TABLE OF CONTENT

1.0 Title
2.0 Objective(s)
3.0) Introduction (background
& theory)
4.0 Apparatus
4.1 Industrial Apparatus
5.0 Experimental Procedure
6.0 Results & Data Analysis
7.0 Discussion of Results
8.0 Conclusion
9.0 Recommendation
10.0 Refferences
1.0 TITLE: ADVANCED MANUFACTURING (PRODUCT QUALITY)
EMD5M14 (GROUP 6)

2.0 OBJECTIVES
Developing advanced materials, evolving the supply chain
Implementing advanced controls
Understanding material properties and geometric accuracy
Developing new design concepts
Exploring next-generation systems to overcome technology barriers for manufacturing
Training next-generation engineers & scientist

3.0 INTRODUCTION
Additive Manufacturing (AM) is a process that to describe the technologies that build 3D
objects by adding layer-upon-layer of material, material can be anything whether it plastic, metal and
concrete. This technologies commonly using computer software that can sketch a 3D model for
example is Computer Aided Design software or CAD. The 3D object is fabricated begin went the
design in the CAD is finish,then the AM machine reads the data that come from the CAD file. It
fabricate the 3D object by adds successive layers of liquid, powder, sheet material or other, in a layer-
upon-layer fashion to fabricate a 3D object. The Addictive Manufacturing is not refer to one term of
manufacturing process it includes many technologies like 3D Printing, Rapid Prototyping (RP), Direct
Digital Manufacturing (DDM), layered manufacturing and additive fabrication.AM application is
limitless. Early use of AM in the form of Rapid Prototyping focused on preproduction visualization
models. Furthermore AM also not only focus on mechanical engineering, it also being used to
manufactured products in aircraft, dental restorations, medical implants, automobiles, and even
fashion products.
Nowadays, the uses of addictive manufacturing are increasing day by day and the
development change from rapid prototyping (RP) applications to rapid manufacturing (RM) of
high-performance products. The development of AM make it suitable to manufacture a complex
products with high quality.Thus, this will open the opportunity for innovative design. In fact there are
already an innovation that based on AM comprises nowadays areas of design such as lightweight
design (e.g. lattice and honeycomb structures, net-shaped parts), design for advanced functionality
(e.g. tools with conformal cooling channels) and design for optimized topology (e.g. biomimetic
structures).
As technology with great potentials and high production costs, AM has fascinating
potential for transforming of industrial sectors with high extra value, as it is the case with automotive
and aerospace industry, medicine, tool manufacturing and consumer goods production. Since the
product unit costs are unresponsive to production scale, AM technologies are suitable for
sophisticated products based on knowledge and creativity of skilled designers, opposite to the
conventional technologies, which favor low prices of mass production. The AM technologies require
skilled and innovative professionals in each step of product lifecycle, opening possibilities for
creation of new services and development of new business models. A great example is success of
Belgian company Materialize, which applied innovative technology and innovative, web-based,
business model to become world leader in delivery of 3D printing services.
Metal Additive Manufacturing offers the possibility to produce complex parts without
the design constraints of traditional manufacturing routes. There are many and variety of material
that can be used for metal addictive manufacturing and it is continuously expanding day by day in
the industries. They usually used material like stainless steels, aluminium, nickel, cobaltchrome and
titanium alloys, but further compositions also considering composite formulations will be
developed. Moreover, it is often necessary to postprocess and finish additive manufactured in order
to achieve the necessary qualifications or improve properties such as surface quality, geometrical
accuracy and mechanical properties. The definition of heat treatments, machining and surface
finishing play a key role on the mechanical or functional performances of the final components and
often, in the case of additive manufactured parts, must be defined considering material and
geometries features. The exact definition of postprocessing treatments, in fact, can strongly
influence potentialities and final applications of metal components, on the basis of the mechanical
properties achievable.

THEORY

Vacuum casting

Vacuum casting is a rapid prototyping technology that allows the duplication of dozens of plastic
parts with the presence of the undercuts from a master model. The parts obtained are suitable for
assembly testing. This process uses the vacuum effect to inject the material into a silicone mould,
hence the alternative names silicone moulding and vacuum casting. Therefore, unlike other
technologies, it allows the creation of flexible and smooth parts.

The principle of vacuum casting or duplication.

The procedure of vacuum casting is a type of low-pressure vacuum injection manufacturing, or

vacuum duplication. The silicone mould is used to inject the material inside the mould. This method
makes it possible to obtain multiple parts from a single mould. Therefore, results in significant
economies of scale. However, the mould only can be used in limited numbers of times. This problem
depends on the quality of the mould and the geometry of the parts.

Furthermore, to remove the air from the material and prevent the formation of air bubbles, a vacuum
machine is use. All the defect need to be remove because that would make the parts fragile.
 The operation of vacuum casting

In the first step, a model master is produced into which the silicone is poured to obtain a mould. In
the second step, the impression of this silicone mould is filled using polyurethane resins by means of a
specific vacuum casting machine to obtain the desired parts. The process must have high reliability,
thus the vacuum equipment must have high performances, and the die and shot assembly must be
tightly sealed .It must be possible to control the velocity and pressure profiles with high precision and
high reproducibility and in real time. Additional influencing factors such as molten metal feed, die
temperate control, plunger lubrication, and die spraying are also optimized to an extent crucial to
quality.

The major steps in vacuum casting

First step: creating the silicone mould

A master part is made by stereo lithography, 3D printing or CNC machining.

This master part is placed in a chassis in which liquid silicone resin is poured.

Once the silicone has cured, the silicone is cut along the separation plan, and the master part is
removed from the mould.

Second step: production of series parts

Once the silicone mould is replaced in the machine, the selected material is then injected under a
vacuum.

The resin is then dried. Once cured, the mould is opened to remove the finished part.

Once the parts have been produced, it is possible to add finishes such as overmoulding and additions
of inserts.
4.0 APPARATUS

APPARATUS PURPOSE
1. To be used as box

Figure 1 Sheet Metal

2. Ruler Used to measure the size of product and the
sheet metal
3. Marker Used to mark the measurement of the
product on the sheet metal
4. To hold the product and to create a long
hole to allow the silicon flow into the mould

Figure 2Sticks
5. To hold back two sticks that was stick to the
product from attached the base of the box.

Figure 3Holder

6. A container to hold the mould when it was

poured.

Figure 4Plastic Beaker

7. To weigh the mass of mould

Figure 5 Scales
8. Used as silicon mould
 Figure 6 Essil 296 resin
9. Used as hardening

Figure 7Catalyst
10. Stirrer To stir the mixture of silicon and the
hardening
11. To mix the mixture in the container.
To bubble out the air from the mixture.

Figure 8 Vacuum casting

12. To cold the mixture in order to produce out
the mould.

Figure 9 Refrigerator

13. Black tape To compile every part of the box and

prevent the box from leaked.
14. To cut the sheet metal

Figure 10 Hydraulic cutting machine

15. To be pour in the silicon mould to produced
same product. The main characteristics of
the material is plastic which is light weight
from the original product.

Figure 11 Polyol
16. To harden the polyol

Figure 12 Isocyanate

17. To colour the mould

Figure 13 Coloring
18. To prevent the mould from stick to the box
and the silicon mould.

Figure 14 Silicon Spray

 4.1 INDUSTRIAL APPARATUS

APPARATUS DIFFERENCES
1. Laser cutting is a technology that uses a
laser to cut materials, and is typically used
for industrial manufacturing applications.
The machine was used because it can cut
the materials precisely to the dimension
measured.

While in our faculty used hydraulic cutting

machine which can cut the materials
unprecise this may due to some error occurs
or old.

Figure 1 Computer Numerical Control (CNC)

laser cutting machine
 2. Renishaw provide a full solution for vacuum
casting of plastics with arrange of machine,
from manual to high capacity computer
automated, for the economic production of
short run, end use parts and prototypes(up
to 50 parts from a single mould).

Renishaw Vacuum casting supply a full

range of resins to suit our application.

Compare to the belonging of faculty, the

size of the vacuum casting is smaller than
the industry. So, the mould will take a
Figure 2 Renishaw Vacuum Casting System
longer time to bubble out the air than the
Machine
industry.
3. This machine will support research into
functionality integrated composite
technologies. It was only focuses on
functionality integrated process
technologies for the preassembly of fibre
rein-forced plastic/metal hybrids in a large
scale.

Figure 3 Engel v-duo 3600 Injection The functionality of this machine is same as
Moulding Machine the injection moulding that was already in
the faculty that is produced product in a
large scale but affordable.

5.0 PROCEDURE

1. The length and base of the product was measured using ruler.
2. The measurement of the product was transfer on the sheet metal with adding the
measurement of each length and base with 20mm using the ruler.
3. With the measurement calculated the steel was cut by using hydraulic swing beam
shearing machine.
4. The steel which was cut into four pieces with different measurement was combined by
using black tape then produced a metal casting frame.
5. The mould was sprayed with silicon spray to avoid the silicon from stick to the mould.
6. The product was paste with white tape then two sticks of holder were prepared and
fixed by using hot glue gun as the holder of the product.
7. Two small wooden pieces was put at the centre in the box.
8. The product with the holder was put on the wooden pieces to provide some space
between the product and the base of the casting frame. A long stick was gunned with
hot glue gun at the holder to easy put out the product and the holder after the silicon
was harden.
9. The casting frame with the product and the holder in it were sprayed once again.
10. 0.3g of silicon is measured and added into a plastic beaker.
 11. 10% amount of hardening is also added into the silicon.
12. The silicon and hardening was mixed well for better mixture and outcome.
13. Turned on the vacuum casting then the silicon mixture was put in it. The pump button
was pressed initially to remove air bubble from the mixture. When the mixture seems
to flow out, slow button was then pressed until the pressure vacuum reading at the
middle of the reading, then the pump button was pressed alternate until the mixture no
longer flow. This process was to get rid of air in the mixture
14. For safety, while add and mix the silicone and hardening, hand gloves should be
wearing to prevent irritation.
15. The mixture of silicon and hardening was poured into the casting frame slowly and let
it flow naturally.
16. Then, the mould was put inside vacuum casting system again as the last step to make
sure that the mixture was free from the air bubbles.
17. After there are no changes, then the product was kept in the refrigerator for 2, 3 days to
let the mould harden but our group kept in the refrigerator for one week.
18. Next, product was taken out from the refrigerator and separated from the casting frame.
19. The silicon was cut open to the coloured parting line at the edge of the masking tape.
20. The master model and the rod removed from silicone and the silicone reassembled by
using staples.
21. A mixture of Polyol and Isocyanate with ratio of 3:5 is stirred for 30seconds
22. The colour is added to the mixture while stirred.
23. The mixture is poured immediately into the mould from the feed until it filled up to the
riser.
24. The mould is rest for 10minutes or more to harden.
25. The mixture is removed from the mould.
26. The feed and riser are removed from the product and the final product is obtained.

6.0 RESULTS
 Figure 1: ORIGINAL OBJECT

Figure 2: RESULT OF FIRST TRY

Figure 2: RESULT OF SECOND TRY

7.0 DISCUSSION

From the experiment that has been done, it can be describe about the procedure to make
a vacuum casting process. Firstly, the frames are cut into 5 different measurements using the
hydraulic swing beam shearing machine. The frame was combined by using the black tape.
The mixture of silicone and hardening was supposed to be added are 0.3 g of silicone and 0.3
g of hardening. But the error occurs while pouring the silicone which exceed become 0.4 g
while hardening 0.3 g. The mixtures are stirred well using stick. The mould was sprayed to
avoid the mould attached. The mould was put inside vacuum casting system to remove air in
the mixture. The step was repeated few times to ensure the air in the mixture are removed well.
When the mould is ready it was stored in the refrigerator for a week.
Next, the mould was hardened, the frame was remove from the mould. The mould was mark
by using marker and then was cut follow the mark. While cutting the mould the problem that
was face are difficult in cutting because the mould so hard and this cause the cutting pattern
was a bit swayed from the exactly mark. When the mould was finish cutting it took are while
to open the mould. The product was removed from the mould. A mixture of Polyol and
Isocyanate with ratio of 3:5 is stirred for 20 seconds. The caution for this mixture is no need to
mix or stir so long because the mixture can easily cold and hard. The mixture was poured into
the mould at one of the hole continuously and wait for the mixture harden at 15minute. For the
result there are a few of space not occupied with the mixture. There are three possibility which
are misrun, cold shut and cold shot. Misrun are when the liquid metal does not completely fill
the mould cavity, leaving an unfilled portion. Cold shut was happened when molten metal flow
comes into the cooler die surface and solidifies before complete filling of the mould.

8.0 CONCLUSION
From this experiment, we manage to achieve the objective of developing advanced materials,
evolving the supply chain which is important thing knowledge in order to handle the material and
machine. We also exploring next-generation systems to overcome technology barriers for
manufacturing in industry compared to the ability of manufacturing process from the machine that
already has in faculty. The experiment was carried out successfully but not really satisfied because the
final finishes was not produced as expected.
9.0 RECOMMENDATION

During the experiment, we found that the scale used was really difficult to read when we want to
weigh the mass of the silicon and hardening and the fluid to put in the silicon mould. To make sure
the scale is easily to read, we suggest that the staff may use a visible tape to cover the reading of the
scale from anything that can make the reading hardly to be read.
We also found that hydraulic cutting machine cannot cut the sheet metal precisely. Luckily, we have
use black tape to cover the box produced from sheet metal prevent it from peaked. In order to prevent
this problem, the staff should check on the student how they used it so that the sheet metal can be cut
precisely.

After the silicon mould was produced, we have difficulties to open the silicon mould. We think that
there might be another possible way to open the silicon mould which is less simple and fast. We may
come up with another solution later after doing some research about overcome this problem.

10.0 REFFERENCES