Causes of Defective Casting

A. Distortion
B. Surface roughness and
irregularities
C. Porosity
D. Incomplete/missing detail
 A. DISTORTION
1. Due to distortion of the wax pattern- Proper
handling of wax pattern
2. Setting and Hygroscopic expansion of
investment can produce a nonuniform
expansion of walls of the wax pattern
3. Distortion increases as the thickness of the
pattern decreases .
4. Less the setting expansion of investment- less
distortion.
B. Surface roughness,
irregularities & Distortion

1. Surface Roughness - relatively finely spaced

surface imperfections

2. Surface Irregularities - isolated

imperfections

• Nodules that are not characteristic of entire

surface area
3. Surface Roughness of the casting is always
greater than the wax pattern
- Due to particle size of the investment
- Its ability to reproduce the wax pattern in
microscopic detail.
• Excessive roughness, irregularities needs
additional finishing and polishing
• Irregularities on the cavity surface prevent
Proper Seating of casting
Air bubbles

• Small Nodules on the casting

- by air bubbles that becomes attached to the
pattern during investing.
• Removal of nodules on the margins and the
internal surface alter the fit of the casting.
• Vacuum mixing should be done
• Surfactant should be used.
 Water films
• Water film separates investment from wax
pattern

• Such irregularity appears as minute ridge/vein

on the surface.

• Surfactant should be used

• Too high liquid/powder ratio can also produce

these irregularities.
 Rapid heating rates
• Causes fins/spines on the casting
• Due to flaking of the investment when
water/steam pours into mold
• Steam can also carry salts used as modifiers into
the mold - these salts are left as deposits on
walls after water evaporates
• Mold should be heated gradually (60min to heat
the investment from room temperature to 700°c)
• Greater the bulk of investment - the more
slowly it should be heated.
 Underheating
• Incomplete elimination of the wax residue

• Voids or porosity occurs in the casting

- due to gases formed when alloy comes in

contact with carbon residues

• Casting can also be covered by carbon coating

which cannot be removed by pickling.
Liquid/powder Ratio

• Higher the Liquid/powder ratio - Rougher

the casting

• Too thick investment - Cannot be applied

properly to the pattern
 Prolonged heating

• When high heat casting technique used

- Disintegration of gypsum bonded investment

- Walls of the mold will be roughened.

- Sulfur compounds released which contaminates

the alloy and does not respond to pickling.
 Temperature of the alloy
• Temperature of alloy is too high

- Investment breaks down

- surface roughness results.

• If Gas Air Torch is used the alloy cannot be

overheated

• With other methods alloy can be over heated

Casting pressure

• Too high a pressure produces rough

surface on the casting

• 3-4 turns of spring in centrifugal casting

machine and 0.10-0.14 MPA in an air
pressure casting machine is enough.
Composition of investment

• Ratio of binder to quartz influences the

surface texture of the casting.

• Coarse silica causes surface roughness.

 Foreign bodies
• When foreign substances enter the mold

- cause surface roughness (investment from

rough crucible former or sprue can be carried
into the mold)
- it can also cause incomplete casting and
surface voids.
• Bright appearing concavities are the result of
flux being carried into the mold with the metal.
Impact of molten alloy

• Direction of sprue former - should not

strike a weak portion of the mold surface
which can cause cracks in the investment
 Pattern position

• Positioning too many patterns in the same plane

must be avoided.

• Expansion of wax is much greater than that of the

investment - causing breakdown/ cracking of
investment if spacing between patterns is less than
3 mm.
 Carbon inclusions

• Carbon from the crucible

• Improperly adjusted torch

• Carbon containing investment

can be absorbed by the alloy and lead to formation of

Carbides.
 Other causes

• Certain surface discoloration and roughness appear

later during service.

• Mixtures of casting alloys cannot be used which

possess lesser physical properties with low
corrosion resistance

• Gold alloy can be contaminated by mercury which

causes loss of ductility and corrosion.
C. Porosity

• Can occur both on the interior and external

surface of the casting (surface roughness)

• Internal porosity weakens the casting and if

it extends to the surface can cause
discoloration.
I. Solidification defects
a. Localized shrinkage porosity
b. Microporosity
II. Trapped gases
a. Pinhole porosity
b. Gas inclusions
c. Subsurface porosity
III. Residual air
Localized shrinkage porosity

• Caused by premature termination of the

flow of molten metal during
solidification.
• Linear contraction of the noble metal
alloys from liquid to solid is 1.25% so a
continual feeding of the molten alloy
through the sprue must make up for the
shrinkage.
• If sprue freezes before the casting a localized
shrinkage void will occur in the last portion of
the casting that solidifies.
• localized shrinkage occurs near the sprue
casting junction.
• If a hot spot is created by the hot metal
impinging on the sprue channel on a point of
the mold wall.This hot spot causes the local
region to freeze last and results in suck-back
porosity.
• It usually occurs at occlusoaxial line angle
which is not rounded.the metal impinges onto
the mold surface at this point and creates a
higher localized mold temperature known as
hot spot.
• It retains a localized pool of molten metal
after other areas of casting have solidified.
• This in turn creates suck back porosity
• It can be eliminated by flaring the point of
sprue attachment and lowering the casting
temperature.
Microporosity
• Occurs from solidification shrinkage but is
present in fine grain alloy casting when the
solidification is too rapid for the micro voids
to segregate into the liquid pool.
• Due to premature solidification if the mold or
casting temperature is too low.
• They are irregular in shape.
• It is not a serious defect and is not detected
until the casting is sectioned.
Pinhole and gas inclusion
porosities
• Due to entrapment of gas during solidification
• Both are spherical in shape but different in
size
• gas inclusion porosities are larger than
Pinhole porosity
• Many metals dissolve gases (copper and silver
dissolve oxygen)
• On solidification ,the absorbed gases are
expelled leading to pinhole porosity
• Larger voids are caused due to mechanically
entrapment of air in the molten metal from a
poorly adjusted torch flame or by the use of
oxidizing zone rather than reducing zone.
• Castings which are severely contaminated by
gases are black and do not clean on pickling.
Subsurface porosity
• Caused by simultaneous nucleation of solid
grains and gas bubbles at the first movement
that the alloy freezes at the mold walls.
• Can be controlled by the rate at which the
molten metal enters the mold
Back pressure porosity
• entrapped air porosity seen on the inner
surface of the casting produce large concave
depressions
• Inability of the air in the mold to escape
through the pores in the investment
• The entrapment is found on the cavity surface
of the crown
• It can also be seen on the outer surface of the
casting when the casting temperature or mold
temperature is so low that solidification
occurs before the entrapped air can escape.
• Dense investments
• Vacuum investing
• Mold clogged with residual carbon slows the
venting of gases.
Incomplete casting
• Molten metal is prevented in completely filling
the mold
• Insufficient venting
• High viscosity of fused metal
• Back pressure develops in Insufficient venting
and if insufficient casting pressure is used it
cannot be overcome.the pressure should be
applied for at least 4 sec.
• Mold is filled and alloy is solidified in 1 sec
yet it is quite soft during early stages.
• Incomplete elimination of the wax residue
from the mold
• Pores in the investment gets filled and air
cannot be vented completely.
• Margins are rounded and quite shiny rather
than dull ,this is due to the strong reducing
atmosphere created by carbon monoxide left
by the residual wax.
• Lower liquid/powder ratio - less porosity of
the investment
• Increase casting pressure should be used
• Incomplete casting also results from too great
a viscosity due to insufficient heating.
• Temperature should be raised above the
liquidus temperature to reduce the viscosity
and surface tension of the alloy.