A Report on

Metal-Casting Processes

By
Jaquelyn Margaret L. Miciano

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 Solidification Process
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)

Metal Casting: Solidification of molten metal poured into

a mold or injected into a die.
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Classification of Solidification Processes

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 Metal-Casting
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

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EXPANDABLE MOLD

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 Sand Casting
1. Sand is mixed with binders
2. Water is compacted around wood or metal pattern
halves to produce a mold.
3. The mold is removed from the pattern, assembled with
cores, if necessary, and metal is poured into the
resultant cavities.
4. After cooling, molds are broken to remove the castings.
5. This process is suitable for a wide range of metals (both
ferrous and non-ferrous), sizes and shape complexity.

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 Sand Casting
Parts of a Sand Casting:
• Pattern is the shape that is to be cast, about which
the Mold is made.
• Mold is the container into which liquid metal, plastic,
or other material is poured in making a casting.
• The Cope is the top half of the casting flask. The Drag
is the bottom part of the flask.
• Pouring Basin - Molten metal is poured through a
pouring basin (cup) and flows through the gating
system

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 Sand Casting
• Sprue - vertical channel through which the molten
metal flows downward into the mold
• Runners - channel to carry molten metal from sprue
to gate
• Gates - portion of the runner through which the
molten metal enters the mold cavity, traps
contaminate, prevents gas buildup and provides for
ease of separation
• Riser (Feeder head) – let out trapped air, reservoirs
to supply the molten metal necessary to prevent
shrinkage during solidification.
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Sand Mold Features

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Steps in Sand Casting

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 Pattern Material Characteristics
TABLE 11.3
a
Rating
Characteristic Wood Aluminum Steel Plastic Cast iron
Machinability E G F G G
Wear resistance P G E F E
Strength F G E G G
Weightb E G P G P
Repairability E P G F G
Resistance to:
Corrosionc E E P E P
Swellingc P E E E E
aE, Excellent; G, good; F, fair; P, poor.
bAs a factor in operator fatigue.
cBy water.
Source : D.C. Ekey and W.R. Winter, Introduction to Foundry Technology. New York.
McGraw-Hill, 1958.
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Metal Match-Plate Pattern

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Pattern Design

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Examples of Sand Cores and Chaplets

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Sand-Molding Machines

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Sequence of Operations for Sand Casting

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Sequence of Operations for Sand Casting

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 Shell-Mold Casting
• Can produce many types of castings with close
dimensional tolerances and good surface finish
at LOW COST
– Mounted pattern is heated (ferrous metal; aluminum)
– Coated with parting agent (silicone)
– Clamped to a box or chamber
• Shell is removed using built-in ejector pins
• Two half shells are made and are clamped
together for pouring
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 Shell-Mold Casting

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 Shell-Mold Casting
A. Composite Molds
B. Sodium Silicate Process
 Also known as Silicate-bonded sand or carbon
dioxide process
 Uses mixture of sand and sodium silicate as binders
C. Rammed Graphite Molding
 Rammed graphite is used to make molds for casting
reactive metals such as Titanium and Zirconium

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 Composite Molds
Made of two or more different materials for molds
Improved dimensional accuracy and surface finish

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 Expendable Pattern Casting
Sand is packed around an expendable polystyrene pattern and the
molten metal burns out the pattern as it fills the mold
Ceramic Molds

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 Ceramic Molds
Slurry = fine grained zircon (ZrSiO4) + aluminum
oxide + fused silica
Pattern may be wood or metal
After setting, ceramic molds are removed, dried,
burned off to remove volatile matter and
baked.

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Shaw Process

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 Shaw Process
• Fireclay backup to give strength to the mold
• For casting steel dies used in hot forging
• Expensive process

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 Investment Casting
• Also called lost-wax process
• First used 4000 – 3000 BC
• The pattern is made of wax or of a plastic by molding or
rapid prototyping techniques
• Term investment derives from the fact that the pattern
is invested with the refractory material
• Need careful handling because they are not strong
enough to withstand the forces involved in mold making
• Wax can be recovered and reused
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 Investment Casting
• A refractory material (investment) is poured
around or built up on a pattern
• The investment is hardened by drying or
heating
• The pattern is removed by melting or burning
• Metal is poured into the resulting cavity

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 Investment Casting
• Wax is injected into a metal mould to make
patterns, which are connected to a common sprue
to form a tree.
• The tree is repeatedly dipped in ceramic slurry and
dried, followed by heating to remove the wax.
• The ceramic shell is preheated, filled with molten
metal and broken after cooling to get the castings.
• This is suitable for castings in any metal with small
and intricate shape and thin walls.

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 Investment
Casting

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 Steps in Investment Casting
1. WAX INJECTION : Wax replicas of the desired castings are
produced by injection molding. These replicas are called patterns.

2. ASSEMBLY : The patterns are attached to a central wax stick,

called a sprue, to form a casting cluster or assembly.

3. SHELL BUILDING : The shell is built by immersing the assembly in

a liquid ceramic slurry and then into a bed of extremely fine sand.
Up to eight layers may be applied in this manner.

4. DEWAX : Once the ceramic is dry, the wax is melted out, creating
a negative impression of the assembly within the shell.

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 Steps in Investment Casting
5. CONVENTIONAL CASTING
In the conventional process, the shell is filled with molten metal by gravity
pouring. As the metal cools, the parts and gates, sprue and pouring cup
become one solid casting.

6. KNOCKOUT
When the metal has cooled and solidified, the ceramic shell is broken off by
vibration or water blasting.
7. CUT OFF
The parts are cut away from the central sprue using a high speed friction
saw.

8. FINISHED CASTINGS
After minor finishing operations, the metal castings--identical to the original
wax patterns--are ready for shipment to the customer.

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Permanent Mold or Gravity Die Casting

• Molten metal is poured

• under gravity into a cast iron mould coated
with a ceramic mould wash. Cores can be
• made of metal or sand. After solidification, the
mould is parted and casting is removed.
• This process is mainly suitable for non-ferrous
metal castings having medium size,
• complexity and thickness.

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 Vacuum-Casting Process
Molten metal is forced into the mold under vacuum

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 Vacuum Casting
1. Mixture of fine sand and urethane is molded over metal
dies a cured with amine vapor
2. The mold is partially immersed into molten metal held in
an induction furnace
3. The metal is melted in air or in a vacuum
4. The molten metal is usually 55 C above the liquid
temperature – begins to solidify within a fraction of a
second
5. Alternative to investment, shell-mold, and green-sand
casting
6. Relatively low cost
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 Pressure Casting
• Used a graphite or metal mold
• Molten metal is forced into the mold by gas
pressure
• The pressure is maintained until the metal
solidifies in the mold
• Used for high-quality castings

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 Pressure Casting
• Molten metal is injected under pressure into a
hardened steel die,
• often water-cooled. Metal cores are used to
produce cavities and undercuts. After
• solidification, one half of the die is moved and
the casting is pushed out by ejector pins.
• This process is suitable for non-ferrous castings
of small to medium size, varying
• complexity and thin walls.

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Pressure Casting

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 Die Casting
• Further example of permanent-mold casting
• Molten metal is forced into the die cavity at pressures ranging
from .7MPa – 700MPa
• Parts made from here range from:
– Hand tools
– Toys
– Appliance components
• There are two basic types of die casting machines
– Hot-chamber - involves the use of a piston to push molten
metal in to the die cavity
– Cold-chamber – molten metal is poured in to the injection
chamber & the shot chamber is not heated

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 Hot- and Cold-Chamber Die-Casting
• ( • (
a b
) )

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 Die-Casting Die Cavities
The ratio of die weight to part weight is 1000 to 1

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Cast-in- place inserts in Die Casting
Grooved Threaded Rod
Knurled Bushings

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 Centrifugal Casting
• Utilizes the inertial forces caused by rotation to
distribute the molten metal in to the mold cavities
• First used in the 1800’s
• Molten metal is poured into a rotating mold and
centrifugal force pushes the metal against the mold
Three types of centrifugal casting
– True centrifugal casting
– Semi centrifugal casting
– Centrifuging

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Centrifugal Casting Process

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 Semi-centrifugal Casting
Molten metal is forced into the molds by centrifugal force
Wheels with spokes can be casted by this process

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 Squeeze-Casting
Semi-solid metal is forced under pressure into
the mold, useful for composites.

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 Process Advantages Limitations
Summary of Sand Almost any metal cast; no limit Some finishing required;
Casting Processes to size, shape or weight; low somewhat coarse finish; wide
tooling cost. tolerances.

Shell mold Good dimensional accuracy and Part size limited; expensive
surface finish; high production patterns and equipment
rate. required.

Expendable pattern Most metals cast with no limit Patterns have low strength and
to size; complex shapes can be costly for low quantities

Plaster mold Intricate shapes; good Limited to nonferrous metals;

dimensional accu- racy and limited size and volume of
finish; low porosity. production; mold making time
relatively long.

Ceramic mold Intricate shapes; close Limited size.

tolerance parts; good surface
finish.

Investment Intricate shapes; excellent Part size limited; expensive

surface finish and accuracy; patterns, molds, and labor.
almost any metal cast.

Permanent mold Good surface finish and High mold cost; limited shape
dimensional accuracy; low and intricacy; not suitable for
porosity; high production rate. high-melting-point metals.

Die Excellent dimensional accuracy Die cost is high; part size

and surface finish; high limited; usually limited to
production rate. nonferrous metals; long lead
time.

Centrifugal Large cylindrical parts with Equipment is expensive; part

good quality; high production shape limited.
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