17-08-2020

VIDEO DISCLAIMER

The information contained in the multimedia

content “DEFECTS IN CASTING AND INSPECTION OF
CASTINGS” posted by Thapar Institute of
Engineering & Technology is purely for education
(class teaching) and informational purpose only and
not for any commercial use.

UME 505: MANUFACTURING TECHNOLOGY

DEFECTS IN CASTING
AND
INSPECTION OF CASTINGS

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Defects in Casting
• Misruns: Theses are castings that solidify before
completely filling the mold cavity. Typical causes
include

fluidity of the molten metal is insufficient.

pouring temperature is too low.

pouring is done too slowly.

Cross section of the mold cavity is too thin.
• Cold Shuts: It occur when two portions of the
metal flow together but there is a lack of fusion
between them due to premature freezing. Its
causes are similar to those of a misrun.
• Cold Shots: It results from splattering during
pouring, causing the formation of solid globules of
metal that become entrapped in the casting.
Pouring procedures and gating system designs
that avoid splattering can prevent this defect.
UME 505: MANUFACTURING TECHNOLOGY

• Shrinkage cavity: It is a depression in the surface or

an internal void in the casting, caused by
solidification shrinkage that restricts the amount of
molten metal available in the last region to freeze. It
often occurs near the top of the casting, in which
case it is referred to as a “pipe.” The problem can
often be solved by proper riser design.
• Microporosity: It consists of a network of small
voids distributed throughout the casting caused by
localized solidification shrinkage of the final molten
metal in the dendritic structure. The defect is
usually associated with alloys, because of the
protracted manner in which freezing occurs in these
metals.
• Pinholes: It is caused by release of gases during
pouring, consist of many small gas cavities formed at
or slightly below the surface of the casting.
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• Hot tearing: It occurs when the casting is restrained

from contraction by an unyielding mold during the
final stages of solidification or early stages of cooling
after solidification. In sand casting and other
expendable-mold processes, it is prevented by
compounding the mold to be collapsible. In
permanent-mold processes, hot tearing is reduced by
removing the part from the mold immediately after
solidification.
• Sand blow: It is a defect consisting of a balloon-shaped
gas cavity caused by release of mold gases during
pouring. It occurs at or below the casting surface near
the top of the casting. Low permeability, poor venting,
and high moisture content of the sand mold are the
usual causes.
• Mold crack: It occurs when mold strength is
insufficient, and a crack develops, into which liquid
metal can seep to form a “fin” on the final casting.

UME 505: MANUFACTURING TECHNOLOGY

• Sand wash: It is an irregularity in the surface of the casting

that results from erosion of the sand mold during pouring,
and the contour of the erosion is formed in the surface of the
final cast.
• Scabs: They are rough areas on the surface of the casting due
to encrustations of sand and metal. It is caused by portions of
the mold surface flaking off during solidification and
becoming imbedded in the casting surface.
• Penetration: It refers to a surface defect that occurs when the
fluidity of the liquid metal is high, and it penetrates into the
sand mold or sand core. Upon freezing, the casting surface
consists of a mixture of sand grains and metal. Harder
packing of the sand mold helps to alleviate this condition.
• Mold shift: It refers to a defect caused by a sidewise
displacement of the mold cope relative to the drag, the result
of which is a step in the cast product at the parting line.
• Core shift: It is the core that is displaced, and the
displacement is usually vertical. Core shift and mold shift are
caused by buoyancy of the molten metal.
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The range of surface roughnesses obtained in various processes ;

UME 505: MANUFACTURING TECHNOLOGY

Inspection of Castings
• Foundry inspection procedures include
a)visual inspection to detect obvious defects such as misruns,
cold shuts, and severe surface flaws;
b)dimensional measurements to ensure that tolerances have met
c)metallurgical, chemical, physical, and other tests concerned
with the inherent quality of the cast metal.

• Tests in category (c) include:

i. pressure testing to locate leaks in the casting;
ii. radiographic methods, magnetic particle tests, the use of
fluorescent penetrants, and supersonic testing to detect
either surface or internal defects in the casting;
iii. mechanical testing to determine properties such as tensile
strength and hardness.

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Liquid Penetrants
• In this technique, fluids are applied to the surfaces of the part and allowed
to penetrate into cracks, seams, and pores.
• By capillary action, the penetrant can seep into cracks as small as 0.1 μm
in width.
• Two common types of liquids used are (a) fluorescent penetrants, which
fluoresce under ultraviolet light and (b) visible penetrants, using dyes
(usually red) that appear as bright outlines on the workpiece surface.
• The liquid-penetrants method can be used to detect a variety of surface
defects.
• The equipment is simple and easy to use, can be portable, and is less costly
to operate than those of other methods. However, the method can detect
only defects that are open to the surface or are external.

UME 505: MANUFACTURING TECHNOLOGY

Magnetic-particle Inspection
• This technique consists of placing fine ferromagnetic
particles on the surface of the part. The particles can be
applied either dry or in a liquid carrier, such as water or oil.
• When the part is magnetized with a magnetic field, a
discontinuity (defect) on the surface causes the particles to
gather visibly.
• The defect then becomes a magnet, due to flux leakages
where the magnetic-field lines are interrupted by the
defect.
• This, in turn, creates a small-scale N –S pole at either side
of the defect as field lines exit the surface. The particles
generally take the shape and size of the defect.
• Subsurface defects also can be detected by this method,
provided that they are not too deep. Subsurface defects can
be detected best with DC.
• The magnetic-particle method can also be used on pure
ferromagnetic materials, but the parts have to be
demagnetized and cleaned after inspection. The equipment
may be portable or stationary.
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Ultrasonic Inspection
• In this technique, an ultrasonic beam travels through the part, an internal
defect (such as a crack) interrupts the beam and reflects back a portion of
the ultrasonic energy.
• The amplitude of the energy reflected and the time required for its return
indicate the presence and location of any flaws in the workpiece.
• The ultrasonic waves are generated by transducers, called search units or
probes, are available in various types and shapes.
• Transducers operate on the principle of piezoelectricity, using materials
such as quartz, lithium sulfate, or various ceramics.
• Most inspections are carried out at a frequency of 1–25 MHz. Couplants,
such as water, oil, glycerin, and grease, are used to transmit the ultrasonic
waves from the transducer to the test piece.

UME 505: MANUFACTURING TECHNOLOGY

Acoustic Methods
• The acoustic-emission technique
detects signals like high-frequency stress
waves generated by the workpiece itself
during plastic deformation, crack
initiation and propagation, phase
transformation, and abrupt • The principle is basically same as that
reorientation of grain boundaries.
• Bubble formation during the boiling of a
liquid and friction and wear of sliding
interfaces are other sources of acoustic
signals.
• Acoustic-emission inspection is usually
performed by elastically stressing the
part or structure, such as bending a
beam, applying torque to a shaft, or
internally pressurizing a vessel.
• Sensors, typically consisting of
piezoelectric ceramic elements, detects
acoustic emissions. This method is
particularly effective for continuous
surveillance of load bearing structures.
UME 505: MANUFACTURING TECHNOLOGY
• The acoustic-impact technique
consists of tapping the surface of an
object, listening to the signals produced
and analyzing them to detect
discontinuities and flaws.
employed when tapping walls, desktops
or countertops at various locations with
a finger or a hammer and listening to
the sound emitted.
• After listening to the noise and
analyzing the difference in sound due to
solid and voids, crack detection can be
done.
• The acoustic-impact technique is easy
to perform and can be instrumented
and automated.

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Radiography
• Conventional Radiography involves X-
Ray inspection to detect such internal
flaws as cracks and porosity. The
technique detects the difference in
density within the part.
• On an X-ray image, the metal
surrounding the defect is denser and
shows up lighter than the flaws.
• The source of radiation is generally an
X-ray tube, and a visible, permanent
image is made on a film or radiographic
paper.
• Digital Radiography is one of the
technique used in radiography.
• The film is replaced by a linear
array of detectors. The X-ray beam
is collimated into a fan beam and
the workpiece is moved vertically.
• The detectors digitally sample the
radiation and the data is stored in
the computer memory.
• The monitor than displays the
image as 2D image of the
workpiece.

UME 505: MANUFACTURING TECHNOLOGY

Performance

TYPE OF DEFECT LIQUID MAGNETIC RADIOGRAPHY ULTRASONIC

PENETRANT PARTICLE
BURST
COLD SHUT
CRACKS HAZ
INCLUSIONS
MICROSHRINKAGE
GAS POROSITY
STRESS COROSSION
HOT TEARS

BAD MODERATE GOOD

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• Groover, M.P., Principles of Modern Manufacturing, John Wiley

and Sons (2011).
• Kalpakjian, S. and Schmid, S.R., Manufacturing Engineering and
Technology, 4th ed., Pearson Education (2001).

UME 505: MANUFACTURING TECHNOLOGY

THANK YOU

UME 505: MANUFACTURING TECHNOLOGY