Different types of Major Casting Process

1. Expendable Mould
a) Permanent Pattern ( Sand casting)
b) Expendable Pattern ( Investment Casting)
2. Permanent Mould
a) Gravity Die Casting
b) Pressure Die Casting
Sand Casting Process
Investment Casting
• Pattern is the principal tool during the
casting process
• i) Pattern materials
ii) Types of pattern
iii) Pattern making allowance
 Pattern materials

1. Wood

2. Metal

3. Plastics

4. Waxes

5. Etc.

Material should be dimensionally stable in all situation

 Pattern materials
1. Wood patterns
+
• Easily sanded to a smooth surface
• Repairable and reused
• Light in weight
• Skilled manpower ( carpenter) available
-
• Readily affected by moisture
• May warp badly
• Needs skilled manpower

Wooden patterns are generally used when a small number of

castings are to be produced
 Pattern materials
1. Wood patterns
+
• Easily sanded to a smooth surface
• Repairable and reused
• Light in weight
• Skilled manpower ( carpenter) available
-
• Readily affected by moisture
• May warp badly
• Needs skilled manpower

Wooden patterns are generally used when a small number of

castings are to be produced

Question: Which wood is preferred for pattern making and why?

 Pattern materials

2. Metal
+
• Do not change their shape when subjected to moist conditions
• Freedom from warping in storage
• Accuracy, durability and strength

-
• Manufacturability ( not easy to manufacture)
• Not repairable
• Needs skilled manpower

Metal is used when a large number of casting are desired from

a pattern or when conditions are too severe for wooden pattern
 Pattern Materials

Metal pattern is itself cast from a wooden pattern called master pattern

Various metals used are

Cast iron
( Strong, resistance to the abrasive action of the sand, heavy, easily broken)

Brass
(Strong, Does not rust, Better surface finish, heavy, )

Aluminum
( Melts at relatively low temperature, light in weight, Soft)
 Pattern Materials

Metal pattern is itself cast from a wooden pattern called master pattern

Various metals used are

Cast iron
( Strong, resistance to the abrasive action of the sand, heavy, easily broken)

Brass
(Strong, Does not rust, Better surface finish, heavy, )

Aluminum
( Melts at relatively low temperature, light in weight, Soft)

Question:
Compare the metals used in pattern making
 Pattern materials

3. Plastics
+
• Do not absorb moisture
• Very smooth and glossy surface
• Light in weight

-
• Manufacturability ( not easy to manufacture)
• Not repairable
• Needs skilled manpower

Plastic materials used are thermosetting ( epoxy resin) and thermoplastic

( polysterene foam)
 Pattern materials

3. Plastics
+
• Do not absorb moisture
• Very smooth and glossy surface
• Light in weight

-
• Manufacturability ( not easy to manufacture)
• Not repairable
• Needs skilled manpower

Plastic materials used are thermosetting ( epoxy resin) and thermoplastic

( polysterene foam)

Thermoplastic is better than thermosetting : Comment

 Pattern materials

4. Waxes

Used in investment casting

Types of Patterns ( Sand Casting)

1. Single piece pattern

2. Split pattern

3. Cope and Drag Pattern

4. Gated pattern

5. ?

6. ?
Complexity in pattern making ?

1. Develop expertise in Solid Modelling software

2. Pattern of the part to be made as CAD Model

3. Use of 3D printing to get the pattern directly as physical model from CAD Model
Pattern Design

[Pattern] = [Part][T hole][T shrinkage][T machining][T distortion][T draft][T fillet]

• Eliminating Holes

• Shrinkage allowance

• Machining allowance

• Distortion allowance

• Draft

• Fillets
 Shrinkage Allowance:

• As metal solidifies and cools , it shrinks and contract in size.

• To compensate for this pattern is made larger than finished

casting by means of a shrinkage or contraction allowance

•It is calculated by the coefficient of linear expansion multiplied

by the difference between solidus and room temperature

•Different metals have different shrinkages

Aluminium alloy : 13 mm/m
Copper alloys:16 mm/m
Grey iron : 24 mm/m
 Machining allowance

• It is provided on surfaces which are machined later

• The extra ammount of metal provided on the surfaces

to be machined is called machine finish allowance

• The ammount that is to be added to the pattern depends

on
i) Kind of metal to be used
ii) Size and shape of casting
iii) Method of molding

• The allowance ranges from 1 mm ( small aluminium

die cast part) to 20 mm (for large grey iron sand cast
part)
Distortion allowance
Some castings because of their shape and type of metal tend
to warp or distort during the cooling period
This feature is called distortion
 Draft
All faces of the part that are parallel to the draw direction are
provided draft
angle to facilitate withdrawal
Andaman Nicobar : 572 islands
Sweden : 221873 islands
Pattern Design

[Pattern] = [Part][T hole][T shrinkage][T machining][T distortion][T draft][T fillet]

• Eliminating Holes

• Shrinkage allowance

• Machining allowance

• Distortion allowance

• Draft

• Fillets
 Shrinkage Allowance:

• As metal solidifies and cools , it shrinks and contract in size.

• To compensate for this pattern is made larger than finished

casting by means of a shrinkage or contraction allowance

•It is calculated by the coefficient of linear expansion multiplied

by the difference between solidus and room temperature

•Different metals have different shrinkages

Aluminium alloy : 13 mm/m
Copper alloys:16 mm/m
Grey iron : 24 mm/m
 Machining allowance

• It is provided on surfaces which are machined later

• The extra ammount of metal provided on the surfaces

to be machined is called machine finish allowance

• The ammount that is to be added to the pattern depends

on
i) Kind of metal to be used
ii) Size and shape of casting
iii) Method of molding

• The allowance ranges from 1 mm ( small aluminium

die cast part) to 20 mm (for large grey iron sand cast
part)
 Distortion allowance
Some castings because of their shape and type of metal tend
to warp or distort during the cooling period
This feature is called distortion
 Draft
All faces of the part that are parallel to the draw direction are
provided draft
angle to facilitate withdrawal
 Mould Design

1. Moulding Sands
i) Types of Moulding Sands
ii) Sand Additives
iii) Properties of Moulding sands

2. Sand preparation

3. Special Moulding Processes

4. Mould Cavity layout

 Mould Design

1. Moulding Sands
i) Types of Moulding Sands
Green sand,Dry Sand,facing sand,Parting sand

Green Sand:
It is a mixture of Silica sand with 18 to 30 %
clay ( binder) and water content about 8%
The clay and water furnish bond for green sand.
Moulds prepared in this sand are known as
green sand mould
 Mould Design

1. Moulding Sands
i) Types of Moulding Sands
Green sand,Dry Sand,facing sand,Parting sand

Dry sand : Green sand that has been dried or

baked after the mould is called Dry sand.
Suitable for large casting
Moulds prepared in this sand are called dry
sand mould
 Mould Design

1. Moulding Sands
i) Types of Moulding Sands
Green sand,Dry Sand,facing sand,Parting sand

Facing sand : Facing sand forms the face of the

mould. It is used directly next to the surface of
the pattern and it comes into the contact with
the molten metal when pouring takes place. It
contains sea coal ( finely powdered bituminious
coal)
 Mould Design

1. Moulding Sands
i) Types of Moulding Sands
Green sand,Dry Sand,facing sand,Parting sand

Parting sand: it is used to keep green sand from

sticking to the pattern and also allow the sand
on parting surface of cope and drag. It is clay
free silica sand
 Mould Design
1. Moulding Sands
ii) Sand Additives
Binder:
The primary purpose of binders is to influence
the bonding properties of sand.
Binders increases air setting strength and
prevents sand from drying rapidly
Binders are classified as inorganic and organic
Inorganic:
Clay ( bentonites), cement, gypsum coal ashes
etc
Organic:
Carbohydrates ( dextrin), Synthetic resin
(Polystyrene)
 Mould Design

1. Moulding Sands
iii) Properties of Moulding sands
Porosity

flowability,

Collapsibility,

Adhesiveness,

Strength,

Refractoriness
 Mould Design

1. Moulding Sands
iii) Properties of Moulding sands

Porosity :
The sand must be sufficiently porous to allow
gases or moisture present or generated within
the moulds to be removed freely when moulds
are poured.
This property of sand is called porosity or
permeability
 Mould Design

1. Moulding Sands
iii) Properties of Moulding sands

Flowability
Flowability of moulding sand refers to its
ability to behave like fluid so that when
rammed it will flow to all portions of mould
and pack all round pattern and take the required
shape
 Mould Design

1. Moulding Sands
iii) Properties of Moulding sands

Collapsibility
After Molten metal gets solidified in the mould,
the sand mould must be collapsible so that free
contraction of the metal occurs and this would
naturally avoid tearing or cracking of the
contracting metal
 Mould Design

1. Moulding Sands
iii) Properties of Moulding sands

Adhesiveness,
The sand particle must be capable of adhering
to another body. It is due to this property that
sand mass can be successfully held in a
moulding box and it does not fall out of the box
when it is removed
 Mould Design

1. Moulding Sands
iii) Properties of Moulding sand

Strength ( Cohesiveness)
This is the ability of sand particles to stick
together
The strength of moulding sand must therefore
be sufficient to permit the mould to be formed
to the desired shape
 Mould Design

1. Moulding Sands
iii) Properties of Moulding sands

Refractoriness:
The sand must be capable of withstanding the
high temperature of the molten metal without
fusing
Optimum Resources utilisation ?
Efficiency ( Profit)?
The efficiency, or yield, of a casting is defined as the weight of the
casting divided by the weight of the total amount of metal poured
 Mould Design
Mould Cavity layout
• It is more economical to produce several
castings in a single mould because of material,
energy and labour savings

• The number of cavities in a mould has to be

optimised in terms of metal to sand ratio
which is given by
ρmetal( NcVc+Vf+Vg) / ρsand [Vmould-(NcVc+Vf+Vg)]
Where Nc is the number of casting cavities
Vc is the volume of single cavity
Vf anfd Vg are the total volume of feeders and gating respectively
Vmould is the overall volume of mould
 Mould Design
Mould Cavity layout
• Metal to Sand ratio ?

For accurate results metal density should correspond to the pouring

temperature

A low ratio indicates poor utilization of mould material

A high ratio must be avoided since this may lead to poor heat transfer, in
turn leading to the defect related to casting solidification

Maximum recommended ratio for ferrous castings 1:1

Lower value is safer and can range from 1:2 to 1:6

 Mould Design
Mould Cavity layout
• Metal to Sand ratio ?

For accurate results metal density should correspond to the pouring

temperature

A low ratio indicates poor utilization of mould material

A high ratio must be avoided since this may lead to poor heat transfer, in
turn leading to the defect related to casting solidification

Maximum recommended ratio for ferrous castings 1:1

Lower value is safer and can range from 1:2 to 1:6

How to get the ratio right when yield and metal wt is known?
 Mould Design

Self study:
What is sand tempering?
What is Carbon dioxide moulding?
What is shell moulding?
Quick Numerical:
1. Given a mould size of 400 mm X 300 mm X
150 mm, and a casting of 490867 mm3 with
4 cavity layout, calculate the metal to sand
weight ratio.
Assume following data
Casting yield 60%
Density of metal 7870 kg/m3
Density of sand 1600 kg/m3

2. Comment on the answer of problem 1.

Quick Numerical:

Hint:
Volume of 4 casting: ?
Considering 60% yield
Volume of metal poured per mould ?
Weight of metal poured ?
Mould sand volume = Mould volume – metal
volume
Mould sand weight ?
Metal to sand ratio ?

2. Comment on the answer of problem 1.

Core , Core Print, Chaplets
Gating System and Risering of Castings
 Casting Solidification
What is Hot Spot?

• When molten metal enters a mould cavity, its heat is absorbed by and
transferred though the mould wall
• The solidification proceeds layer by layer starting from the mould wall
and proceedings inwards
• The moving isothermal interface between the liquid and solid region
is called the solidification front
• As the front solidifies, it contract in volume and draws molten metal
from the adjacent( inner) liquid layer.
• When the solidification front reaches the innermost region (?) there is
no more liquid metal left and void called shrinkage cavity is formed
 Casting Solidification
What is Hot Spot?

We need to feed the molten metal in the innermost region

Feeder is more appropriate nomenclature of riser
 Feeder Design
• Chvorinov’s rule: Solidification time is proportional to (V/A)2

• V/A is refereed as casting Modulus where V stands for volume of casting

( representing heat Content) and A is the cooling surface area ( through
which heat is extracted)

• The region with the highest modulus is considered to solidify last and
identified as hot spot

• Feeders are designed so that their modulus is more than the modulus of the
hot spot region

• It should be ensured that feeders remains liquid long enough to supply the
feed metal to compensate the volumetric shrinkage of the casting
 Types of Feeders
1. Top ( Open)
2. Side ( Blind)
Shape of the feeders

Feeder must freeze more slowly than the casting

Shape should be such as to give volume to surface area ratio maximum value
This ratio is maximum for a sphere and hence ideal shape of a feeder
Difficulty in moulding sphere shape and next best shape is cylinder
 Feeder Shape

Taller feeders with H/D =2 or more is used for steel casting

In iron and aluminium castings, H/D can be about 1.5
For smaller castings, cylindrical feeders are widely used
For larger castings,cylindrical feeders with spherical bottom or spherical top are widely
used
Gating System

The major elements of a gating system includes:

Poring basin,
Sprue ( downsprue),
Well,
Runner,
and ingate
Why Gating system ?
Why Gating system ?
( to reduce the turbulence)

The path of molten metal during casting

1. Pouring of molten metal from ladle to the cup in the mould
2. Flow within the gating channels from pouring basin to ingate
3. Jet of molten metal emerging from ingate and entering the mould cavity
4. Filling of mould cavity by liquid movements in the bulk as well as near the
surface

The entire path of molten metal is turbulent in most casting ( Reynold no. more
than 4000)

The major purpose of the gating system ( instead of pouring metal directly in
mould cavity) is to reduce the turbulence though it cannot be completely
eliminated
Metal velocity and Turbulence

Turbulence within the gating channels as well as the mould cavity mainly
depends on the velocity of molten metal

The most important event is that of molten metal emerging from the
ingate. The metal is both hot and fast at this location and instant, can lead
to considerable damage if not controlled properly

The velocity of molten metal at the ingate depends mainly on two

parameters

1. Metallostatic Head
2. Gating Ratio
1. Metallostatic Head
The metallostatic pressure is given by ρgh where ρ is the metal density and h
is the height of liquid metal column above the filling point. A higher
metallostatic pressure leads to higher velocity of molten metal and thereby
higher fluidity

2. Gating Ratio:
The ratio of cross sections of sprue exit, runner(s) and ingate(s), referred to as
gating ratio
It is given by As: Ar:Ag where As,Ar,Ag are the cross sectional areas of sprue
exit, total area of all runners and total areas of all Ingates respectively.
Gating Ratio

A diverging-converging system where the ingate area is more than

sprue exit area is to be preferred

This ensures that the metal slows down( thereby reducing turbulance
related problems)

Gating Ratio 1:2:1.5 for ferrous metals and 1:4:4 for non ferrous metals
are recommended

Higher values 1:4:8 will further reduce the velocity of molten metal
though the ingates but due care should be taken to avoid flow
separation ( thereby air aspiration)
Types of Gating system
1. Pressurized system
2. Non pressurized system

The pressurized system has less total cross sectional area at the
ingates to the mould cavity than at the sprue base

Pressurized system would have ratio of 1: 0.75:0.5 or 2:1:1

Non pressurized system, the cross sectional area of the sprue is

less than the total area of runner and than that of ingates

Non pressurized system would have ratio 1:2:2 or 1:3:3

Gating Design

Basic requirements expected from a gating system are to minimize

turbulence avoid premature freezing of metal and assist in developing
temperature gradient
To achieve these points , the design of pouring basin, sprue, base,runner
and gates must be carefully decided

A simple way which gives fairly reliable results is to select from standard
table, the diameter of sprue at the bottom from casting weight and critical
thickness( thinnest section of the casting found from the drawing)

Wt. of Critical thickness ( mm)

casting 12 18 25 35
5 12.0 - - -
10 15.0 13.5 - -
15 16.5 15.0 13.5 -
20 16.5 15.0 15.0 -
35 18.0 16.5 15.0
40
Casting defects

1. Swell
It is the enlargement of the mold cavity because of the molten
metal pressure, which results in localized or overall
enlargement of the casting.

Causes
Defective or improper ramming of the
mold.

Remedies
The sand should be rammed properly and evenly.
 Casting defects
2. Blow holes
When gases entrapped on the surface of the casting due to solidifying
metal, a rounded or oval cavity is formed called as blowholes. These
defects are always present in the cope part of the mold.

Causes
(i) Excessive moisture in the sand.
(ii) Low Permeability of the sand.
(iii) Sand grains are too fine.
(iv) Too hard rammed sand.
(v) Insufficient venting is provided.
Remedies
(i) The moisture content in the sand must be controlled and kept at desired
level.
(ii) High permeability sand should be used.
(iii) Sand of appropriate grain size should be used.
(iv) Sufficient ramming should be done.
(v) Adequate venting facility should be provided.
Casting defects
3. Drop
Drop defect occurs when there is cracking on the upper surface of the
sand and sand pieces fall into the molten metal.

Causes
(i) Soft ramming and low strength of sand.
(ii) Insufficient fluxing of molten metal. Fluxing means addition of a
substance in molten metal to remove impurities. After fluxing the
impurities from the molten metal can be easily removed.
(iii) Insufficient reinforcement of sand projections in the cope.

Remedies
(i) Sand of high strength should be used with proper ramming
(neither too hard nor soft).
(ii) There should be proper fluxing of molten metal,
so the impurities present in molten metal is removed easily before
pouring it into the mold.
(iii) Sufficient reinforcement of the sand projections in the cope.
Casting defects
4. Metal Penetration
These casting defects appear as an uneven and rough surface of the
casting. When the size of sand grains is larges, the molten fuses into
the sand and solidifies giving us metal penetration defect.

Causes
(i) It is caused due to low strength, large grain size, high
permeability and soft ramming of sand. Because of this the molten
metal penetrates in the molding sand and we get rough or uneven
casting surface.

Remedies
This defect can be eliminated by using high strength, small grain size,
low permeability and soft ramming of sand.
 Casting defects
5. Pinholes
They are very small holes of about 2 mm in size which appears on the surface
of the casting. This defect happens because of the dissolution of the
hydrogen gases in the molten metal. When the molten metal is poured in the
mold cavity and as it starts to solidify, the solubility of the hydrogen gas
decreases and it starts escaping out the molten metal leaves behind small
number of holes called as pinholes.

Causes
(i) Use of high moisture content sand.
(ii) Absorption of hydrogen or carbon monoxide gas by molten metal.
(iii) Pouring of steel from wet ladles or not sufficiently gasified.
Remedies
(i) By reducing the moisture content of the molding sand.
(ii) Good fluxing and melting practices should be used.
(iii) Increasing permeability of the sand.
(iv) By doing rapid rate of solidification.
Casting defects

6. Shrinkage cavity
The formation of cavity in the casting due to volumetric contraction
is called as shrinkage cavity

Causes
(i) Uneven or uncontrolled solidification of molten metal.
(ii) Pouring temperature is too high.

Remedies
(i) This defect can be removed by applying principle
of directional solidification in mold design.
(ii) Wise use of chills (a chill is an object which is used to promote
solidification in a specific portion of a metal casting) and padding.
Casting defects
7. Cold Shut
It is a type of surface defects and a line on the surface can be seen.
When the molten metal enters into the mold from two gates and
when these two streams of molten metal meet at a junction with low
temperatures than they do not fuse with each other and solidifies
creating a cold shut (appear as line on the casting). It looks like a
crack with round edge.

Causes
(i) Poor gating system
(ii) Low melting temperature
(iii) Lack of fluidity
Remedies
(i) Improved gating system.
(ii) Proper pouring temperature.
Casting defects

8. Misrun
When the molten metal solidifies before completely filling the mold
cavity and leaves a space in the mold called as misrun.

Causes
(i) Low fluidity of the molten metal.
(ii) Low temperature of the molten metal which decreases its
fluidity.
(iii) Too thin section and improper gating system.
Remedies
(i) Increasing the pouring temperature of the molten metal increases the
fluidity.
(ii) Proper gating system
(iii) Too thin section is avoided.
Casting defects

9. Slag Inclusion
This defect is caused when the molten metal containing slag
particles is poured in the mold cavity and it gets solidifies.

Causes
The presence of slag in the molten metal

Remedies
Remove slag particles form the molten metal before pouring
it into the mold cavity
Casting defects

10. Hot Tears

When the metal is hot it is weak and the residual stress (tensile) in
the material cause the casting fails as the molten metal cools down.
The failure of casting in this case is looks like cracks and called as
hot tears or hot cracking.

Causes
(i) Improper mold design.

Remedies
(i) Proper mold design can easily eliminate these types of casting defects.
(ii) Elimination of residual stress from the material of the casting.
Casting defects
11. Shift or Mismatch
The defect caused due to misalignment of upper and lower part of
the casting and misplacement of the core at parting line.

Causes
(i) Improper alignment of upper and lower part during mold
preparation.
(ii) Misalignment of flask (a flask is type of tool which is used to
contain a mold in metal casting. it may be square, round, rectangular
or of any convenient shape.)

Remedies
(i) Proper alignment of the pattern or die part, molding boxes.
(ii) Correct mountings of pattern on pattern plates.
(iii) Check the alignment of flask.