Chapter 10:

Fundamentals of Metal Casting

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FUNDAMENTALS OF METAL CASTING

1. Overview of Casting Technology

2. Heating and Pouring
3. Solidification and Cooling

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 Solidification Processes

• Starting work material is either a liquid or is in a

highly plastic condition, and a part is created through
solidification of the material
• Solidification processes can be classified according
to engineering material processed:
 Metals
 Ceramics, specifically glasses
 Polymers and polymer matrix composites (PMCs)

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Figure 10.1 - Classification of solidification processes

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 Casting
• Casting is a process in which molten metal flows by
gravity or other force into a mold where it solidifies in
the shape of the mold cavity
• The term casting also applies to the part made in the
process
• Steps in casting seem simple:
1. Melt the metal
2. Pour it into a mold
3. Let it freeze (solidify)
 However, many factors and variables must be
considered to accomplish successful casting
operation
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 Ingot and Shape Casting

• The term ingot is usually associated with the primary

metal industries; it describes large casting that is
simple in shape and intended for subsequent
reshaping by processes such as rolling or forging
• Shape casting involves the production of more
complex geometries that are much closer to the final
desired shape of the part or product
• Parts produced by casting?

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 Parts Made by Casting

• Big parts: engine blocks and heads for automotive

vehicles, wood burning stoves, machine frames,
railway wheels, pipes, church bells, and pump
housings
• Small parts: dental crowns, jewelry, small statues,
and frying pans
• All varieties of metals can be cast, ferrous and
nonferrous
• Advantages and disadvantages of casting?

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 Capabilities and Advantages of Casting

• Can create complex part geometries

• Can create both external and internal shapes
• Some casting processes are net shape; others are
near net shape
• Can produce very large parts
• Some casting methods are suited to mass production
• Can be performed on any metal that can be heated to
a liquid state

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 Disadvantages of Casting

• Different disadvantages for different casting

processes:
 Limitations on mechanical properties (due to the
presence of defects and porosity)
 Poor dimensional accuracy and surface finish for
some processes; e.g., sand casting
 Safety hazards to workers due to hot molten
metals
 Environmental problems

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 Overview of Casting Technology
• Casting is usually performed in a foundry
Foundry = factory equipped for making molds,
melting and handling molten metal, performing the
casting process, and cleaning the finished casting
• Workers who perform casting are called foundrymen
• The casting process begins with the forming of mold
• Then molten metal is poured in the mold which cools
down and solidify
• Further processing such as trimming, cleaning, heat
treatment and machining may be required

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 The Mold in Casting
• The mold contains cavity whose geometry
determines part shape
 Actual size and shape of cavity must be slightly
oversized to allow for shrinkage of metal during
solidification and cooling
 Molds are made of a variety of materials, including
sand, plaster, ceramic, and metal

(a) open mold ;simply a

container in the shape of
the desired part
(b) closed mold, in which the
mold geometry is more
complex and requires a
gating system
(passageway) leading
into the cavity Page 11
 Two Categories of Casting Process
1. Expendable mold processes – uses an expendable mold
which must be destroyed to remove casting
 Mold materials: sand, plaster, and similar materials,
plus binders
2. Permanent mold processes – uses a permanent mold
which can be used many times to produce many castings
 Made of metal (or, less commonly, a ceramic
refractory material)
• Relative advantages and disadvantages:
 More intricate geometries are possible with expendable mold
processes
 Part shapes in permanent mold processes are limited by the need
to open mold
 Permanent mold processes are more economic in high production
operations Page 12
Sand Casting Mold Terms

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 Sand Casting Mold Terms
• Mold consists of two halves:
 Cope = upper half of mold
 Drag = bottom half
• Mold halves are contained in a box, called a flask
• The two halves separate at the parting line
• Pattern
• Gating system
• Sprue
• Runner
• Pouring cup
• Riser Page 14
 Forming the Mold Cavity-Pattern

• Mold cavity is formed by packing sand around a

pattern, which has the shape of the part, and is made
of wood, metal, or plastic
• When the pattern is removed, the remaining cavity
has desired shape of cast part
• The pattern is usually oversized to allow for
shrinkage of metal as it solidifies and cools
• Sand for the mold is moist and contains a binder to
maintain shape

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 Cores in the Mold Cavity

• The mold cavity provides the external surfaces of the

cast part
• In addition, a casting may have internal surfaces,
determined by a core, placed inside the mold cavity
to define the interior geometry of part
• In sand casting, cores are generally made of sand

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 Gating System

• Channel through which molten metal flows into cavity

from outside of mold
• Consists of a downsprue (or simply sprue), through
which metal enters a runner leading to the main
cavity
• At top of downsprue, a pouring cup is often used to
minimize splash and turbulence as the metal flows
into downsprue

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 Riser
• Reservoir in the mold which is a source of liquid
metal to compensate for shrinkage during
solidification
• The riser must be designed to freeze after the main
casting in order to satisfy its function

• In a sand mold the air present in empty mold escapes

through the natural porosity of the sand mold, while in
mold of other materials small vent holes are drilled in
the mold or machined in the parting line to remove air
and gases
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 HEATING and POURING
1. Heating the Metal
• Heating furnaces are used to heat the metal to
temperature somewhat above its melting point
sufficient for casting
• The heat required is the sum of:
1. Heat to raise temperature to melting point
2. Heat of fusion to convert from solid to liquid
3. Heat to raise molten metal to desired
temperature for pouring
• H = V  Cs(Tm-To) + Hf + Cl (Tp-Tm) 
• The above analysis, however, normally leads to a
values of limited importance due to several errors
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 Assignment 03(a), Example 10.1
One cubic meter of a certain eutectic alloy will be
heated in a crucible from room temperature to 100oC
above its melting point for casting. Density=7.5
g/cm3; melting point=800oC; specific heat of the
metal=0.33 J/g-oC in the solid state and 0.29 J/g-oC
in the liquid state; and heat of fusion=160 J/g. How
much heat energy must be added to accomplish the
heating, assuming no losses?

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 2. Pouring the Molten Metal

• For this step to be successful, metal must flow into all

regions of the mold, most importantly the main cavity,
before solidifying
• Factors that determine success:
 Pouring temperature
 Superheat: Temperature difference between
pouring and freezing temperature
 Pouring rate: quick to achieve full filling slow to
avoid turbulence
 Turbulence  Mold Erosion
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 Assignment 03(b), Example 10.2

A certain mold has a sprue whose length is 20 cm and

the cross-sectional area at the base of the sprue is 2.5
cm2. The sprue feeds a horizontal runner leading into
a mold cavity whose volume is 150 cm3. Determine:
(a) velocity of the molten metal at the base of the sprue,
(b) volume rate of flow, and
(c) time to fill the mold

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 Solidification of Metals
• Transformation of molten metal back into solid state
• Solidification differs depending on whether the metal
is a pure element or an alloy
• A pure metal solidifies at a constant temperature
equal to its freezing point (same as melting point)

Figure 10.4 - Cooling

curve for a pure metal
during casting

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 Solidification of Pure Metals
• Due to chilling action of mold wall, a thin skin of solid
metal is formed at the interface immediately after
pouring
• Skin thickness increases to form a shell around the
molten metal as solidification progresses
• Rate of freezing depends on heat transfer into mold,
as well as thermal properties of the metal

Figure 10.5 - Characteristic

grain structure in a casting
of a pure metal, showing
randomly oriented grains of
small size near the mold
wall, and large columnar
grains oriented toward the
center of the casting Page 24
Most alloys freeze over a temperature range rather
than at a single temperature

Figure 10.6 - (a) Phase diagram for a copper-nickel alloy system

and (b) associated cooling curve for a 50%Ni-50%Cu
composition during casting

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Figure 10.7 - Characteristic grain structure in an alloy casting,
showing segregation of alloying components in center of casting

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 Solidification Time
• Solidification takes time
• Total solidification time TST = time required for
casting to solidify after pouring
• TST depends on size and shape of casting by
relationship known as Chvorinov's Rule

n
• Chvorinov's Rule TST  Cm  
V
 A
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YRhmv1MKX-U
where TST = total solidification time; V = volume of
the casting; A = surface area of casting; n = exponent
usually taken to have a value = 2; and Cm is mold
constant
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 Mold Constant in Chvorinov's Rule

• Cm depends on mold material, thermal properties of

casting metal, and pouring temperature relative to
melting point
• Value of Cm for a given casting operation can be
based on experimental data from previous operations
carried out using same mold material, metal, and
pouring temperature, even though the shape of the
part may be quite different

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 What Chvorinov's Rule Tells Us

• A casting with a higher volume-to-surface area ratio

cools and solidifies more slowly than one with a lower
ratio
 To feed molten metal to main cavity, TST for riser
must greater than TST for main casting
• Since riser and casting mold constants will be equal,
design the riser to have a larger volume-to-area ratio
so that the main casting solidifies first
 This minimizes the effects of shrinkage

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 Shrinkage

Figure 10.8 - Shrinkage of a cylindrical casting during

solidification and cooling: (0) starting level of molten metal
immediately after pouring; (1) reduction in level caused by
liquid contraction during cooling (dimensional reductions are
exaggerated for clarity in sketches)
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Figure 10.8 - (2) reduction in height and formation of shrinkage
cavity (pipe) caused by solidification shrinkage; (3) further
reduction in height and diameter due to thermal contraction
during cooling of the solid metal (dimensional reductions are
exaggerated for clarity in our sketches)

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 Solidification Shrinkage

• Occurs in nearly all metals because the solid phase

has a higher density than the liquid phase
• Thus, solidification causes a reduction in volume per
unit weight of metal
• Exception: cast iron with high C content
 Graphitization during final stages of freezing
causes expansion that counteracts volumetric
decrease associated with phase change

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 Shrinkage Allowance

• Patternmakers account for solidification shrinkage

and thermal contraction by making mold cavity
oversized
• Amount by which mold is made larger relative to final
casting size is called pattern shrinkage allowance
• Casting dimensions are expressed linearly, so
allowances are applied accordingly

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 Directional Solidification

• To minimize damaging effects of shrinkage, it is

desirable for regions of the casting most distant from
the liquid metal supply to freeze first and for
solidification to progress from these remote regions
toward the riser(s)
 Thus, molten metal is continually available from
risers to prevent shrinkage voids
 The term directional solidification describes this
aspect of freezing and methods by which it is
controlled

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 Achieving Directional Solidification

• Desired directional solidification is achieved using

Chvorinov's Rule to design the casting itself, its
orientation in the mold, and the riser system that
feeds it
• Locate sections of the casting with lower V/A ratios
away from riser, so freezing occurs first in these
regions, and the liquid metal supply for the rest of the
casting remains open
• Chills - internal or external heat sinks that cause
rapid freezing in certain regions of the casting

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 Figure 10.9 - (a) External chill to encourage rapid freezing of the
molten metal in a thin section of the casting; and (b) the likely result
if the external chill were not used

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 Riser Design

• Riser is waste metal that is separated from the

casting and remelted to make more castings
• To minimize waste in the unit operation, it is desirable
for the volume of metal in the riser to be a minimum
• Since the geometry of the riser is normally selected
to maximize the V/A ratio, this allows reduction of
riser volume as much as possible
• Riser can be open riser (exposed to the outside) or
blind riser (entirely enclosed within the mold)

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 Assignment 3(c) Example 10.3
A cylindrical riser must be designed for a sand-
casting mold. The casting itself is a steel rectangular
plate with dimensions 7.5 cm x 12.5 cm x 2.0 cm.
Previous observations have indicated that the total
solidification time (TST) for this casting = 1.6 min.
The cylinder for the riser will have a diameter-to-
height ratio = 1.0. Determine the dimensions of the
riser so that its TST = 2.0 min.

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