Casting 1

CASTING
General Manufacturing Processes Engr.-20.2710

Instructor - Sam Chiappone
The Industry
 14 million pounds of castings are produced every
year
 The most common materials cast are gray iron,
ductile iron, aluminum alloys, and copper alloys
 35% of the market is in automotive and light truck
manufacturing
 Castings are used in applications ranging from
agriculture to railroad equipment and heating and
refrigeration
GMP-20.271
Rensselaer Polytechnic Chiappone
Institute
. . . Of the marvelous mechanism by which this great picture was disclosed to
men it is enough to say that its cost was $400,000, that the axle on which the
beam turns weighs 140,000 pounds and is the largest piece of steel ever cast in
one piece. The entire weight of the wheel and its mechanism is [4,800] tons as
is moved by two engines of 1,000-horse power each. Over 2,100 persons may
make the trip at one time.
The History of the Ferris Wheel Pittsburgh Commercial Gazette,
17 June 1893
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Process Steps
 Six basic steps of casting
– 1. Mold cavity is produced having the desired shape and
size of the part
» Takes shrinkage into account
» Single-use or permanent mold
– 2. Melting process
» Provides molten material at the proper temperature
– 3. Pouring technique
» Molten metal is poured into the mold at a proper rate to ensure that
erosion and or defects are minimized
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Process Steps
 4. Solidification process
– Controlled solidification allows the product to have desired
properties
– Mold should be designed so that shrinkage is controlled
 5. Mold removal
– The casting is removed from the mold
» Single-use molds are broken away from the casting
» Permanent molds must be designed so that removal does not
damage the part
 6. Cleaning, finishing, and inspection operations
– Excess material along parting lines may have to be
machined
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Casting Terms
 Pattern- approximate duplicate of the part to be cast
 Molding material- material that is packed around the
pattern to provide the mold cavity
 Flask- rigid frame that holds the molding aggregate
 Cope- top half of the pattern
 Drag- bottom half of the pattern
 Core- sand or metal shape that is inserted into the
mold to create internal features
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Casting Terms
 Mold cavity- combination of the mold material and
cores
 Riser-additional void in the mold that provides
additional metal to compensate for shrinkage
 Gating system- network of channels that delivers the
molten metal to the mold
 Pouring cup- portion of the gating system that
controls the delivery of the metal
 Sprue- vertical portion of the gating system
 Runners- horizontal channels
 Gates- controlled entrances
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Casting Terms
 Parting line- separates the cope and drag
 Draft- angle or taper on a pattern that allows for
easy removal of the casting from the mold
 Casting- describes both the process and the
product when molten metal is poured and
solidified
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Casting Terms
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The Solidification Process
 Molten material is allowed to solidify into the final
shape
 Casting defects occur during solidification
– Gas porosity
– Shrinkage
 Two stages of solidification
– Nucleation
– Growth
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Nucleation
 Stable particles form from the liquid metal
 Occurs when there is a net release of energy from the
liquid
 Undercooling is the difference between the melting
point and the temperature at which nucleation occurs
 Each nucleation event produces a grain
– Nucleation is promoted (more grains) for enhanced
material properties
– Inoculation or grain refinement is the process of
introducing solid particles to promote nucleation
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Grain Growth
 Occurs as the heat of fusion is extracted from the
liquid
 Direction, rate, and type of growth can be controlled
– Controlled by the way in which heat is removed
– Rates of nucleation and growth control the size and shape
of the crystals
– Faster cooling rates generally produce finer grain sizes
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Cast Structure Cooling Zones
 Three distinct regions or zones
– Chill zone
» Rapid nucleation that occurs when the molten metal comes into contact
with the cold walls of the mold
» Forms a narrow band of randomly oriented crystals on the surface of a
casting
– Columnar zone
» Rapid growth perpendicular to the casting surface
» Long and thin
» Highly directional
– Equiaxed zone
» Crystals in the interior of the casting
» Spherical, randomly oriented crystals
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Cast Structure
Figure 11-5 Internal structure of a cast

metal bar showing the chill zone at the
periphery, columnar grains growing toward
the center, and a central shrinkage cavity.
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Process Factors
 Molten metal problems
– Reaction of the metal and its environment can lead to
poor quality castings. Oxygen and molten metal react
to form “slag” or “dross.” These impurities can
become trapped in castings to impair surface finish,
machinability, or reduce the mechanical properties of
the castings.
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Process Factors
 Fluidity
– Molten metal must flow then freeze into the desired shape.
Incorrect flow characteristics can result in “short” shots,
incorrect part tolerances, cracks in castings, voids, etc.
 Gating System
– Correct design of the gating system is a must. Gating
system controls the speed, rate, and delivery of molten
material into the mold cavity.
– Example: PIM general rule is gate depth is equal to 1/3
its width
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Process Factors
 Patterns
– Shrinkage allowance
– Typical allowances
» Cast iron 0.8-1.0%
» Steel 1.5-2.0%
» Aluminum 1.0-1.3%
» Magnesium 1.0-1.3%
» Brass 1.5%
 Amount of draft
» Size and shape of pattern
» Depth of mold cavity
» Method used to withdraw pattern
» Pattern material
» Mold material
» Molding procedure
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Process Factors
 Finish material allowance
 Final dimensional accuracy of the casting
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Design Considerations
Parting Lines
 Location and orientation of the parting line is
important to castings
 Parting line can affect:
– Number of cores
– Method of supporting cores
– Use of effective and economical gating
– Weight of the final casting
– Final dimensional accuracy
– Ease of molding
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Parting Lines
Figure 11-17 (Right) Elimination of a dry-
sand core by a change in part design.
Figure 11-16 (Left) Elimination of a core by

changing the location or orientation of the
parting plane.
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Draft and Allowances
Figure 11-14 Two-part mold showing the parting

line and the incorporation of a draft allowance on
vertical surfaces.
Figure 11-15 Various allowances

incorporated into a casting pattern.
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Sections
Figure 11-19 (Above) Typical guidelines for

section change transitions in castings.
Figure 11-20 a) The “hot spot” at section r2 is

cause by intersecting sections. B) An interior fillet
and exterior radius lead to more uniform thickness
and more uniform cooling.
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Expendable Molding Process
 Process for class discussion
– Sand
– Investment
– Lost-Foam
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Sand Casting Steps
 Drag portion of pattern is placed in flask
– Types of patterns
» One piece, split, match plate, and loose piece
» Materials
» Wood
» Metal
» Plastics
» 3D printing
» Stereolithography (SLA)
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Sand Casting Steps
Figure 12-2 (Above) Single-piece

pattern for a pinion gear.
Figure 12-4 Split pattern, showing the two

sections together and separated. The light-
colored portions are core prints.
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Sand Casting Steps
Figure 12-5 Match-plate pattern used to

produce two identical parts in a single flask. Figure 12-6 Cope-and-drag pattern for
(Left) Cope side; (right) drag side. (Note: producing two heavy parts. (Left) Cope
The views are opposite sides of a single- section; (right) drag section. (Note: These
pattern board. are two separate pattern boards.)
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Sand Casting Steps
 Drag is packed with sand
– Sand characteristics
» Refractoriness- Ability to withstand high temperatures
» Cohesiveness- Ability to retain given shape
» Permeability- Ability to allow gasses to escape
» Collapsibility-Ability to allow metal to shrink and free the
casting
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Sand Casting Steps
 Mold turned over
– Insert sprue and riser
– Pack with sand
 Flask is separated - pattern removed
 Gates and runners cut into mold
 Similar process steps performed on cope
 Cope & drag reassembled
– Possibly a core is added
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Sand Casting Steps
 Molten metal poured into mold
 Casting solidifies
 Mold opened……..distorted
 Part removed
 Post Processing
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Sand Casting Steps
1 2 3
4 5 6
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http://www.foundryonline.com/ Rensselaer Polytechnic Chiappone
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Sand Casting Steps
Figure 12-1 Sequential steps in
making a sand casting. a) A
pattern board is placed between
the bottom (drag) and top (cope)
halves of a flask, with the bottom
side up. b) Sand is then packed
into the bottom or drag half of the
mold. c) A bottom board is
positioned on top of the packed
sand, and the mold is turned
over, showing the top (cope) half
of pattern with sprue and riser
pins in place. d) The upper or
cope half of the mold is then
packed with sand.
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Mold Processing Methods
 Hand ramming - low production
 Jolt and squeeze machines - medium to high
production
 Vertical parted flaskless molding machines - high
production
 Pit molding - large parts example 36” water valves
Ross Mfg. Valve Co.
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Sand Casting Advantages &
Disadvantages
 Disadvantages
– Part tolerances +/- .01 - .032”
– Poor surface finish
– Limited design freedom
– In hand ramming, process can be labor intensive
– Single use of mold
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Sand Casting Advantages &
Disadvantages
 Advantages
– General tooling costs are low
– Sand in most cases can be reused in some form
– Can handle a wide variety of metals
– Relatively easy process to obtain net shape or near-net
shape
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Investment Casting
 Process steps
– Produce master pattern of desired casting
– Produce master die
– Produce wax patterns
– Assemble wax patterns on a common sprue sometimes
called a tree
– Coat “tree” with an initial investment material
– Vibrate to remove air and settle material around
patterns
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Investment Casting
 Process steps continued:
– Finish coat
– Allow investment to harden
– Fire investment to finish hardening process and melt our
wax patterns
– Preheat mold
– Pour molten metal into mold cavity
– Allow metal to solidify
– Remove castings
– Post processing
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http://www.flinthills.com/~ramsdale/EngZone/casting.htm
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Advantages & Disadvantages
 Advantages
– Wide variety of metals can be cast including high
temperature alloys
– Excellent surface finish
– Good dimensional accuracy (+/- .003” up to ¼”)
– Tooling cost average
– Complex shapes are possible
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Advantages & Disadvantages
 Disadvantages
– Price per unit costs can be high
– One mold per batch
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CASTING

General Manufacturing Processes Engr.-20.2710

Figure 11-5 Internal structure of a cast

Figure 11-16 (Left) Elimination of a core by

Figure 11-14 Two-part mold showing the parting

Figure 11-15 Various allowances

Figure 11-19 (Above) Typical guidelines for

Figure 11-20 a) The “hot spot” at section r2 is

Figure 12-2 (Above) Single-piece

Figure 12-4 Split pattern, showing the two

Figure 12-5 Match-plate pattern used to

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