Manufacturing Processes II – PROD1334

PROD1334 – Casting Fundamentals

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 Manufacturing Processes II – PROD1334

Introduction to Casting

The metal casting process involves three

basic steps:
1. Pouring molten metal into a mold cavity.
2. Allowing the metal to freeze, or solidify.
3. Removing the part from the mold.

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Casting Considerations

Important considerations in a
casting operation include:
Flow of molten metal into the
mold cavity.
Solidification and cooling.
Mold material.

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Solidification of Metals

Pure metals and alloys do not solidify the

same way:
Pure metals solidify at one particular
temperature.
Alloys solidify as they cool through a
range of temperature, changing from
liquid, to a mushy consistency, to a
thick paste, and finally to a solid.

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Solidification of Pure Metals

As molten metal cools, it gives
off energy, and its temperature
goes down.
When the metal reaches the
freezing temperature, it
continues to give off heat, but
does not decrease in
temperature.
Instead, the atoms of the metal
rearrange themselves into an
ordered, crystalline solid.
Once this solidification is
complete, continued heat loss
causes further temperature
decrease.
The solidification process
occurs at one particular
temperature.

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 Manufacturing Processes II – PROD1334

Solidification Time

The time taken to solidify a casting depends on:

The amount of metal present. (Big castings
cool slowly.)
The material properties. (Specific heat
capacity, latent heat of solidification,
thermal conductivity).
The heat transfer rate. (Low heat transfer
means slow solidification.)

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Ice Analogy
Consider the solidification of water to make ice
cubes:
Tap water at 10°C placed in a -5°C freezer will lose heat at
a certain rate until the water reaches 0°C.
At this point, ice crystals being to form, and the
temperature of the water (liquid and solid) stays fixed at
0°C until the water is completely frozen.

The time this takes depends on

the rate of heat transfer, which
depends on the ambient
temperature of the freezer,
(among other things.)

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 Manufacturing Processes II – PROD1334

Effects on Solidification Time

Casting Size

Mold Material and Shape

Ambient Temperature

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Solidification Time
Who cares how long a casting takes to
solidify?

Managers who want

high production rates
and high profits.

Technologists and
engineers who want
castings with correct,
well-controlled
properties that come
from a well-controlled
process.
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 Manufacturing Processes II – PROD1334

Alloy Solidification

Freezing Range = TL − TS

Figure 10.4 Schematic illustration of alloy solidification and temperature distribution in the
solidifying metal. Note the formation of dendrites in the mushy zone.
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 Manufacturing Processes II – PROD1334

Freezing Ranges

A short freezing range means less than 50°C.

Examples are ferrous alloys like steel and cast iron, and
of course pure metals. (Zero freezing range.)

A long freezing range means

more than 110°C. Examples
of nonferrous alloys include
most aluminum or
magnesium alloys. Long
freezing ranges are
associated with extensive
dendritic growth.

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 Manufacturing Processes II – PROD1334

Phase Diagrams: Copper-Nickel

•Figure 11-4 Phase diagram and companion cooling curve for an alloy with a freezing
range. The slope changes indicate the onset and termination of solidification.

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 Manufacturing Processes II – PROD1334

Phase Diagrams: Copper-Nickel

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 Manufacturing Processes II – PROD1334

Freezing Range Activity

Identify the liquidus, solidus and freezing range for the following
alloys using the phase diagram shown:

Pure lead (100% Pb)

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 Manufacturing Processes II – PROD1334

Freezing Range Activity

Identify the liquidus, solidus and freezing range for the following
alloys using the phase diagram shown:

Pure tin (100% Sn)

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 Manufacturing Processes II – PROD1334

Freezing Range Activity

Identify the liquidus, solidus and freezing range for the following
alloys using the phase diagram shown:

Pb with 15% Sn

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 Manufacturing Processes II – PROD1334

Freezing Range Activity

Identify the liquidus, solidus and freezing range for the following
alloys using the phase diagram shown:

Tin with 10% lead

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 Manufacturing Processes II – PROD1334

Freezing Range Activity

Identify the liquidus, solidus and freezing range for the following
alloys using the phase diagram shown:

Sn with 38% Pb

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 Manufacturing Processes II – PROD1334

Freezing Range Activity

Freezing
Liquidus Solidus
Alloy Range
(°C) (°C)
(°C)
Pure
Lead
(100%
Pb)

Pure Tin
(100%
Sn)

Tin with
10% lead

Pb with
15% Sn

Sn with
38%Pb

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 Manufacturing Processes II – PROD1334

Nucleation & Growth of Grains

The walls of a mold are cooler than the molten
metal, so this is where solidification begins.
A solid layer forms at the mold wall, and solid crystal
grains grow in the direction opposite the heat
transfer.
Grains that happen to have formed in such a way
that they are directed away from the walls grow
preferentially, and become long columnar grains.
Homogeneous nucleation is the development of tiny
seed crystals, which then grow as solidification
occurs.
Inoculants may be added to the alloy to promote
heterogeneous nucleation inside the casting, away
from the mold walls.

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 Manufacturing Processes II – PROD1334

Cast Structures of Solidified Metals

Figure 10.3 Development of a preferred texture at a cool mold wall. Note that
only favorably oriented grains grow away from the surface of the mold

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Dendritic Growth

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 Manufacturing Processes II – PROD1334

Cast Structures of Solidified Metals

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 Manufacturing Processes II – PROD1334

Solidification of Alloys
Alloys are not pure metals; they are mixtures of
metals, and their solidification is more complex
than for pure metals.
Alloys solidify as they cool through a range of
temperature, changing from liquid, to a
mushy consistency, to a thick paste, and
finally to a solid.
At the beginning of solidification, nucleation
of seed crystals occur and grow as structures
called dendrites.

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 Manufacturing Processes II – PROD1334

Dendrites

Dendrites are tree-like 3-

dimensional structures
whose shape depends
upon the basic crystal
structure that is inherent to
the material.

As they grow, the

material transforms
from liquid to a mushy
consistency, thickening
as the dendrites grow,
thus inhibiting flow.
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 Manufacturing Processes II – PROD1334

Dendrites

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 Manufacturing Processes II – PROD1334

Dendrites

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 Manufacturing Processes II – PROD1334

Dendrites
Dendrites of zinc rescued from
partially solidified melt.

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 Manufacturing Processes II – PROD1334

Nucleation and Growth

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 Manufacturing Processes II – PROD1334

Effect of Cooling Rates

Slow cooling of metal castings results in

large, course dendrites with widely-
spaced branches. (Large grains.)
Rapid cooling, or quenching, results in
smaller finer dendrites; the dendrites
themselves have more tightly-spaced
branches. (Small grains.)

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 Manufacturing Processes II – PROD1334

Grain Size and Material Properties

Small grain size (caused by rapid cooling),

produces better material properties such
as:
Increased strength and ductility;
Less micro-porosity;
Less tendency to crack during
solidification (hot tearing.)

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 Manufacturing Processes II – PROD1334

Solidification of Iron and Carbon Steels

Figure 10.5 (a) Solidification patterns for gray cast iron in a 180-mm (7-in.) square casting. Note that after 11
minutes of cooling, dendrites reach each other, but the casting is still mushy throughout. It takes about two
hours for this casting to solidify completely. (b) Solidification of carbon steels in sand and chill (metal) molds.
Note the difference in solidification patterns as the carbon content increases. Source: After H. F. Bishop and
W. S. Pellini
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Basic Types of Casting Solidification

Figure 10.6 Schematic illustration of three basic types of cast solidification structures: (a)
columnar dendritic; (b) equiaxed dendritic; and (c) equiaxed nondendritic. Source: Courtesy of
D. Apelian

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Cast Structures

Figure 10.7 Schematic illustration of cast structures in (a) plane front, single
phase, and (b) plane front, two phase. Source: Courtesy of D. Apelian

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 Manufacturing Processes II – PROD1334

Cast Structures of Solidified Metals

Figure 10.2 Schematic
illustration of three cast
structures of metals solidified in
a square mold: (a) pure
metals; (b) solid-solution alloys;
and (c) structure obtained by
using nucleating agents.
Source: After G. W. Form, J. F.
Wallace, J. L. Walker, and A.
Cibula

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 Manufacturing Processes II – PROD1334

Segregation During Alloy Solidification

Alloys that solidify very slowly tend to

have uniform composition.
However, in the rapid solidification that
occurs in practical metal casting,
segregation tends to occur.
Segregation means separation, or
nonuniformity, of the elements in an
alloy.

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 Manufacturing Processes II – PROD1334

Microsegregation

Microsegration can occur as dendrites

form; they can “push” alloying elements
ahead of the solidification front,
resulting in a dendrite core with little
alloying elements, and a dendrite
surface with a high concentration of
alloying elements.
This is called a cored dendrite.

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 Manufacturing Processes II – PROD1334

Macrosegregation

Macrosegregation involves a difference in

composition right across the casting.
This can be caused by lower melting
temperature alloying elements being pushed
ahead of the advancing solidification front to
be concentrated at the centre of the casting.
Gravity segregation is a form of
macrosegregation caused by heavy alloying
elements sinking to the bottom of a casting.

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 Manufacturing Processes II – PROD1334

What’s Wrong with These Definitions?

A car is a vehicle with four wheels.

Dendrites are small crystals.
Equiaxed is when everything is the same
size.

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 Manufacturing Processes II – PROD1334

Writing Clear Definitions

Start with identifying the category of the term,
and then provide features or properties that
characterize and distinguish the term to
narrow down the definition. Common
examples are very helpful.

E.g.:
Casting is a manufacturing process in which
molten metal is poured into a mold and
allowed to solidify.
The freezing range is the temperature range
between the solidus and liquidus.
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 Manufacturing Processes II – PROD1334

Example Definitions
A car is a vehicle with four wheels, an engine, and is
primarily used for transporting a small number of
passengers. Examples include the Ford Thunderbird,
Honda Civic and Corvette.
A computer is an electronic device used for storing and
processing information using software and hardware.
Examples include desktop PCs, Macs, servers, laptops,
and PLCs.
A student is a person who is studying, usually at a formal
academic institution such as public school, high school,
college or university.

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 Manufacturing Processes II – PROD1334

Tips for Clear Definitions

Don’t use the phrase “…is when… ”

E.g., Casting is when your pour molten metal
into a mold.

Use examples to explain and narrow

down the definition, especially
examples covered in class.
Don’t use the word you are defining in
your definition.
E.g., Casting is when you cast something.
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 Manufacturing Processes II – PROD1334

Tips for Clear Definitions

Decide whether your term is a thing or

a descriptive term.
If it’s a thing, decide what category of
things it belongs to. (E.g., a process, a
temperature, a material, a piece of
equipment or part of something else.)
If it’s a descriptive term, decide what it
describes. (E.g. it describes a material, a
process, a part, a person.)

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 Manufacturing Processes II – PROD1334

Flawed Definitions: Circular

Definitions can be misleading by being

circular:
Casting is a manufacturing process in
which parts called castings are made.
A student is any person who identifies
himself as a student.
A computer is an electronic device to
perform computer functions.

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 Manufacturing Processes II – PROD1334

Flawed Definitions: Overly-Broad

Definitions can be misleading (or at best

incomplete) by being too broad. They
include things that should be excluded.
Casting is a manufacturing process for
making metal parts.
A student is a person who wants to learn
things.
A computer is an electronic device.

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 Manufacturing Processes II – PROD1334

Flawed Definitions: Overly-Narrow

Definitions can be misleading by being too

narrow. They exclude things that should be
included.
Casting is a manufacturing process for making
water-pump housings.
A student is a person who goes to college.
A computer is an electronic device used for
performing calculations.

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Reading Assignment and Homework

Finish reading Kalpakjian, Chapter 10 for next

class. (Just skim section 10.3; we won’t be
pursuing the equations in this section.)
Watch the video “Metal Casting at Home”
posted on Brightspace under Week 1.
Metal Casting at Home

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