator with moisture in the air

Ceramics
Like molten metals but at much higher temperatures
Only simple shapes possible

Slurry casting
Powder ceramic mixed with water to form a fluid which is poured into the mold Mold is porous and extracts the water Cast body must be dried and fired at high temperatures to obtain reasonable strength

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Conclusions
Casting is a very flexible process with a lot of advantages BUT It is complex and has a lot of variables Enlist an expert before you commit you design to casting

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Summary
Phase change forming - Casting
Processes
Ingot casting Shape casting
Expendable mold Permanent mold Composite nold