Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Foundry
Foundry
Gating system
7. Skeleton pattern:
A skeleton pattern is the skeleton of a desired shape
which may be S-bend pipe or a chute or something
else. The skeleton frame is mounted on a metal base
The skeleton is made from wooden strips, and is thus
a wooden work.
The skeleton pattern is filled with sand and is
rammed.
A strickle (board) assists in giving the desired shape
to the sand and removes extra sand.
Skeleton patterns are employed for producing a few
large castings.
A skeleton pattern is very economical, because it
involves less material costs.
8. Follow board pattern:
A follow board is a wooden board and is used for
supporting a pattern which is very thin and fragile
and which may give way and collapse under
pressure when the sand above the pattern is being
rammed.
With the follow board support under the weak
pattern, the drag is rammed, and then the fallow
board is with drawn,The rammed drag is inverted,
cope is mounted on it and rammed. During this
operation pattern remains over the inverted drag
and get support from the rammed sand of the drag
under it.
Follow boards are also used for casting master
patterns for many applications.
9. Cope and Drag patterns:
A cope and drag pattern is another form of split
pattern.
Each half of the pattern is fixed to a separate
metal/wood plate.
Each half of the pattern(along the plate) is molded
separately in a separate molding box by an
independent molder or moulders.
The two moulds of each half of the pattern are
finally assembled and the mould is ready for
pouring.
Cope and drag patterns are used for producing
big castings which as a whole cannot be
conveniently handled by one moulder alone.
Fig: Cope and drag pattern
Pattern Allowances:
A pattern is larger in size as compared
to the final casting, because it carries certain
allowances due to metallurgical and mechanical
reasons for example, shrinkage allowance is
the result of metallurgical phenomenon where
as machining, draft, distortion, shake and other
allowances are provided on the patterns
because of mechanical reasons.
Types of Pattern Allowances:
The various pattern allowances are:
1. shrinkage or contraction allowance.
2. Machining or finish allowance.
3. Draft of tapper allowances.
4. Distortion or chamber allowance.
5. Shake or rapping allowance.
1.Shrinkage Allowance:
Almost all cast metals shrink or contract
volumetrically on cooling.
The metal shrinkage is of two types:
1. Liquid Shrinkage:
it refers to the reduction in volume when the metal
changes from liquid state to solid state at the solidus
temperature.To account for this shrinkage; riser, which
feed the liquid metal to the casting, are provided in the
mold.
2. Solid Shrinkage:
it refers to the reduction in volume caused when
metal loses temperature in solid state. To account for
this, shrinkage allowance is provided on the patterns.
Almost all cast metals shrink or contract
volumetrically after solidification and therefore the
pattern to obtain a particular sized casting is made
oversize by an amount equal to that of shrinkage
or contraction.
Different metals shrink at different rates because
shrinkage is the property of the cast metal/alloy.
The metal shrinkage depends upon:
1. The cast metal or alloy.
2. Pouring temp. of the metal/alloy.
3. Casted dimensions(size).
4. Casting design aspects.
5. Molding conditions(i.e., mould materials
and molding methods employed)
Rate of Contraction of Various Metals :
Material Dimension Shrinkage allowance
(inch/ft)
Cast Steel
Up to 2 feet 0.251
2 feet to 6 feet 0.191
over 6 feet 0.155
Aluminum
Up to 4 feet 0.155
4 feet to 6 feet 0.143
over 6 feet 0.125
Up to 12 0.12
Cast iron 12 to 20 0.20
20 to 40 0.25
Up to 6 0.12
Cast steel 6 to 20 0.25
20 to 40 0.30
Up to 8 0.09
Non ferrous 8 to 12 0.12
12 to 40 0.16
3. Draft or Taper Allowance:
It is given to all surfaces perpendicular to parting
line.
Draft allowance is given so that the pattern can
be easily removed from the molding material
tightly packed around it with out damaging the
mould cavity.
The amount of taper depends upon:
i. Shape and size of pattern in the depth
direction in contact with the mould cavity.
ii. Moulding methods.
iii. Mould materials.
iv. Draft allowance is imparted on internal as well
as external surfaces; of course it is more on
internal surfaces.
Table 2 : Draft Allowances of
Various Metals:
Pattern Height of the Draft angle Draft angle
material given surface (External (Internal
(inch) surface) surface)
1 3.00 3.00
1 to 2 1.50 2.50
Wood 2 to 4 1.00 1.50
4 to 8 0.75 1.00
8 to 32 0.50 1.00
1 1.50 3.00
1 to 2 1.00 2.00
Metal and plastic 2 to 4 0.75 1.00
4 to 8 0.50 1.00
8 to 32 0.50 0.75
Fig: taper in design
4. Distortion or cambered allowance:
A casting will distort or wrap if :
i. It is of irregular shape,
ii. All it parts do not shrink uniformly i.e., some
parts shrinks while others are restricted from
during so,
iii. It is u or v-shape,
iv. The arms possess unequal thickness,
v. It has long, rangy arms as those of propeller strut
for the ship,
vi. It is a long flat casting,
vii. One portion of the casting cools at a faster rate
as compared to the other.
5. Shake allowance:
A patter is shaken or rapped by striking the same
with a wooden piece from side to side. This is
done so that the pattern is loosened in the mold
cavity and can be easily removed.
In turn, therefore, rapping enlarges the mould
cavity which results in a bigger sized casting.
Hence, a shake allowance is provided on the
pattern i.e., the pattern dimensions are kept
smaller in order to compensate the enlargement
of mould cavity due to rapping.
The magnitude of shake allowance can be
reduced by increasing the tapper.
Pattern Layout:
Steps involved:
Get the working drawing of the part for
which the pattern is to be made.
Make two views of the part drawing on a
sheet, using a shrink rule. A shrink rule is
modified form of an ordinary scale which has
already taken care of shrinkage allowance for
a particular metal to be cast.
Add machining allowances as per the
requirements.
Depending upon the method of molding,
provide the draft allowance.
Pattern Construction:
Study the pattern layout carefully and establish,
a. Location of parting surface.
b. No. of parts in which the pattern will be made.
Using the various hand tools and pattern making
machines fabricate the different parts of the pattern.
Inspect the pattern as regards the alignment of
different portions of the pattern and its dimensional
accuracy.
Fill wax in all the fillets in order to remove sharp
corners.
Give a shellac coatings(3 coats) to pattern.
impart suitable colors to the pattern for
identification purposes and for other informations.
Pattern Colours:
Patterns are imparted certain colors and
shades in order to:
i. Identify quickly the main body of pattern
and different parts of the pattern.
ii. Indicate the type of the metal to be cast.
iii. Identify core prints, loose pieces, etc.,
iv. Visualize the surfaces to be machined, etc.
Moulding Materials
Major part of Moulding material in sand casting are
1. 70-85% silica sand (SiO2)
2. 10-12% bonding material e.g., clay cereal etc.
3. 3-6% water
Requirements of molding sand are:
(a) Refractoriness
(b) Cohesiveness
(c) Permeability
(d) Collapsibility
The performance of mould depends on following factors:
(a) Permeability
(b) Green strength
(c) Dry strength
Molding Material and Properties:
A large variety of molding materials is used
in foundries for manufacturing molds and
cores. They include molding sand, system
sand or backing sand, facing sand, parting
sand, and core sand. The choice of
molding materials is based on their
processing properties. The properties that
are generally required in molding
materials are:
1. Refractoriness:
It is the ability of the molding material to
with stand high temperatures
(experienced during pouring) with out
1. Fusion,
2. Cracking, buckling or scabbing,
3. Experiencing any major physical
change.
Silica sand have high refractoriness.
2. Permeability:
During pouring and subsequent solidification of a
casting, a large amount of gases and steam is
generated.
These gases are those that have been absorbed by the
metal during melting, air absorbed from the
atmosphere and the steam generated by the molding
and core sand.
If these gases are not allowed to escape from the
mold, they would be entrapped inside the casting and
cause casting defects.
To overcome this problem the molding material must
be porous.
Proper venting of the mold also helps in escaping the
gases that are generated inside the mold cavity.
3. Green Strength:
The molding sand that contains moisture is
termed as green sand.
The green sand particles must have the ability
to cling to each other to impart sufficient
strength to the mold.
The green sand must have enough strength so
that the constructed mold retains its shape.
Green strength helps in making and handling
the moulds.
4. Dry Strength:
A mould may either intentionally be dried, or a
green sand mould may lose its moisture and get
dried while waiting for getting poured or when it
comes in contact with molten metal being
poured.
The sand thus dried must have dry strength to
1. Withstand erosive forces due to molten
metal,
2. Withstand pressure of molten metal,
3. Retain its exact shape,
4. Withstand the metallostatic pressure of
the liquid material.
5. Hot Strength:
As soon as the moisture is eliminated, the sand
would reach at a high temperature when the
metal in the mold is still in liquid state.
The strength of the sand that is required to hold
the shape of the cavity is called hot strength.
In the absence of adequate hot strength, the mold
may
1. enlarge
2. break, erode or
3. get cracked.
6. Collapsibility:
Collapsibility determines the readiness
with which the molding sand,
1. Automatically gets collapsed after
the casting solidifies, and
2. Breaks down in knock out and
cleaning operations.
If the mould or core does not collapse, it
may restrict free contraction of solidifying
metal and cause the same to tear or
crack.
7. Flowability:
It is the ability of the molding sand to get
compacted to a uniform density.
Flowability assists molding sand to flow
and pack all-around the pattern and take
up the required shape.
Flowability increases as clay and water
contents increase.
8. Adhesiveness:
It is the property of molding sand owing to
which, it
1. Sticks with the walls of molding boxes,
2. Sticks with gaggers, and
3. Thus makes it possible to mold cope
and drag.
9. Fineness:
Finer sand mould resist metal
penetration and produce smooth
casting surfaces.
Fineness and permeability are in
conflict with each other and hence they
must be balanced for optimum results.
Molding Sand Composition:
The main ingredients of any molding sand
are:
Base sand,
Binder, and
Moisture
1. Base Sand:
Silica sand is most commonly used base
sand.
Other base sands that are also used for
making mold are zircon sand, Chromite
sand, and olivine sand.
Silica sand is cheapest among all types of
base sand and it is easily available.
2. Binder:
Binders are of many types such as:
1. Clay binders,
2. Organic binders and
3. Inorganic binders
Silica sand 92
Water 4
Effect of moisture, grain size and shape on
mould quality
Classification of casting Processes:
Casting processes can be classified into following
FOUR categories:
1. Conventional Molding Processes Green Sand Molding
a. Dry Sand Molding
b. Flask less Molding
2. Chemical Sand Molding Processes
a. Shell Molding
b. Sodium Silicate Molding
c. No-Bake Molding
3. Permanent Mold Processes
a. Gravity Die casting
b. Low and High Pressure Die Casting
4. Special Casting Processes
a. Lost Wax
b. Ceramics Shell Molding
c. Evaporative Pattern Casting
d. Vacuum Sealed Molding
e. Centrifugal Casting
1.Green Sand Molding:
Green sand is the most diversified molding
method used in metal casting operations.The process
utilizes a mold made of compressed or compacted
moist sand. The term "green" denotes the presence of
moisture in the molding sand. The mold material
consists of silica sand mixed with a suitable bonding
agent (usually clay) and moisture.
Advantages:
Most metals can be cast by this method.
Pattern costs and material costs are relatively low.
No Limitation with respect to size of casting and type of metal or
alloy used
Disadvantages:
Surface Finish of the castings obtained by this process is not good and
machining is often required to achieve the finished product.
2.Dry Sand Molding:
When it is desired that the gas forming materials are lowered
in the molds, air-dried molds are sometimes preferred to
green sand molds. Two types of drying of molds are often
required.
Skin drying and
Complete mold drying.
In skin drying a firm mold face is produced. Shakeout of
the mold is almost as good as that obtained with green sand
molding. The most common method of drying the refractory
mold coating uses hot air, gas or oil flame. Skin drying of the
mold can be accomplished with the aid of torches, directed
at the mold surface.
3.Shell Molding Process:
It is a process in which, the sand mixed with a
thermosetting resin is allowed to come in contact with a
heated pattern plate (200 oC), this causes a skin (Shell) of
about 3.5 mm of sand/plastic mixture to adhere to the
pattern..
Then the shell is removed from the pattern. The cope and
drag shells are kept in a flask with necessary backup
material and the molten metal is poured into the mold.
This process can produce complex parts with good
surface finish 1.25 µm to 3.75 µm, and dimensional
tolerance of 0.5 %.
A good surface finish and good size tolerance reduce the
need for machining. The process overall is quite cost
effective due to reduced machining and cleanup costs.
The materials that can be used with this process are cast
irons, and aluminum and copper alloys.
4.Sodium Silicate Molding Process
In this process, the refractory material is
coated with a sodium silicate-based binder.
For molds, the sand mixture can be
compacted manually, jolted or squeezed
around the pattern in the flask.
After compaction, CO 2 gas is passed through
the core or mold. The CO 2 chemically reacts
with the sodium silicate to cure, or harden,
the binder. This cured binder then holds the
refractory in place around the pattern. After
curing, the pattern is withdrawn from the
The major disadvantage of the process is that
the binder is very hygroscopic and readily
absorbs water, which causes a porosity in the
castings.. Also, because the binder creates such a
hard, rigid mold wall, shakeout and collapsibility
characteristics can slow down production.
Some of the advantages of the process are:
A hard, rigid core and mold are typical of the
process, which gives the casting good
dimensional tolerances;
good casting surface finishes are readily
obtainable;
Foundry activities
2 types of moulding flask designs
Sand mold - opened
Sand mold - closed
Cooling curve for pure metal
Mixing moulding sand with binders & adhesives
Filling sand in moulding flasks
Melting furnace
Pouring molten liquid
Knock out
Heat treatment
Machining
final products of casting
A bullet goes forward only after pressing the trigger
backwards.
Every human being will be happy only after facing the
difficulties in life.
For no one learns to get up without having experienced
falling down.
So don’t be afraid to face your difficulties because as in cold-
worked metals, these will make you stronger.
Thank you...