METAL CASTING TECHNOLOGY

DIGITAL ASSIGNMENT 2

SANKET MILIND GANDHI

17BME0023
SLOT: F1
ANSWER 1)
Continuous casting
Continuous casting is a refinement of the casting process for the continuous,
high-volume production of metal sections with a constant cross-section. Molten
metal is poured into an open-ended, water-cooled mould, which allows a 'skin'
of solid metal to form over the still-liquid centre, gradually solidifying the metal
from the outside in. After solidification, the strand, as it is sometimes called, is
continuously withdrawn from the mould. Predetermined lengths of the strand
can be cut off by either mechanical shears or traveling oxyacetylene torches and
transferred to further forming processes, or to a stockpile.
Continuous casting is used due to the lower costs associated with continuous
production of a standard product, and also increased quality of the final product.
Metals such as steel, copper, aluminium and lead are continuously cast, with
steel being the metal with the greatest tonnages cast using this method.

TYPES

Thin Strip Continuous Casting

In strip casting, the steel is cast between two rolls, producing directly a strip of
around 3 mm thickness. The steel is cast between two water-cooled casting
rolls. This results in very rapid cooling and high production speeds. The major
advantage of strip casting is the large reduction in capital costs, due to the high
productivity and integration of several production steps. The technology was
first applied to stainless steel, and later strip casting of carbon steel was also
demonstrated.

Strip casting technology leads to considerable capital cost savings and energy
savings. It may also lead to indirect energy savings due to reduced material
losses. Operations and maintenance costs are also expected to drop by 20–25%,
although this will depend strongly on the lifetime of the refractory on the rollers
used in the caster and local circumstances. Energy consumption of a strip caster
is significantly less than that for continuous casting
Slab casting
Feeding of the caster mold from the tundish is controlled by a stopper rod or a
sliding gate similar to the equipment used in ladles (see above Secondary
steelmaking: The ladle: Tapping). The liquid steel in the tundish must be within
a specific temperature “window”—a range just above its liquidus that is
determined by the steel’s grade; in addition, measures are always taken to keep
air away from the steel in order to minimize reoxidation. Shielding can be
accomplished by pouring steel through refractory tubes that are immersed in the
steel or through wide sleeves that are pressurized with argon. The tundish itself
is covered with a lid and is often also topped with argon. Both ladle and tundish
sit on a turret or transfer car to permit a quick exchange.
The mold is made of copper because of the high heat conductivity of that metal.
It is heavily water-cooled and oscillates up and down to avoid sticking of the
solidified shell to its walls. In addition, the mold wall is lubricated
by oil or slag, which is maintained on the steel meniscus and flows down into
the gap between mold and strand. The slag layer, when used, is formed by the
continuous addition of casting powder. Besides providing lubrication, it keeps
air away from the liquid steel, acts as a heat barrier, and absorbs inclusions.
Many continuous casters contain sensors in the mold for automatically
synchronizing the flow of liquid steel into the mold with the strand withdrawal
speed. As it exits the mold, the strand has a shell thickness of only about 10
millimetres and is immediately water-cooled by spray nozzles.

Rod casting
In continuous rod casting, molten metal is formed into wire or rod using
different methods. Most of the aluminium and copper wires in the world today
are produced using Proper casters. Fewer interruptions in casting allows the
process to stay at a steady state, producing more average tonnes per hour and
maximizing efficiency.

• Increased metal quality

• Fewer bar breaks and inclusions
• Improved start-up
• Reduced downtime
• Longer product life and lower consumable costs
ANSWER 2)

Slush Casting

Introduction:
Slush Casting is a traditional method of permanent mold casting process,
where the molten metal is not allowed to completely solidify in the mold.
When the desired thickness in obtained, the remaining molten metal in
poured out. Slush casting method is an effective technique to cast hollow
items like decorative pieces, components, ornaments, etc.

Process:
Mostly pewter is casted using the slush casting technique. Firstly, a pattern
is made using plaster or wood. Now the pattern is placed on a cardboard or
wooden board. A mold box is kept around the pattern. The unwanted space
that is formed is the mold box can be eliminated by placing a board. Once
the pattern is set the molding material is poured on the pattern and allowed
to set with the molding aggregate. When the mold is set, the pattern is
withdrawn from the mold.

The metal melted completely and poured into the mold which is shaped in
the desired form. Rotate the mold to coat the sides. When the metal settles in
the mold, remaining liquid metal is poured out of the mold. Thus, a hollow
skin metal is formed inside the mold.

If the cast needs to be more thicker, once again molten metal is poured into
the mold and poured out. This process is repeated until the desired thickness
is achieved. In some slush castings, bronze molds are used. When the metal
hardens, the mold is broken to remove the castings. The inside of each cast
retains molten textures while the exterior is smooth and shiny. Bowls and
vases are serially produced by this technique that ensures no two are ever the
same.

Similarly, to cast metals a bowl, a new process designed to capture the

beauty of Pewter and its unique characteristics. Recycled molten Pewter is
swirled inside amould to form a fine skin. The inside of each cast retains
molten textures whilst the exterior is smooth and shiny. Bowls are serially
produced by a technique that ensures no two are ever the same.

Application:
Some casting of pewter is cast using slush casting method. Using pewter and
other metal s mainly hollow products are casted. Decorative and ornamental
objects that are casted are as vase, bowls, candlesticks, lamps, statues,
jewelleries, animal miniatures, various collectibles, etc. Small objects and
components for industry like tankard handle, handles for hollow wares, etc.

Advantage:

• Slush casting is used to produce hollow parts without the use of cores
• The desired thickness can be achieved by pouring our the left over
molten metal
• A variety of exquisitely designed casting can be casted for decorative
and ornamental purpose.
ANSWER 3)

The electroslag casting (ESC) process is used widely in the USSR for the
production of high-quality steel castings. This study examined the reasons for
the process's slow acceptance in North America. It is shown that the mould cost
can be reduced effectively by employing water-cooled aluminium castings in
place of water-cooled fabricated copper moulds. The ESC installation itself can
be built with minimum expenditure in an existing shop. The mechanical
properties of ESC products have been examined and reported and the results
show that ESC castings have properties which are as good as or better than
those of the equivalent commercial forgings. Problems associated with product
qualification under present Code structures are analysed. The economical
evaluation of the ESC process shows that electroslag castings can be cost
competitive with conventional castings.

ADVANTAGES:
1) Uniform mechanical properties in the longitudinal and sectional
direction.
2) Very large ingots such as 3000mm diameter and more than 200ton
weight can be produced.
3) Homogeneous, sound and directionally solidified structure.
4) High degree of cleanliness.
5) Free of internal flaws (e.g. hydrogen flakes).
6) Free of macro-segregation.
7) Smooth ingot surface resulting in a high ingot yield.

LIMITATIONS:
1) Slag treatment to achieve lowest hydrogen in Ingot.
2) Closed melting to avoid hydrogen pick-up from atmosphere.
3) Melt rate adjusted according to slag system, alloy composition and
furnace size.
4) Gases (like nitrogen & hydrogen) need to be adjusted to lowest level in
the electrode.
5) Adjustment of slag chemistry and composition of the electrode.
APPLICATIONS:

AIRCRAFT
MILITARY TECHNOLOGY
THERMAL POWER STATIONS
NUCLEAR POWER PLANTS
CONNECTING ROD
HIGH PRESSURE VESSELS
CRANKSHAFTS
MILLING CUTTERS
ANSWER 4)

A simplified manufacturing process for directionally solidified (DS) and single

crystal (SC) turbine blades has been developed. The process employs “mould
integrated heat flow control” to create the required unidirectional heat flow at
the solidification front. The developers claim improved economics compared
with conventional methods and enhanced freedom for the manufacture of
complex components. Structure and mechanical properties of prototype blades
thus produced are shown to be comparable with parts of conventional
manufacture.
Creating turbine parts that can survive extreme heat has been a major
engineering challenge. Meeting it has required fundamentally rethinking the
material structure of the turbine blades, making metals do things that they do
not normally do in nature. The result has been a largely invisible revolution, but
one that is responsible for much of the ongoing success of the jet age.