NADCA

Alucast India

EC-506 Engineering
Die Casting Dies
Part 1

Mike Ward, November 2013

 Class Notes

• Please ask questions at any time

during the presentation.

• No one knows everything about die

design. There are no dumb
questions. Please speak up.
Course Book
 Introduction

• The die casting die is the heart of the

die casting process and business.
The quality of the die casting dies
can make or break your business.
 Introduction

• We would rather have a good die in a

bad machine than a bad die in a
good machine.

• With a bad die, we will struggle to

make the part no matter what
machine it is in.
 Introduction

• With a bad die, productivity is low

and scrap is high. We fight the job
and we find it difficult to make a
profit.

• With good dies productivity is high,

scrap is low. We make a lot of money
and everyone is happy.
 Introduction
• There is a spectrum of dies:
–Impossible
–Terrible
–Poor
–Fair
–Good
–Very good
–Excellent
 Introduction
• Excellent dies do not happen by
accident. They happen with:

– Quality engineering,
– Quality materials and heat treat,
– Quality toolmaking, and
– Quality die casting processes and
practices.
 Introduction

• This course primarily deals with die

engineering.

• We will discuss the issues in

designing and building an excellent
die casting die.
 Introduction

• The reality of the marketplace is this.

Darwin's ideas for biology prevail in
the business environment – only the
fittest survive.

• Look to your right and look to your

left. Who will prosper and who will
fail and why? Who will be around 5
or 10 years from now?
 Introduction

• Years ago people assessed a person's

die casting prowess by asking how
many years the person had spent in
die casting.

• Today, the world is different. You are

evaluated on your ability to get
things right and done irregardless of
how many years you have spent in
the industry.
 Introduction
• So we need to learn as much as
possible about die engineering.

• We need to evaluate our

performance and learn from our
mistakes.

• We need to make our team work –

engineer, toolmaker, tool repairman,
technician, operator, etc.
 Introduction

• But getting better at die design and

construction takes effort and work. It
is a lifetime journey and it does not
happen by accident.

• “I learn something every day that I

come to work.” ( Woodstock Tool
Room Foreman Lloyd Magnuson's
comment).
 Defining the Die's Objectives

• Starts with the quote.

• What are we trying to accomplish?

What does the customer want?

• What did we quote and promise to

the customer?
 Defining the Die Objectives

• How does the part work in the

application?

• What are the critical dimensions, the

customer expectations, etc?

• How many cavities, what machine,

what cycle time are required in order
to make money?
 Defining the Die Objectives
• Is surface finish important?

• Is porosity important?

• What is not important?

• Have we done a design review with

the customer?
 Concept Design

• The Concept Design is our initial idea

of what the die should look like. It is
a starting point for discussion and
design.
 Concept Design

• The Concept Design is drawn on an

8½ x 11 scaled paper showing the
holder block, cavity inserts, part
orientation, runners, overflows, and
shot blocks sitting in the designated
die casting machine.
 Concept Design

• To make the Concept Design quickly,

make scaled platen layouts for all of
the die casting machines in the plant
on 8½ x 11 one quarter or one
eighth scale paper.
 Concept Design

• The die is drawn on the scaled die

blank and then sent to potential tool
makers to quote. Be sure to show
cavity and holder block thicknesses
on side views.
 Concept Design

• With the Concept Design all

toolmakers quote the same thing in
accordance with the Tooling Standard
that we give to them.
 Concept Design

• By the same token we encourage the

toolmakers to critique the Concept
Design and suggest improvements.
 Concept Design

• The toolmaker is your partner in

making money. The cheapest die is
not necessarily the one that costs
the least. The cheapest die is the die
that runs day in and day out, makes
good parts, and lasts a long time.
 Concept Design

In general, have a keen eye for

toolmakers. Some of them will quote
cheap prices by reducing
construction costs to the point of
jeopardizing die performance. Resist
Purchasing's objective to buy die
casting dies only on price.
 Concept Die Design

• If you make or buy enough junk

(cheap) die casting dies, you will go
out of business.

• So the die caster must have a keen

eye for die design and the quality of
construction.
 Good Die Design

• Good die design takes work. Good

die design does not happen by
chance.

• Up front engineering time is always

worth the investment. The majority
of the costs of production are baked
in when the die design is complete.
 Good Die Design
• Do a Design FMEA with the customer.
• What features are important,
what makes the part work, what
features are not important.
• Do the casting specifications
meet the design intent?
• Is the casting overspecified?
 Good Die Design

• What can be done to improve the

casting design to reduce costs and
improve quality?

• Refer to Product Design for Die

Casting by NADCA. Are the wall
drafts, radii, and fillets within
accepted die casting designs?
 Good Die Design

• Dimensional analysis with shrink.

• Draft, cross parting line, slide,

parting line mismatch, flatness, die
warpage tolerances, etc.

• Cavity orientation within casting die.

 Good Die Design
• What kind of die casting system do
we have to work with in our plant?
We must design the die for our plant.

– Closed loop hot oil machines, hot

water machines?
– Clamping methods?
– Shot positions?
– Machine size and power?
 Good Die Design
• With the preliminary die design we
are trying to:
– Understand what the customer
wants
– Improve the part design
– Understand what it will take to
make money
– Understand what issues we have to
deal with in our plant
Components of Good Die Construction

• Die caster/tool designer/tool maker

partnership – one team
• Quality steel
• Quality rough machining with stress
relief, no welding
• Quality heat treat
• Quality burn with slow down at finish
• Quality polish
• Steel safe
Components of Good Die Construction

• Surface treatment
• Sample run
• Layout
• Stress temper
• Corrections and core movement
• Second sample run
• Layout
• Stress temper
 Components of Good Die Design

• Gating
• Heating & Cooling
• Structure
• Mechanisms
• Material
• Standard DME items
• Steel safe concept
• Undersize cores that can be moved
 Components of Good Die Design

• There is a lot to consider with die

design.
Designing Die Casting Dies Series

• Book 1: Dimensional Control

• Book 2: Gating and Process
• Book 3: Thermal Design
• Book 4: Designing the Basic Die
• Book 5: Moving Cores
• Book 6: Ejection Systems and
Processing Aides
Book 1 - Dimensional
Control
 Dimensions & Tolerances

Die design starts with an analysis of the

print dimensions and what needs to be
done with the die to meet the
requirements.
 Dimensions & Tolerances

Dimensional analysis starts with NADCA's

Die Casting Standards. Data in this
manual contains casting standards for
the industry and what can be expected
from die castings.
Dimensions & Tolerance Topics

In NADCA's Design Standards &

Tolerances there is data of what is
possible with die castings. If you
follow NADCA's recommendations, no
matter what the customer demands,
you will stay out of trouble.
Dimensions & Tolerance Topics

Your job is to make money on die

castings. Let other die casters be
heroes for trying to do the
impossible. Quote and design within
your capabilities.
Dimensions & Tolerance Topics
• Location of datums

– Datums are best located in areas of the

casting with least shrink which is right
through the center of the part

– Avoid locating datums on slides or the

periphery of the part
Dimensions & Tolerance Topics

• Standard & precision tolerances

• Capability analysis
• Shrink
• Draft
• Linear dimensions
• Cross parting dimensions
Dimensions & Tolerance Topics
• Slide to cavity dimensions
• Parting line shift
• Guide blocks versus guide pins
• Flatness
• Parting line placement & cavity
orientation
• Steel safe conditions
• Example
Standard & Precision Tolerances

• Why do we need tolerances?

• Toolmakers are not perfect. They

machine and burn to +/- something.

:
Standard & Precision Tolerances
• Why do we need tolerances?

• Die casters are not perfect with

process variation.
• Cycle time
• Die lube spray – aim and duration
• Metal temperature
• Metal cleanliness
• Die surface condition
• Shot end condition, etc.

:
Standard & Precision Tolerances
• Standard Tolerances
– Developed in the 1950's and 1960's before
the electronics revolution that resulted in
precision machines, precision dies, and
process automation.

• Precision Tolerances
- Recognizes process automation, precision
dies and precision machines with closed
loop processes made possible by the
electronics revolution over the past 40
years.
Standard & Precision Tolerances

• Standard Tolerances: Modern die casters

should easily meet or exceed these
tolerances.

• Precision Tolerances: Modern die casters

worth their salt should be able to meet
precision tolerances.

• But, we only sign up for Standard

Tolerances unless part performance
demands precision tolerances for particular
features.
 Normal Distribution

Wikipedia
 With a Normal Distribution
• Variable Behavior can be described with
statistics
• Average
N

x i
X i1
N
• Standard Deviation
N

 x  X 
2
i
 
2 i1
N
 Improving Capability
• To improve CPK capability (quality)
either:
– Move X closer to the nominal – the
target dimension or,
– Reduce variabilty – reduce σ.
 Improving Capability
• Moving X closer to nominal can be
done by changing the casting die
steel. We build the die steel safe so
this can be done without welding.
 Improving Capability
• Reducing dimensional variability is
not so easy. To reduce variability we
need to reduce process variability or
find a robust parameter combination
that reduces variabilty (Taguchi).
 Improving Capability
• Taguchi experiments help reduce
variability and improve capabilities
with little or no investment.
 Shrink

• Aluminum like other metals shrinks

going from a super heated liquid (at
1200 deg F) to a solid at room
temperature (70 deg F.)

• The average shrink for aluminum die

casting is .006 inch per inch.
 Shrink

• However, due to the unique

geometries of each casting, shrink
may not be equal across the casting.
Shrink may be more in some areas
and less in others.

• To make matters worse, casting

dimensions change with as the
casting ages.
Shrinkage Variation
 Shrink

• Dealing with shrink variation can be

a challenge in meeting CPK
(capability) demands.

• Experienced and talented engineers

are needed to make the best calls for
die corrections to deal with shrink.
Draft (Standard)
Draft (Precision)
 Linear Dimensions
• Linear Tolerance = Process + Tooling
 Linear Dimensions

• Linear Dimensions can vary with

casting process variation:
– Metal temperature
– Cycle time, momentary stops
– Die lube spray
– Cooling water flow and temperature,
etc.
 Linear Dimensions

• Standard Tolerance = 0.001” +

0.001” x dimension.

• Precision Tolerance = 0.0005” +

0.0005” x dimension.
Parting Line Tolerances
 Parting Line Tolerance Factors
• Die shut off - square die, square
machine, locking force, shot
pressure, flash control

• Uneven cooling, thermal variation,

and differential die expansion

• Good thermal design, along with a

square die in a square machine can
reduce tolerances across parting line.
Parting Line Dimensions
Slide to Cavity Dimensions
Parting Line Shift
Guide Pin Registration

Thermal Expansion - 6.33 x 10-6 in/F/in

Guide Pin Parting Line Shift
Guide Blocks
 Slide to Cavity Dimensions

• Slides can be difficult to cool causing

expansion. Designing shut offs
accounting for thermal expansion is
not so easy and is difficult to predict.

• Need to start with .002 slide lock

preload. However, this can change
with relative thermal expansion of
die components at running
equalibrium.
Guide Blocks
Guide Block Parting Line Shift
 Leader Pins versus Guide Blocks

• Guide blocks provide superior

registration between cover and
ejector halves.
• Chances of die lockup are minimal
with guide blocks.
• Dies for 600 ton machines and over
should have guide blocks and not
leader pins.
Flatness
 Flatness Factors
• Casting geometry and internal
stresses have a lot to do with
flatness. Would ribs help make a
flatter part? Would casting uniform
wall stock help?
• Shut off quality. Flash left on die.
• Solder, undercuts, small draft angles,
long hold times producing drags
warping the part upon ejection.
 Flatness
• Standard Tolerance = Largest
Dimension x 0.003” – 0.001”

• Precision Tolerance = Largest

Dimension x 0.0015” – 0.0005”

• But flatness tolerances are dependent on

the geometry of the part, die design,
machine squareness, process stability, etc.
Die Warpage
 Die Warpage
• The more uniform
the die, the more
uniform the
temperatures.
• The thicker the die
the better for
warpage.
 Die Warpage
• Morale:
– Do a thermal
analysis and
follow NADCA
cooling
guidelines
– Better yet
simulate
thermally
– Build robust dies
Parting Lines & Cavity Orientation

• Parting Line Considerations

– Metal fill pattern
– Customer requirements
– Trim operations
– Slides / Cores
– Ejection
– Cavities
 Steel Safe Strategy

• Avoid welding if possible. Welding

weakens the die and shortens die
life.

• Build dies that are steel safe

– Outside Dimensions – Small die
dimensions
– Inside Dimensions – Large die
dimensions
Dimension Example
Book 2 Gating & Process
Planning
 Gating

• Gating design has everything to do

with die performance and company
profit.

• If you do one good thing in your die

casting life – learn gating.

• And just don't learn gating – become

a master at gating.
 Gating

• We will spend Day 3 on Gating.

Today we will skim Gating highlights.

• Process and gating issues are

integral. We need to know process
when we design gating.
 Gating Objectives

• Fill the cavity before the metal

freezes.

• Fill the cavity with atomized metal

flowing through the ingates.

• Deliver the metal to each casting

section in proportion to each
section's volume.

• Provide for a way for air to escape

from each section.
 Gating Objectives

• Provide for decreasing delivery

runner area from the biscuit to the
ingates.

• Design runners with smooth turns.

• Design the gating within the power

and capabilities of the die casting
machine.
Decide on Gate Placement

Visualize & Plan the Metal Flow

Parting Lines & Cavity Orientation
Parting Lines & Cavity Orientation
Parting Lines & Cavity Orientation
 Porosity

• Porosity – a common die casting

problem.

• Porosity standards over the years

have become tighter. Always
question porosity requirements; are
the print porosity standards
necessary for the part to function?

• Are the porosity requirements

realistic and possible?
 Porosity

• Porosity: A lot of time and die casting

effort can be spent reducing or
moving porosity, only to find that
porosity does not matter to the
function of the part. Porosity needs
to be discussed at the Design Review
– what makes the part work and
what is needed relative to porosity.
 Porosity

• Die casting porosity originates

two sources: gas porosity and
shrink porosity. Dealing with
each type of porosity requires
different actions.

.
 Processs & Die Design

• Note the relationship between die

design and die casting process. In
order to design dies correctly we
need to be able to relate to the
casting process.

• Done correctly the engineered die

casting process will be within 10% of
the die casting process that is
actually used.
 Porosity
• Gas Porosity
– Slow shot length and velocity
– Fast shot velocity
– Flow pattern
– Venting
– Die spray and tip lubricant
– Vacuum

• Shrinkage Porosity
– Intensification pressure, start, rise time
– Neutral neutral axis
 Gas Porosity

• Venting
– Let the cavity air out
– During the slow shot phase
– During the fast shot phase
 Venting Principles

– Air is compressible. The lower the

venting pressure the better.

– Maximum vent air speed = 8000

inch/second (asymptote). Conservative
design speed = 4000 in/sec.

– Minimum vent depth = .010 inch. With

less than .010 vent depth flow
decreases.
 Gas Porosity

• Garber's critical slow shot velocity

developed with water models.

– VCSS = 22.8 x (1 – SF%) x √Dp

 Shot End – Profile
• But best SSV is determined by a Taguchi
experiment. Surround Garber's book value
with higher/lower levels. Use specific
gravity as the quality characteristic.
 Accelerated Slow Shot

ERC NSM C 94-04

 Gas Porosity

• Die lube spray is primarily water. The less

the die lube spray the better for porosity
and for die life.

– The objective is to minimize spray with

good thermal design. We want to
remove the majority of the heat with
cooling channels, not with the die lube
spray.
 Gas Porosity

• Die lube spray is primarily water. The

less the die lube spray the better for
porosity .

– The ideal is to run a rich die lube mix of

20:1 to 40:1 with a short spray time of
1.5 to 3 seconds to minimize thermal
stress on the die.
 Gas Porosity

• Vacuum
– Helps reduce gas porosity.
– Allows for a lower shot pressure during
cavity fill.
– But vacuum needs proper setup that
works every hour, every shift, every
day. Two methods:
• Pull vacuum through a value,
• Pull vacuum through a freeze block.
 Die Spray
• Die spray heat removal is ineffective
in removing heat.
 Shrinkage Porosity

• Intensification

– Intensification distance is good for 20 x

ingate thickness. The thicker the ingate
the better.

– Not good for shrink feeding far away

from the ingate
 Shrinkage Porosity

• Neutral Thermal Axis

– The last area to solidify in a section

– Shrink porosity will occur on the neutral
thermal axis
– The question becomes can the neutral
thermal axis be moved in order to
improve capabilities?
Shrinkage Porosity
 Intensification Pressure

• Higher intensification
pressure can yield less
visible porosity, but it
will not move porosity.
Higher metal pressure
just makes the
porosity smaller.

*2001 Transaction Paper 073

 Intensification
• Intensification

• Intensification can shrink feed and reduce

porosity near the ingate but is less effective
away from the gate.

• Making the ingate thicker helps delay freezing

and improve shrink feeding.

• The intensified pressure, start point, and

rise time are process factors affecting
intensifier effectiveness are best determine by
experiment.
 Gating Considerations

• Cavity fill pattern

• Fill time
• Plunger size and machine capability
• Flow angles
• Ingate velocity
• Gate area and dimensions
 Gating

• Atomization
• Outgates and overflows
• Vents and vacuum runners
• Runner system
• Planned shot profile
 Gating

• Gating encompasses the entire die

casting process. That is why every
engineer, toolmaker, die casting
supervisor, and process technician
should learn gating.
 Cavity Fill Pattern

• Slides
• Avoid interrupted fill
• Avoid unbalanced fill
• Use shortest flow distance
 Cavity Fill Pattern

• Follow product
features
• Gate location
• Feed critical areas
 Cavity Fill Pattern
• Overflows/vents at last points of fill

• Lay Flat Technique

 Maximum Cavity Fill Time Formula

t = k x (Ti – Tf + S x Z)
(Tf – Td) x Th

t = cavity fill time

K = die steel constant
Ti = metal injection temperature
Tf = metal minimum flow temperature
S = percent solids during fill
Z = percent solids factor
Td = die temperature
Th = casting thickness
 Maximum Cavity Fill Time Formula

• Percent Solids
0-10 Chrome finished casting
10-20 Painted casting – class A
20-30 Painted casting – class B
30-40 Functional casting
40-50 Pressure tight casting

• Low metal temperature for low

porosity & pressure tight castings
Temperature Loss in Transit

Filling
Ladle Pour Shot
Sleeve

30% fraction
solid temperature
 Ingate Velocity

• Ingate velocity and atomization as a

function of fill distance.
– Vgate = Vgate x FDF

Fill Distance Fill Distance Factor

0-2” 1.25
2-5” 1.50
5-9” 1.75
9-14” 2.00
14-20” 2.25
20”+ 2.50
 PQ^2 Method

• P is metal pressure (not hydraulic

pressure.
• Q is metal flow rate.
• Ga is ingate area.
• Gv is ingate velocity.

• The governing relationship for fluids is

Bournoulli's equation. The the higher the
metal pressure, the higher the flow rate
through the ingate.
 Bernoulli's Equation

2
Density   Q 
Pm =    
 772  apparent Ga  Cd 

Metal Density (lb/in3)

Aluminum .093
Zinc .25
Magnesium .063
 Bernoulli's Equation

• Metal pressure required to drive the

metal through the ingate is a function
of the flow rate, metal density,
apparent ingate area, and the
discharge coefficient.

•Pm is Metal Pressure (lb/in²)

•Density is metal density (lb/in3)

 Bernoulli's Equation

• Cd is dimensionless and is called the

coefficient of discharge. It is a
measure of hydraulic efficiency.

• Q (in^3/sec) is the metal flow rate.

The higher the flow rate, the less the
cavity fill time.

• Ga is the apparent gate area (in2)

 Bernoulli's Equation

• From Bournoulli’s equation we observe:

– The higher the flow rate (Q),
the higher the pressure (P),
– The higher the density,
the higher the pressure (P).
– The larger the apparent ingate (Ga),
the lower the pressure (P).
– The more efficient the hydraulic design
(Cd), the lower the pressure.

• Note that (Q / Ga,app) = Gv

PQ^2 Machine Performance Line
PQ^2 Req'd Pressure to Atomize
PQ^2 Die Performance Line
 Calculate Gate Area & Dimensions

•Q=V/t
• G a = Q / Gv
• G l = G a / Gt
 Book 2 – Design Runner System

• Fan Runners

• Tangential Runners

• Wedge Runners
 Fan Runners
• Fan Runners with decreasing areas
from beginning to end can be two
forms:

– Curve sided fan with curved sides

and constant depth decrease, or

– Straight sided fan with straight

sides and curved depths.
 Fan Runners

• 45 deg maximum
flow angle
• Fan length > gate
width
• Minimum 10% area
decrease through
fan
 Tangential Runners
• Directed flow with calculated flow angle
• Actual gate velocity > apparent gate
velocity
 Wedge Runners

• Wedge runners have straight sides

and a constant decreasing depth.
They are not hydraulically correct.
They see limited use in feeding
metal to starved areas.
 Design Runner System

• Design for fluid flow efficiency

– Constantly reduce runners areas
from biscuit to ingates
– Do not use blind runners
– Design with smooth turns
– Design smooth section thickness
transitions
 Design Vents

• Design for inefficiency, rob the metal

of kinetic energy and thermal energy
to get the metal to stop before it flys
out of the die.
– Blind runners
– Right angle turns
– Go from small to big to small areas
Design Runner System
Design Vents and Overflows
Use an Organized Spread Sheet
 Plan Shot Profile

• Pour Hole Velocity

• Critical Slow Shot Velocity
• Fast Shot Start Position
• Fill Velocity (Pv) = Q / Pa
• Intensification Start Position
• Intensification Stroke
Plan Shot Profile
Plan Shot Profile
Example
Maximum Cavity Fill Time
Example
Minimum Ingate Velocity
PQ^2 Machine Performance Line
Example: Flow Rate & Metal Pressure
Example: PQ^2 Diagram
Example: PQ^2 Diagram
Example: Gating Sections
Example: Runners Feeding Sections
Example: Overflows & Vents
Example: Predicted Shot Profile
Book 3 - Thermal Design
and Control
 Overview
The die casting die is a heat sink.

The die absorbs heat from the molten

metal causing the metal to freeze and
to make the casting. The better the
die can absorb heat the better.
 Overview
The die casting die has cooling
channels to carry the absorbed heat
away with a coolant.

The better the die's cooling system

transfers the heat the higher the
btu/hr transferred and the higher the
shot rate possible.
 Overview

There is a saying. “Gating” makes the

part; “Thermal Design” makes the
money.
 Overview

Go to EC-415, Die Heating and

Cooling

Mike Ward, November, 2013