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Topic 3: Classification, Properties & Application of White & Malleable Cast Iron
Topic 3: Classification, Properties & Application of White & Malleable Cast Iron
(FFT)
Technology of Ferrous Casting
Topic 3: Classification, Properties & Application of White &
Malleable Cast Iron
WHITE CAST IRON
White CIs are hard and brittle and cannot be machined easily. White CI is the only member of
the CI family in which carbon is present only as carbides. Because of the absence of graphite, it
has a light appearance. The presence of different carbides makes white CIs extremely hard and
abrasion resistant, but also very brittle. The microstructure of white CI contains massive
cementite (white) and pearlite. White cast iron derives its name from the white, crystalline crack
surface observed when a casting fractures. Most white cast irons contain less than 4.3% carbon,
with low silicon contents to inhibit the precipitation of carbon as graphite.
It is used in applications where abrasion resistance is important and ductility not required, such
as liners for cement mixers, ball mills, certain types of drawing dies and extrusion nozzles. White
cast iron is generally considered unweldable. The absence of any ductility that can accommodate
welding-induced stresses in the base metal and heat affected zone adjacent to the weld results in
cracking during cooling after welding.
There is also a third group of high alloy white cast irons. This group comprises the 25 % or 28 %
Cr white irons, which may contain other alloying element additions of Mo and/or Ni up to 1.5 %.
The nickel-chromium white cast irons are also usually classified as Ni-Hard types 1 to 4.
Ni – Cr white cast irons are also known as Ni hard irons. These white cast irons are being
produced for over 50 years and are the oldest group of high alloy white cast iron of industrial
importance. Ni hard white cast irons are very cost effective materials for use in crushing and
grinding. These are martensitic white cast irons where Ni is the primary alloying element. Ni at
levels of 3 % to 5 % is effective in suppressing the transformation of the austenite matrix to
pearlite, thus ensuring that a hard martensitic structure (usually containing significant amounts of
retained austenite) is developed upon cooling in the mould. Cr percentage in these alloy white
cast irons are at levels ranging from 1.4 % to 4 %, to ensure that the irons solidify carbidic, that
is, to counteract the graphitizing effect of Ni.
The optimum composition of a Ni-Cr white cast iron depends on the properties needed for the
service conditions and the dimensions and weight of the casting. Abrasion resistance is generally
a function of the bulk hardness and the volume of carbide in the microstructure. There are four
types of Ni- Cr white cast irons.
The first type is called ‘Class I type A’ or ‘Ni-Hard 1’. This type of white cast iron is used when
the principal requirement is abrasion resistance and resistance to impact loading is of secondary
importance.
The second type is called ‘Class I type B’ or ‘Ni-Hard 2’. This type of white cast iron has higher
toughness because of less carbide and is used in those areas where repeated impact is there.
The third type is called ‘Class J type C’ or Ni-Hard 3’. It is of special grade that has a Ni-Cr
alloy composition. It is used for chill casting, specialized sand casting processes, and producing
grinding balls and slugs.
The fourth type is called ‘Class I type D’ or Ni- Hard 4. It is a modified Ni-Cr iron that contains
higher levels of Cr, ranging from 7 % to 11 %, and increased level of Ni, ranging from 5 % to 7
%. Content of C in the iron is varied based on the properties needed for the intended service.
APPLICATION:- White iron is too brittle for use in many structural components, but with good
hardness and abrasion resistance and relatively low cost, it finds use in such applications as the
wear surfaces (impeller and volute) of slurry pumps, shell liners and lifter bars in ball mills and
autogenous grinding mills, balls and rings in coal pulverisers, and the teeth of a backhoe's
digging bucket (although cast medium-carbon martensitic steel is more common for this
application).
Malleable iron is cast as white iron, the structure being a metastable carbide in a pearlitic
matrix. Through an annealing heat treatment, the brittle structure as first cast is transformed into
the malleable form. Carbon agglomerates into small roughly spherical aggregates of graphite
leaving a matrix of ferrite or pearlite according to the exact heat treatment used. Three basic
types of malleable iron are recognized within the casting industry: blackheart malleable iron,
whiteheart malleable iron and pearlitic malleable iron.
APPLICATION:- It is often used for small castings requiring good tensile strength and the
ability to flex without breaking (ductility). Uses include electrical fittings, hand tools, pipe
fittings, washers, brackets, fence fittings, power line hardware, farm equipment, mining
hardware, and machine parts.
Before the widespread use of malleable iron in everyday items, heavy-duty bench vises were
made from cast steel. The use of cast steel has rapidly declined in most application due to its
poor castability, and hence high-quality cast vises (as opposed to forged ones), among other tools
and machine elements, are now almost exclusively made of malleable Iron.