Sand Casting Tutorial

This example tutorial goes through the steps of setting up and running a typical sand casting
analysis. The tutorial begins with a meshed geometry, assigns the process parameters and
completes the solution.

The mesh used in this tutorial is a coincident mesh, in which nodes are shared between regions
or materials. There is a slight difference in the setup if a non-coincident mesh (nodes are not
shared between regions) is used or if an optimized coincident mesh is used. Whenever
differences occur in the setup because of the use of these other meshes, a message concerning
these alternative methods will be noted in the Extra Notes section.
 6WDUW3UH&$67

To begin PreCAST, type the command

“precast” followed by the project name inside
either a Unix window, or MS-DOS prompt. For
this tutorial, use the project name “sand”.

There are other methods for starting any of the

ProCAST applications. These are described in
Section 1 of the ProCAST manual.

1. precast sand

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If PreCAST fails to appear on your screen, there has

been a problem with the installation. Please check
the installation instructions, or contact your system
administrator or ProCAST customer support
representative.

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If you are doing a 3-D analysis, a Finite

Element mesh needs to be imported into
PreCAST. This mesh can be generated and
written out in any of the formats listed in the
Geometry submenu. The mesh used for this
tutorial was generated in ProCAST’s own
automatic tetrahedral mesher, MeshCAST.

A typical MeshCAST file has the filename

“prefix.mesh”.

 *(20(75<
 0(6+&$67
 $33/<

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If you are using a mesh generated by MeshCAST,

the units of the model are part of the MeshCAST
file. Therefore, the units do not have to be set when
reading in a MeshCAST mesh. However, any other
type of format needs to have the units specified.
This is accomplished by selecting a unit in the
*HRPHWU\8QLWV submenu.

3
 When the mesh is completely read in, you will
see a mesh information form like the one
shown to the right. This form helps to confirm
that the correct number of entities (nodes,
elements) are imported.

There are no steps on this page.

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4
To see the geometry, one simply needs to
press any of the other buttons on the top row of
the PreCAST window. The control of how the
model is viewed is done by hot keys, mouse
functions and/or buttons and forms. These
controls are described in more detail in Section
1 of the ProCAST Users’ Manual.

 0$7(5,$/6
 Press SHIFT+X
 Press SHIFT+Y

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For information on any of the viewing related

options shown on this page, please refer to Section 1
of the ProCAST User’s Manual.

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 &KHFNLQJWKH,PSRUWHG0HVK

For any mesh that is imported into PreCAST, it

is wise to check the integrity of the mesh.
Should the mesh have bad elements in it, there
is a good chance that the simulation will give
poor results.

 &+(&.*(20
 1(*-$&

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On this page we are looking for Negative Jacobian

(Neg-Jac) elements. These are elements which have
been turned inside out or are flat. If there are any of
these in the mesh, there is a good chance that the
simulation will stop due to solver convergence
problems.

6


Here we will check the volume of the different

parts of this model. The volume check lets us
make sure that the units are correct and gives
us information that we can use when we apply
the condition that will fill up the cavity with
metal.

 *(20(75<
 &+(&.*(20
 92/80(6

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The unit of the volume is the same as the “working

units” of the setup. The “working unit” is
determined in one of two ways; either by setting it
directly in *(20(75<81,76, or by reading
it from the file, as we have in this case. The file we
have read in used inches (you can see this if you
press *(20(75<81,76). Therefore, the
volume given is in cubic inches.

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 6DYLQJWKH3UH&$676HWXS

You can save at any point when setting up the

simulation in PreCAST. Simply press the
6$9( button in the *(20(75< submenu.

It is a good idea to save from time to time to

prevent losing data due to power failure,
incorrect setup or file corruption.

 *(20(75<
 6$9(

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When you press the 6$9( button in PreCAST,

you are saving all of the data that will be used for
the simulation to a file named [prefix]d.dat (or
diecastd.dat in this case). This data includes the
geometry data, materials being used, process data –
anything that is set up or used in PreCAST. A
second file will also be written when you save and
exit PreCAST, with the file name [prefix]p.dat.
This file only contains the Run Parameters, which
will be described in more detail at the end of this
example.

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Now we will define the materials being used in

this simulation. For this example, Ductile Iron
will be assigned as the metal to be cast, Silica
Sand will be assigned as the mold material,
and Zircon Sand as the coring material.

On the Material Assignment form, you will see

three columns. The ID is the material identifier
for a group of elements. The Material Name is
the material assigned to the group of elements
that have the same ID. The Type specifies the
function of that piece of geometry. This Type
designation allows ProCAST to do a certain set
of calculations or make assumptions about the
model.

 0$7(5,$/6
 $66,*1
 Click on #1
 Highlight the material SAND_Silica in the
Material Database
 $66,*1
 Click on #2
 Highlight the material IRON_Ductile in the
Material Database
 $66,*1
 Toggle to Casting in the Type column.

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This example uses materials that already exist in the

material database. If you would like to create your
own material, please refer to the Materials Section
of the ProCAST Users’ manual, beginning on page
3-46.

9
 

Continue the Material assignment for the

remaining two materials.

 Click on #3
 Highlight the material SAND_Zircon in the
Material Database
 $66,*1
 Click on #4
 Highlight the material SAND_Zircon in the
Material Database
 $66,*1

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In this example, we have a mesh for the mold

material. Therefore, we will be completely
simulating the mold material and the heat transfer
that will pass through it. However, you may also
run a sand casting simulation using the Virtual Mold
feature. Instead of meshing and performing
calculations on the mold, you can input its size and
ProCAST will automatically calculate how much
heat can be released from each section of the casting
into the mold. To find out more about this feature,
please refer to the ProCAST manual under
Geometry..Virtual Mold.

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When heat is transferred across dissimilar

materials, it will probably not pass through as if
there is perfect contact. Therefore, an
interface heat transfer coefficient needs to be
assigned to the region at the interface of the
materials. In this section, we will add new
interface heat transfer coefficients to the
database, which will later be assigned to the
interface of the materials.

In all of the databases (Material, Interface,

Stress, Boundary Condition, etc.), an
individual database entry only needs to be
entered once. After it is entered, it is available
for assignment in all other simulations from that
point on.

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 '$7$%$6(

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11
 The first interface we will enter is that between
the mold and casting.

 $''
 67$1'$5'
 Enter .006
 Change the units to cal/cm /C/sec
2

 Enter “Iron_Silica” as the Key

 6725(


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Notice that on the form where you enter the name of

the database entry (the key), there is a listing for the
user. In all of PreCAST’s databases (Materials,
Interface, Boundary, etc.), a specific user owns each
database entry. This ownership prevents other users
from modifying entries. Any user can make use of
an entry not owned by that user, but if there is a
need to modify the entry, the entry would first need
to be copied to a new name. This new entry would
be created an owned by the user who created the
entry.

A ',(&20%2 interface is specially designed for

die casting and permanent mold analyses.

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This entry defines the casting / core interface.

 $''
 67$1'$5'
 Enter .004
 Change the units to cal/cm /C/sec
2

 Enter “Iron_Zircon” as the Key

 6725(


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As you can see in the forms at the right, when you

define a new database entry (interface heat transfer
coefficient in this case), you have options for
defining the data. In this instance, you can enter the
heat transfer coefficient as a constant value, time
function or temperature function.

A constant value stays the same for the duration of

the simulation. A time-dependent function changes
the heat transfer coefficient over time. A
temperature-dependent function varies the heat
transfer coefficient as the temperature of a certain
material changes.

13
 This entry defines the mold / core interface.

 $''
 67$1'$5'
 Enter .002
 Change the units to cal/cm /C/sec
2

 Enter “Silica_Zircon” as the Key

 6725(


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The interface heat transfer coefficients used in this

and other tutorials are simply examples or starting
points you may wish to use for the simulations you
will be performing. These coefficients are different
from foundry to foundry. It is suggested that before
you start using ProCAST on actual jobs, simulate a
simple part that you are very familiar with. Adjust
these properties until the simulation matches the
real-world scenario, then continue to use those
modified properties for other analyses.

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The model used in this tutorial is an example of

a typical mesh generated by a meshing
package. In this coincident mesh, all materials
share nodes at the interface.

In general, interfaces are created between

dissimilar materials or when a boundary
condition is to be applied between materials.
There are exceptions. When fluid is to pass
from one material to another, as is the case
when modeling filters, do not create an
interface.

 ,17(5)$&(
 &5($7(
 Toggle “No” to “Yes” for all material pairs
 $33/<

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Non-Coincident Mesh:
The &5($7( button will be highlighted red and is
inaccessible as PreCAST cannot determine the
material pairs in this type of mesh. Skip this page
and go on to the next page, Interface Assignments.

Optimized Coincident Mesh:

When the optimization is performed, the material
pairs are already identified. Leave all material pairs
marked as NO, press (;(&87( and continue on
to the next page.

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Now that an interface coefficient has been

added to the database and an interface has
been created, we need to assign that database
entry to the interface in this model.

You will notice this “Define then Assign” trend

as you go through PreCAST. Most items are
first defined by some value like material
properties, heat transfer coefficient, or velocity,
then they are assigned to some part of the
Finite Element Model you have imported.

A “C” in the second column signifies a

coincident interface, whereas a “N” specifies a
non-coincident mesh interface.

 ,17(5)$&(
 $66,*1
 Click on the first material ID in material pair 1
 Highlight the “Iron_Silica” entry.
 $66,*1
 Click on the first material ID in material pair 2
 Highlight the “Silica_Zircon” entry.
 $66,*1
 Click on the first material ID in material pair 3
$66,*1
Click on the first material ID in material pair 4
Highlight the “Iron_Zircon” entry.
$66,*1
Click on the first material ID in material pair 5
$66,*1
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The order of the materials is important only when

you are using a temperature dependent interface
heat transfer coefficient. In this case, it is necessary
to identify which material to base the calculation of
heat transfer. The first material in the pair will be
used as this basis. To switch the order, simply click
on the second material in the pair.

Non-Coincident Mesh:
Before assigning database entries, you must add the
interface pairs. To do this, press ADD, enter the
material pair separated by a space (ie, 1 2) and press
APPLY. Do this for all materials between which
you want to specify an interface.

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Boundary Conditions enforce the presence of

certain process items such as pouring
temperature, filling rate, heat transfer and
many other items. In this sand casting
simulation we are going to define three
parameters: heat convection from the mold,
pouring temperature and pouring rate.

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 '$7$%$6(

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17
 

First, we will define the heat transfer on the

outside of the mold. This convection is easily
done using a heat boundary condition.

 $''
 +($7
 Enter .0015
 Change the units to cal/cm /C/sec
2

 Enter 80

 Change the units to F
 Enter “convection”
 6725(

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Heat transfer can be done in two ways, either by

interface heat transfer or by heat boundary
condition. The main difference is that heat transfer
occurring between items that have been modeled
(i.e., mold and casting) is simulated using an
interface condition. Heat transfer occurring
between a modeled item and an unmodeled item
(i.e., mold and surrounding air) must be simulated
using a heat boundary condition.

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Enter the temperature of the metal that will be

entering the inlet (pouring temperature).

 $''
 7(03(5$785(
 Enter 2450
 Change units to F
 Enter “pouring_temp”
 6725(

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19
 

This simulation will demonstrate using a

velocity boundary condition to introduce metal
into the cavity. We can determine the velocity
if the volume of the cavity, filling time and inlet
area are known, the inlet velocity is equal to
the volume divided by the product of the filling
time multiplied by the area (V/tA).

Notice that since travelling down the

downsprue is in the –Y direction, we also
specify a negative velocity corresponding to the
Y direction.

Entering metal into the cavity can also be done

with the pressure, inlet, turbulence and inject
boundary conditions

 $''
 9(/2&,7<
 Enter 0 for U
 Enter -21 for V
 Enter 0 for W
 Change units to in/sec
 Enter “pouring_rate”
 6725(

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U, V and W are velocities corresponding to the X, Y

and Z directions, respectively.

Non-Coincident Mesh:
After entering the velocity boundary condition
described above, ADD a new velocity boundary
condition that has U, V and W set to 0. Name this
boundary condition “no_slip”. This is used to
define the region that the flow is allowed to occupy.
This boundary condition is automatically defined
when using a Coincident mesh.

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With the new boundary conditions defined, they

need to be assigned to the appropriate regions
on the mesh. The inlet velocity and pouring
temperature both describe the metal entering
the cavity and will be assigned to the location
where the metal enters – the top of the
downsprue.

 %281'$5<
 $66,*1685)$&(

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21
 

Assign the velocity condition to the inlet

surface.

These steps show the functionality of the

685)$&( button. 685)$&( allows you to
select multiple entities at once given a
tolerance angle that you enter. The selection
will spread out across the surface as long as
the neighboring node is within that tolerance
angle. Since a plane is being selected in these
steps, a small angle can be entered. However,
if a curved surface is being selected, a higher
angle (30 – 60) may need to be specified.

 $''
 9(/2&,7<
 Highlight the “pouring_rate” Velocity database
entry
 $66,*1
 6(/(&7
 Select a node on the downsprue inlet surface
 685)$&(
 Enter “5”
 $33/<
6725(

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Non-Coincident Mesh:
Before completing the steps above:
• $'' a 9(/2&,7< condition
• Highlight the “no_slip” velocity boundary Note that when the same region has been selected
condition in the database for separate boundary conditions of the same type
• $66,*1 the database entry (ie, velocity), the selection of the last boundary
condition will override previous selections. Thus,
• Use 0$76(/(&7 and highlight only the
even though all of the casting nodes are stored for
casting material, press $33/< the “no slip” velocity, the “pouring_rate” selection
• Press 6(/(&7$// of the inlet surface removes those same nodes from
• 6725( the selection the “no slip” condition.


22


Assign the pouring temperature condition to the

inlet surface.

Since the temperature condition is assigned to

the inlet surface, we can simply &23< the
velocity selection to the temperature condition.
Once the casting is full, the inlet velocity is
turned off and the temperature boundary
condition is also terminated. This no longer
forces the nodes on the sprue surface to be
equal to the pouring temperature and allows for
the inlet to cool off, should a heat boundary
condition or some other means of heat transfer
be assigned to that region.

 $''
 7(03(5$785(
 Highlight the “pouring_temp” Temperature
database entry
 $66,*1
 &23<
 Highlight the inlet velocity boundary condition
in the BC Set Form (not the database form)
 6725(

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23
 

Assign the heat boundary condition to the

outside of the mold.

 $''
 +($7
 Highlight the “convection” Heat database entry
 $66,*1
 6(/(&7$//
 6725(

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24


To make sure that the correct entities have

been assigned to the correct boundary
condition, click on each boundary condition in
the bc-set column. When a boundary condition
is selected, the entities assigned to that
condition will highlight.

 Click on the “Velocity” BC

 Click on the “Temperature” BC
 Click on the “Heat” BC

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25
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For the definition of the gravity direction, we

simply enter the value into the appropriate
direction, the negative-Y direction in this case.

 *(20(75<
 *5$9,7<
 Enter –9.8 as the Y value.
 $33/<

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For a gravity direction that is off of an axis, simply

resolve the gravity vector into its X, Y and Z
components and enter those values into the X, Y
and Z value boxes.

26
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The last process parameter we need to define

for this analysis is the initial condition of the
simulation. This consists of the initial
temperatures, which are specified in the
&2167$17 form, and the initial state of the
mold materials, which are specified in the
)5((685)$&( form. The initial
temperature designates the pre-heat
temperature of the mold and pouring
temperature.

 ,1,7,$/&21'
 &2167$17
 Highlight Material 1
 Change the Units to F
 Enter 100 (pressing “Enter” moves the
highlight bar to the next material)
 Enter 2450
 Enter 100
 Enter 100

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27
 The last process parameter we need to define
is specifying the empty cavity.

 ,1,7,$/&21'
 )5((685)$&(
 Toggle No to Yes for the casting Material

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The run parameters provide control over the

simulation. In these forms you can change the
time to be simulated, which solver to use and
many other items. In most cases, the default
choices will provide the best simulation; but, as
you become more experienced with the
software, you may wish to change some of
these and observe the effects they have on the
simulation.

In the General form, we control basic

simulation characteristics. In this example, we
are changing the number of steps to run to
1000.

 5813$5$0(7(56
 *(1(5$/
 Change the value of NSTEP to 1000
See next page for illustrations.
 $33/<

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You will notice that some of the run parameters are

listed in black while others are listed in red. The
black parameters are ones that are typically changed
for a simulation. Red parameters are “advanced”
parameters and should only be modified by
experienced users.

Any time help is needed for these parameters,

simply click into the value related to the parameter
in question and press the help button.

29
30


Now we will modify the parameters which

control the thermal part of the simulation.
Here, we are simply changing the output
frequency of the temperatures to save every 5
steps, and the output frequency of heat flux to
save every 25 steps.

 5813$5$0(7(56
 7+(50$/
 Change the value of TFREQ to 5
 See next page for illustrations.
Change the value of QFREQ to 25
 $33/<

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For sand casting, there are three ways to stop the

analysis. In the Run Parameters General form,
NSTEP and TFINAL will halt the analysis. This
occurs if the number of steps completed equals
NSTEP or if the simulation time reaches TFINAL.
In the Run Parameters Thermal form, TSTOP may
be used to designate the temperature of which the
entire casting region must fall below. Therefore, a
value of just below Solidus may be entered, and the
solution will stop once the casting has completely
solidified.

31
32


Modify the parameters that control the fluid

analysis. The first item to change will be fluid
solution control, FLOW. There are a couple of
options for this parameter. If set to 1, the fluid
solution will be performed throughout the solve.
Unless you are interested in natural convection
effects, it saves a lot of time to set FLOW to 3.
This turns off the fluid solution when the cavity
has filled. Another parameter to be changed is
VFREQ. Set this to 5 to save fluid results
every 5 steps. Finally, turn on the free surface
solver by setting FREESF to 1. This solver
calculates what happens at the metal front.

 5813$5$0(7(56
 )/2:
 Change the value of FLOW to 3
 See next page for illustrations.
Change the value of VFREQ to 5
 Change the value of FREESF to 1
 $33/<

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There are a few other important flow run

parameters:

GAS – turns on or off the solver that determines

back pressure. The default is off (0), which
simulates the filling of an evacuated cavity.

PINLET – if you are using a Pressure boundary

condition to introduce metal into the cavity, this
parameter must be turned on (1).

33
34
6DYHDQG([LW3UH&$67

Everything should now be setup for this

coupled fluid / thermal sand casting simulation.
After pressing (;,7, a summary screen
appears showing the number of possible
assignments and the number of assignments
made. For this solution, the numbers for
Materials, Interface, and Boundary should be
same in each column. Should there be any
difference, *2%$&. to the section in
question and check your setup. If the numbers
are matching, then &217,18(. When you
press &217,18(, the files are saved.

 (;,7
 &217,18(

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35
 6WDUW6ROYLQJWKH$QDO\VLV

The next step in the simulation process is to

run DataCAST. This non-interactive script
simply converts the units to a consistent
system (CGS) and does some simple error
checking. Should any problems exist, warning
or error messages will be shown on the screen.

If DataCAST runs without messages, then the

setup is ready to be solved using the ProCAST
executable. While the simulation is running,
you can check on the progress by running the
ProSTAT script in another window. This
summary lists the current simulated time, time
step, solve time and other statistics. This
solution is complete when the casting is filled
and is 100% solid.

 datacast sand
 procast sand
 prostat sand (in another window)

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36