INVESTMENT

CASTING

LIMBO
AGBULOS
ESPINA
M E T E 1 6 6 – A D A P T I V E M E TA L L U R G Y I
INTRODUCTION

• Investment Casting
– A metal casting process in which a wax pattern is coated with a
refractory ceramic material.
– Commonly referred to as “Lost wax Casting” because the wax pattern is
melted out of the mold after it has been formed.
– Wax or Polystyrene is used because of its low melting temperature
INTRODUCTION
• Investment Casting
– One of the oldest and most advanced
method of casting that dates back to at least
4th millennium B.C. in China
– In the renaissance period, beeswax was used
as a pattern in molding.
• Example: Perseus with the Head of Medusa,
bronze sculpture by Benvenuto Cellini, 1545
INTRODUCTION
• Investment Casting
– produces net shape parts with excellent surface
finish and dimensional accuracy
– used in excellent for parts with complex and
detailed geometry
– can be applied to about 200 alloys ranging from
ferrous — stainless steel, tool steel, carbon steel
and ductile iron — to non-ferrous — aluminum,
copper and brass.
PROCESS
• Pattern making
– The pattern is designed larger than the desired cast.
– The size of the master die where the pattern is formed is carefully
calculated to consider
1. shrinkage of wax,
2. shrinkage of the ceramic material invested over the wax pattern, &
3. shrinkage of the metal casting.
PROCESS
• Pattern making
– Wax is injected to the desired die by
the use of an injection machine.
PROCESS
• Pattern Assembling
– Separate Patterns are assembled into
spray or cluster around a gating and
feeding system of the same material
so that the whole forms a replica of
the as-cast assembly.
PROCESS
• Investment or Shell Building
– The shell molds are produced by
alternate dip coating of the pattern
assembly in refractory slurry, and
stucco finishing with coarse particles.
– Investments consist of suspensions of
refractory powders in liquid binder
solutions, together with granular
refractory material to form the stucco
layers.
PROCESS
• Pattern Removal and Firing
– Wax patterns are removed by
evaporation. Two principal techniques
are employed for pattern removal:
• steam autoclave treatment
• flash dewaxing
PROCESS

• Pattern Removal and Firing

– Mold firing is commonly carried out at temperatures around 1000°C in
either batch or continuous furnaces.
– The process completes the volatilization and combustion of pattern
residues and organic mold constituents and
the dehydration of the binder, including elimination of combined water.
PROCESS
• Casting
– The molten metal is poured in to
the ceramic mold.
PROCESS

• Finishing
– Investment castings pass through knockout, cleaning and finishing stages.
Blast cleaning is used for the removal of residual mold material, power
saws and abrasive slitting wheels are used to separate the castings.
PROCESS

• Summary
 WHY PREFER INVESTMENT
CASTING?
• Many Intricate forms with undercuts can be cast.
• A very smooth surface is obtained with no parting line.
• Dimensional accuracy is good.
• Certain unmachinable parts can be cast to preplanned shape.
• It may be used to replace die-casting where short runs are involved.
• The lost wax method out performs any other casting process when it
comes to superior surface finishes especially when compared to sand
casted, forged or welded fabrications.
ADVANTAGES

• Reliability
– The investment casting process provides reliable process controls and
repeatability that are maintained from casting to casting
• Tolerances
– Investment Casting routinely holds to tolerances of ± .005”. This is not
always possible with other types of casting processes.
ADVANTAGES

• Better for the Environment

– wax patterns can be reclaimed and used again
• Metal scrap are reduced
– Wax pattern is a great way to see the part before it is cast, thus
eliminating expensive revisions and reducing metal scrap.
– The process produces parts to net or near net shapes which significantly
reduces or eliminates the amount of secondary machining. Most scrap
from secondary services like machining can be reused as well.
ADVANTAGES

• Intricate Design
– When using investment castings, design engineers can easily
incorporate features such as logos, product ID's/numbers, and letters
into their component. Through holes, slots, blind holes, external and
internal splines, gears, and thread profiles can often be cast to reduce
secondary machining time and total part cost.
DISADVANTAGES
• Expensive
– is usually limited to small casting, and presents some
difficulties where cores are involved.
• Time consuming
– Investment castings require very long production-
cycle times versus other casting processes.
• Infeasible for High-volume Manufacturing
– due to its high cost and long cycle times.
DISADVANTAGES

• Some of the reasons for the high cost include

– specialized equipment
– costly refractories and binders
– labor costs for the many operations needed to make a mold
APPLICATIONS

• Aerospace Industry
– From Boeing to NASA, Investment castings are built
ready to integrate, providing significant cost savings
over other manufacturing methods
– Quality has always been top priority, especially for
aerospace components
APPLICATIONS
• Aerospace Industry
– Turbine airfoils
– Aircraft engine
– Industrial gas turbine industries

Boeing 777-APU
duct- Ti-alloy
APPLICATIONS
• Medical Instruments
– Surgical implants on knee &
hip joints

• Ti6Al4V alloys,
Co-Cr-Mo alloys
APPLICATIONS

• Military Equipment
– Military equipment need to meet very tight
tolerances and high quality standards
– Joysticks for drone planes/UAVs
– Gun triggers, hammers & sights
– Trigger guards
– Bolt catches
– Bolt carriers
APPLICATIONS
• Military Equipment
– Selector levers
– Pistol grips
– Tank Control System
– Spare parts and more
APPLICATIONS
• 3D Printing
– Process of making a three-
dimensional solid object of virtually any
shape from a digital model
APPLICATIONS
• 3D Printing
– Used for prototyping and distributed
manufacturing, with applications in
architecture, automotive, military, fashion,
education and many others
APPLICATIONS
• Automotive Industry
– Automotive castings offer the
next generation of weight
reduction, highly complex
designs, and surface finishing
for major automotive
manufacturers worldwide
– Pre-combustion chamber for
tractors, matadors
– Gear shifter for 4 wheelers vehicles
– Water pump body
– Engines
APPLICATIONS

• Other Applications:
– Agricultural, Industrial and other heavy equipment
– Firearms
– Marine Vehicles
– Construction tools & equipment
– Household & Office Fixtures
– Door hardware
– Jewelry