Crack Defect Reduction in Die Casting Process

of Aluminium Alloy Motorcycle Crankcases

W. M. Wan Muhamad1, M. M. Salleh2, J. Mohamad3, A. F. Azmi4

2006 to September 2006). During that period, the total reject

number was 948.

AbstractIn a world of intense and global competition, a

company must, among other things, avoid wastages and reworks.
A research study was performed in a local automotive component
manufacturer that produces aluminium alloy motorcycle
crankcases for local and global markets. The rejection rate at that
time was 6.7%. The main objective is to reduce crack defects in
the crankcase die casting process and therefore satisfying the
above-said goal of staying lean. The research team employed
planning and analysis tools such as Plan-Do-Check-Action Cycle
(PDCA), Gantt Chart, Loss Matrix Analysis (LMA), Ishikawa
Diagram and 4M method, and Why-Why Analysis. The results
showed that crack defects in the castings products in the die
casting process can be reduced by adjusting the temperature in
holding furnace and improving the die design structure. After
implementation of the countermeasures into the manufacturing
procedures, the rejection rate dropped to 0.97% and the company
realized a saving of approximately RM100K per year.

The objective of the study is to reduce the defect occurrences

in the aluminium die cast motorcycle crankcases. Reduction of
defects will make the company more profitable because loss of
valuable resources will be reduced. The solutions will then be
incorporated in the standard operating procedure so that
defects are reduced or avoided in future production.
II. BACKGROUND
A. Die Casting Technology
Die casting is an efficient, economical process offering a
broader range of shapes and components than any other
manufacturing technique. Advantages of die casting process
and parts are:
High-speed production: Little or no machining is required
and thousands of identical castings can be produced before
additional tooling is required.
Dimensional accuracy and stability: Die casting produces
parts that are durable and dimensionally stable, while
maintaining close tolerances.
Strength and weight: Thin wall castings are stronger and
lighter than those possible with other casting methods.
Plus, because die castings do not consist of separate parts
welded or fastened together, the strength is that of the
alloy rather than the joining process.
Multiple finishing techniques: Die cast parts can be
produced with smooth or textured surfaces and they are
easily plated or finished with a minimum of surface
preparation.
Simplified assembly: Die castings provide integral
fastening elements, such as bosses and studs. Holes can be
cored and made to tap drill sizes, or external threads can
be cast.

I. INTRODUCTION
New technologies, cost pressures, and trends have all had a
significant impact on the manufacturing industries. This is
particularly true in automotive component market segment,
which requires various sizes, complex, tight-tolerance, high
performance, and low cost products. The precision of
automotive part is characterized by their small and big size,
robust features, tight and close tolerance, thin wall sections,
and complex design. The use of automotive products is
expected to escalate because of their promise of decreasing
cost and improved efficiency. As a result, the demand for
aluminium die casting processing services and equipments is
expected to grow. However, part rejects are a major concern
for any automotive part manufacturers.
A research study was undertaken in one local automotive
component manufacturer which produces automotive
aluminium die cast motorcycle crankcases intended for local
and global markets. A team was set up to solve defect
problems based on a study of rejects for five months (May

B. Die Casting Process

The basic die casting process consists of injecting molten
metal under high pressure into a steel mould called a die. Die
casting machines are typically rated in clamping capacity in
term of tonne equal to the amount of pressure they can exert on
the die. Machine sizes range from 400 to 4000 tonne.
Regardless of their size, the only fundamental difference in die
casting machines is the method used to inject molten metal
into a die. The two methods are hot chamber and cold
chamber.

W.M. Wan Muhamad (corresponding author; phone: +603-2175-4195;

fax: +603-2175-4441; e-mail: [email protected]) is with
Institute of Product Design and Manufacturing, Universiti K. Lumpur, K.
Lumpur, Malaysia
2
M.M. Salleh is with Institute of Product Design and Manufacturing,
Universiti K. Lumpur, K. Lumpur, Malaysia
3
J. Mohamad is with Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Universiti
Malaysia Pahang, Kuantan, Malaysia
4
A.F. Azmi is with Institute of Product Design and Manufacturing,
Universiti K. Lumpur, K. Lumpur, Malaysia

positioned to permit rapid flow into the thicker sections of the

die cavity and to provide smooth flow paths that minimize
turbulence in the molten metal.

Hot chamber machines are used primarily for zinc, copper,

magnesium, lead and other low melting point alloys that do not
readily attack and erode metal pots, cylinders and plungers.
Cold chamber machines are used for alloys such as aluminium
and other alloys with high melting points. The molten metal is
poured into a "cold chamber," or cylindrical sleeve, manually
by a hand ladle or by an automatic ladle. A hydraulically
operated plunger seals the cold chamber port and forces metal
into the locked die at high pressures. [1]

3) Thermal Management
Thermal management of the tooling and dies is a critical
production factor in quality die casting process. If die faces
overheat during a casting run, "heat checking" can occur. Heat
checking is the formation of very fine surface cracks on the die
faces, which will transfer to the die cast as raised veins on the
surface. The die casting engineer has to consider the thermal
loads that occur in production (in terms of the thermal mass
and the cycle rate) and ensure that the die faces do not
overheat. Die casting process uses active thermal control to
manage die face temperature during the production run. The
die blocks have cooling channels in which temperaturecontrolled oil circulates to keep die faces at the desired
temperature [3]. This ensures complete fill and rapid
solidification while preventing heat checking and die
cracking.

Dies, or die casting tooling, are made of alloy tool steels in at

least two sections, the fixed die half, or cover half, and the
ejector die half, to permit removal of castings. Modern dies
also may have moveable slides, cores or other sections to
produce holes, threads and other desired shapes in the casting.
Sprue holes in the fixed die half allow molten metal to enter
the die and fill the cavity. The ejector half usually contains the
runners (passageways) and gates (inlets) that route molten
metal to the cavity. Dies also include locking pins to secure the
two halves, ejector pins to help remove the cast part, and
openings for coolant and lubricant. When the die casting
machine closes, the two die halves are locked and held
together by the machines hydraulic pressure. The surface
where the ejector and fixed halves of the die meet and lock is
referred to as the "die parting line." The total projected surface
area of the part being cast, measured at the die parting line, and
the pressure required of the machine to inject metal into the die
cavity governs the clamping force of the machine.

D. The Aluminium Die Castings and Crack Defects

Aluminium, zinc and copper alloys are the materials
predominantly used in die-casting. On the other hand, pure
aluminium is rarely cast due to high shrinkage, and
susceptibility to hot cracking. It is alloyed with silicon, which
increases melt fluidity and reduces machinability needs.
Copper is another alloying element, which increases hardness,
reduces ductility, and reduces corrosion resistance.

C. Die Casting Process Factors

1) Die Spray
Die spray is one of the most important parts in die casting
process. There are various types of die sprays and lubricants
mixes. The role of die spray is common to all requirements;
die spray function to cool the die, adds a thin layer of lubricant
to the die so that the ejectors do not seize and the part can be
ejected. The spray also protects the die from molten metal
attack as well as enabling the molten metal to flow better [2].
The die cooled by internal cooling lines has lower temperature
swings both on the surface of the die and within the die than
the die cooled by spray only. Provided the cooling is designed
correctly this will lead to lower stresses and hence a longer die
life for the internal cooled die.

Aluminium is cast at a temperature of 650 C (1200 F). A

high silicon alloy is used in cylinder castings for automotive
engines, with 17% silicon for high wear resistance.
Cracks are often found between valve seats, in exhaust ports,
between the spark plug hole and valve seats, around valve
guides, between combustion chambers, and even on top of the
head. The blame is often placed on thinner castings and higher
castings injection loads, but in many instances the underlying
cause was overheating due to cooling system failure in holding
furnace or some other user (or builder) error such as incorrect
installation of the die casting dies. Cracks typically form when
a crankcase undergoes too much thermal stress [4]. Loss of
coolant - severe overheating as well as sudden changes in
operating temperature from hot to cold - can all create the
conditions that can cause cracks to form.

2) The Flow Control

Control of the metal flow in the die cavity is a key factor in
producing sound die castings. Metal must flow rapidly and
uniformly into the die, minimizing sharp direction changes,
turbulence, and entrapped air. The placement of the gates will
also impact the surface finish of the final part. When gates are
trimmed off, the trim operation can leave surface roughness.
For the best surface finish, gates should be placed on low
visibility surfaces [2]. A key feature in die design is the
positioning of the runners and gates, the passages that feed
molten metal into the die cavity. Well-designed gates are

Aluminium expands at nearly twice the rate of cast iron, which

creates a mismatch in expansion rates on bimetal engines with
aluminium heads and cast iron blocks. While the heads are
designed to handle a certain amount of normal expansion,
elevated operating temperatures can push a part beyond those
design limits, causing the metal to deform [5]. This, in turn,
may cause cracks to form as the metal cools and contracts.
Though many cracks may be clearly seen once parts have been
disassembled and cleaned, other cracks are nearly invisible or

may only be seen under special conditions (such as porosity

leaks in heads and blocks). Other cracks may be entirely
hidden, such as those inside a casting. [6]

FURNACE:

INGOT

MELTING

DEGASSING

DIECASTING:
POUR TO THE
HOLDING FURNACE

E. Motorcycle Crankcase Rejects

A motorcycle left crankcase transmissions, as shown in Figure
1, is a useful efficient part in the engine operating system
which delivers a constant speed on the road. In the company
investigated, the rejection of this part was very high from May
2006 to September 2006 with the total of 6.7% (948 parts). In
May the percentage is 4.9% follow by June and August the
result decrease to 3.7% and 4.9%. By July 2006 the percentage
increased to 6.2% and continues in September 2006 (6.7%).
Because of this matter, the firm has developed a team to clarify
and countermeasure the problem. [2]

INSTALL
STEEL BUSH

REMOVE THE
RUNNER & BISCUIT

INJECT THE MOLTEN

TO THE DIE CAVITY

FORM THE PART

CHECK BY OPERATOR

PROBLEM

Fig. 2. Process flow and detection of crack problem after

casting process
B. The Plan, Do, Check, Action Cycle (PDCA) and Gantt
Chart
PDCA cycle was made popular by W. Edwards Deming.
PDCA should be repeatedly implemented, as quickly as
possible, in upward spirals that converge on the ultimate goal,
each cycle closer than the previous. Over time and with better
knowledge and skills, PDCA will help define the ideal goal
and ways to achieve it. PDCA approach will also help the
construction of Gantt Chart.
C. The Loss Matrix Analysis (LMA)
LMA techniques can be used to measure and identify the part
including the area of problem in standard specification [7].In
essence; LMA involves selecting a representative, simple,
random sample from a measurement and analysing the data to
make a decision about the performance of the process as a
whole. The remaining of LMA process have a 4 stages where
1st phase describes type of part being reject, 2nd phase clarifies
the type of defects , 3rd phases identifies the location of the
crack and 4th phase gives detail area or location of crack
convergent. This technique will use the data collected from
May 2006 to September 2006.

Fig. 1. The Crankcase Left Kick Transmission

III. METHODOLOGY
To achieve the objective the research team utilized planning
and analysis tools such as Plan-Do-Check-Action Cycle
(PDCA), Gantt Chart, Loss Matrix Analysis (LMA), Ishikawa
Diagram and 4M method, and Why-Why Analysis.
A. Data Collection for Rejected Parts (May 2006 December
2006)
The data collection has been done by the team with help and
supervision by Quality Assurance Department. There are
several part numbers involved. However, crankcase
transmission has the highest rejection rate after casting. After
performing studies and researches, the team found that
cracking was the biggest problem. Figure 2 shows the process
flow and detection of crack problem after casting process.
Therefore, the team must have a contingency plan to overcome
the crack defects problem. [3]

D. Ishikawa Diagram and 4M Method [8]

Ishikawa is a graphic tool used to explore and display opinion
about sources of variation in a process. (Also called a Causeand-Effect or Fishbone Diagram.) Its purpose is to arrive at a
few key sources that contributes most significantly to the
problem being examined. These sources are then targeted for
improvement. The diagram also illustrates the relationships
among the wide variety of possible contributors to the effect.
Most Ishikawa diagrams have a box at the right hand side in
which is written the effect that is to be examined. The main
body of the diagram is a horizontal line from which stems the
general causes, represented as "bones". These are drawn
towards the left hand side of the paper and are each labelled
with the causes to be investigated, often brainstormed
beforehand and based on the major causes listed above. Off
each of the large bones there may be smaller bones
highlighting more specific aspects of a certain cause, and

sometimes there may be a third level of bones or more. These

can be found using the '5 Whys' technique. When the most
probable causes have been identified, they are written in the
box along with the original effect. The more populated bones
generally outline more influential factors, with the opposite
applies to bones with fewer "branches". Further analysis of the
diagram can be achieved with a Pareto chart.

at any time. This supports the non-linear way in which we tend

to think. It allows you to consciously not to follow some paths,
digging only into the most likely areas [2].
In this stage, verification of root cause is very important to
create a countermeasure to the crack defects problem. The
main root cause was no control valve at die to maintain the die
temperature. The next cause was no radius at moving fixed
half part in die cavity and this produces a flow and heat
transfer problem. The last root cause was the broken thermo
couple affected the temperature of aluminium in the holding
furnace. Thus we can get to the root cause by using why-why
analysis [2].

The Figure 3 below shows an Ishikawa diagram as a result of

brainstorming activity.
Method

Wrong
sequence

Machine
Inconsistent
Run

Die Spray
Miss Position

Part
Design

Using this technique, a continuous improvement can be

achieved by relating the entire previous problem in Ishikawa
Diagram. During the analysis, the teams achieved one solution
to solve the problem. Aluminium material can flow through
high temperature by making a radius at the corner of highest
area of crack. Without adjustment, the concentration of heat
transfer can cause weak point to emerge at sharp area. After
the modification with a radius of 3mm, better flow of heat
transfer occurred. A temperature controller is required to
maintain consistent cooling. The function of this controller is
to maintain the aluminium temperature in holding furnace and
also during filling into cavity [2].

Many
Profile

Miss
Process

Part
lazy

Cooling
System

Temp. Too
High

Die
Cleaning

Not Effective Temp.

Aluminium

Too High

Flow Not
Smooth

Material Temp. Too

High

Man
Die Not
Effective

New
operator

Not
Enough
Warm
Up

Fig. 3. The Ishikawa Diagram

E. WHY-WHY Analysis
One of the most important questions in quality is Why?.
From Kaoru Ishikawas early usage of cause-effect diagrams
in the early 1940s and use of Five Whys in the early 1950s as
many developed their famous systems, the drive to find root
causes of problems has been the secret of many quality success
stories [9].

IV. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

This chapter describes the results obtained after adjustment to
the die with radius 3mm and installation of temperature
controllers at die casting machines. The results obtained from
the casting data part rejection from July until December 2006,
will be analyzed and compared. The previous results are also
shown for comparison to show the improvement. Two
countermeasure plans have been done to solve crack defects
problem.
A. Countermeasure 1 - Make a 3mm Radius
In this stage, the team needed to countermeasure a flow
problem during injection of molten aluminium into cavity. The
work order was sent to die maintenance section to modify the
cavity. The area that caused crack defects was machined using
air grinder to produce a radius of 3mm. The previous edges
were sharp, causing inconsistent flow in the heat transfer in the
die. Therefore after implementing the modification, better
results have been achieved and produced a smooth flow of
molten aluminium during filling in the die. The heat has
dissipated or released.

Fig. 4. The Why-why Analysis

Referring to Figure 4, Why-Why analysis works by repeatedly
asking the same question of a problem, breaking down the
cause or solution into more and more explicit elements [10]. At
each stage, there can be multiple answers to the Why
questions, which results in a hierarchical tree-structure.
Making this tree visible gives several advantages: It allows a
group of people to share the mental model of the situation and
hence work more harmoniously on it. It allows re-examination
of parts of the analysis, so one can change, remove or add to it

B. Countermeasure 2 Installation of Temperature

Controller
With respect to heat problem in the holding furnace, the
installation of temperature controller has reduced the number
of rejection parts. The installation of the controller will help in

maintaining the holding furnace and the molten aluminium

temperature during filling into the die cavity. It also
maintained the die temperature and produced a consistent part
after castings.

process can be reduced by adjusting the temperature in holding

furnace and improving the die design structure. After
introduction of the solutions, the rejection rate dropped to
0.97% and the company realized a saving of approximately
RM100K per year.
One of the main issues that an automotive manufacturer are
always concern with, is in producing high quality parts that can
last long. The main elements associated with this requirement
can be simplified as; methods of product design and
manufacturing process, tolerance setting, and measurements
taking place in automotive production processes. Product
design is a critical element as it will affect the die casting
process such as gating and runner system in die cavity. In other
words, in order to produce designed products, die casting
process itself plays a critical role in determining whether the
quality products can be produced or not. Die casting process
integrates die tool, cavity, ejector core pin, and other elements
which are critical in production of good quality castings
product. Hence, the selection of tools, both core and die design
must be taken into account as they are primary factors in die
casting process to produce quality products. This is the critical
stage where profound information is needed in doing so.
Therefore, the implementation of concurrent engineering in
design and manufacturing stage is really crucial. Further works
are required to investigate the concurrent engineering
capabilities in die casting process. It is hoped that further study
in this area will further improve the design and manufacturing
processes to achieve lesser percentage of rejects and reworks
and therefore bring in cost savings to the company.

Fig. 5. The Trend Show Percentage of Crack Problem against

Good Parts
Figure 5 above shows the results after the introduction of the
above countermeasures. There was a decreasing percentage
number for crack defect problem from September 2006 until
December 2006. The parts have the lowest rate of rejection of
0.97%.
C. Cost Savings
In manufacturing, reduction of rejected parts equals cost
savings on reworks. Table 1 shows the total of cost saving that
would be experienced by the company. For an annual volume
of 60,000 pieces, the potential savings was 5,958 pieces or RM
100,367.00.

REFERENCES
[1] Buhler, Die Casting Machine Setting and Application Handbook, Buhler
GmBH, 1999.
[2] E.A. Herman, Gating Die castings Die 1st Edition, Nadca Publications,
1996.
[3] Buhler, Advanced Casting Machine Setting and Application Handbook,
2nd Edition, Buhler GmBH, 1999.
[4] K Don Lakeland, 4th Asian Foundry Congress Proceedings, Australian
Foundry Institute, 1996.
[5] E. Paul DeGarmo, Material and Process in Manufacturing, 7th Edition,
Mac Millan, Publishing Company, 1998.
[6] H. Hoist Bauer and Robert Bosch, Automotive Handbook, 5th Edition, SAE
Society of Automotive Engineer, 2000.
[7] R.L. Timings, Manufacturing Technology, 2nd Edition, Longman Group
UK Limited, Volume 1& 2, 1992.
[8] Company document, 5S-MUDA-MURA-MURI Workshop handbook,
2004.
[9] Ferrous Material & Metallurgy, Casting Aluminium Material, JIS
Handbook, 2000.
[10] Company document, 5S-MUDA-MURA-MURI Workshop Handbook,
2004.

Table 1. Show the Potential savings after the evaluation and

countermeasure Crack Defects Problem

V. CONCLUSIONS AND FURTHER WORKS

The main goal of reducing crack defects in the crankcase die
casting process has been accomplished. The methods
employed proved useful to find out the cause and effects in
crack problem using collected data. The results showed that
crack defects in the castings products in the die castings