Performance of heavy ductile iron castings for windmills

The main objective of the present paper is to review the specific characteristics and performance obtaining conditions of heavy ductile iron(DI) castings,typically applied in windmills industry,such as hubs and rotor housings.The requirements for high impact properties in DI at low temperatures are part of the ENGJS-400-18U-LT(SRN 1563) commonly referred to as GGG 40.3(DIN 1693).Pearlitic in-uence factor(Px) and antinodularising action factor(K1) were found to have an important in-uence on the structure and mechanical properties,as did Mn and P content,rare earth(RE) addition and inoculation power.The presence of high purity pig iron in the charge is extremely beneficial,not only to control the complex factors Px and K1,but also to improve the 'metallurgical quality' of the iron melt.A correlation of C and Si limits with section modulus is very important to limit graphite nodule flotation.Chunky and surface-degenerated graphite are the most controlled graphite morphologies in windmills castings.The paper concluded on the optimum iron chemistry and melting procedure,Mg-alloys and inoculants peculiar systems,as well as on the practical solutions to limit graphite degeneration and to ensure castings of the highest integrity,typically for this field.

Influence of shrinkage porosity on fatigue performance of iron castings and life estimation method

Shrinkage porosity exists more or less in heavy castings, and it plays an important role in the fatigue behavior of cast materials. In this study, fatigue tests were carried out on the QT400-18 cast iron specimens containing random degrees of shrinkage porosity defect. Experimental results showed that the order of magnitude of life scattered from 103 to 106 cycles when the shrinkage percentage ranged from 0.67% to 5.91%. SEM analyses were carried out on the shrinkage porosity region. The inter-granular discontinuous, micro cracks and inclusions interfered with the fatigue sliding or hindering process. The slip in shrinkage porosity region was not as orderly as the ordinary continuous medium. The shrinkage porosity area on fracture surface(SPAFS) and alternating stress intensity factor(ASIF) were applied to evaluate the tendency of residual life distribution; their relationship was fitted by negative exponent functions. Based on the intermediate variable of ASIF, a fatigue life prediction model of nodular cast iron containing shrinkage porosity defects was established. The modeling prediction was in agreement with the experimental results.

Low temperature impact strength of heavy section ductile iron castings:effects of microstructure and chemical composition

A foundry research project has been recently initiated at RTIT in order to better understand the fabrication of as-cast heavy section DI parts meeting high impact energy requirements at low temperatures.The experimental castings have the following dimensions 180 mm x 180 mm x 190 mm.The achieved as-cast Charpy impact strengths were as follows:17 J (RT),16 J (-20℃) and 11 J (-40℃).The foundry process,the chemical composition and the microstructure of this experimental casting are compared to the ones of various examples in order to show the detrimental effects of residual elements,microshrinkage and microcarbide on the impact properties.Finally,quality index empirical models (based on casting chemical compositions) are used to analyse the impact tests results.This paper illustrates that an adequate nodule count can contribute to reducing the detrimental effects of the residual elements and microsegregation.

Graded coal-its role in iron casting production from greensand systems

Coal has often been regarded as a problem additive to solve and improve the surface finish of iron castings,but at the same time causes other issues such as increased loss on ignition,total fines and moisture in system sands.Although many altermatives have been tried,there is no real substitute for thw all round properties of this wonderful natural resource.With the correct choice of coal,the combination of low ash,high volatile and swell index properties coupled with the key element of grading size,ensures castings are produced free from metal penetration and surface related problems.By careful selection,safe handling and processing coal continues to offer a good simple cost effective solution.Coal is subject to regulations in storage,processing and transportation and then further subjected to safe handling and use by the foundry.Despite these handicaps,it is still economical to the end user and modern processing and grading methods ensure it is used in the optimum condition to help produce quality castings.

A Mathematical Model for Predicting Shrinkage Defect of Ductile Iron Castings

The shrinkage defect of a ductile iron casting is attributed to the volume variations occurring in solidification, which consist of liquid contraction, solidification shrinkage, graphitization expansion, and mold cavity enlargement. Based on this understanding, a mathematical model for predicting the shrinkage defect of the casting is developed, in which the volume variations of the casting in soli- dification are numerically simulated, especially, the mold cavity enlargement is quantitatively calculated. Moreover, the reliability of the model is verified in production and experiment.

Numerical Simulation of Shrinkage Cavity Formation in Spheroidal Graphite Iron Castings Based on Micro Modeling

A micro-modeling method (MM) for the quantitative prediction of the shrinkage cavity formation in SGiron castings is proposed. The mathematical models describing the volume changes during the solidification ofspheroidal graphite cast iron are established based on the models of solidification kinetics. The shrinkage cavityformation of T-shaped SG iron castings is calculated with MM method. The calculated results are compared with theexperimental results. It is shown that the predicted size, shape and distribution of shrinkage cavity by MM methodare in good agreement with the measured results.

Optimization of casting conditions for heat and abrasion resistant large grey iron castings

Numerical simulation technology was applied for optimizing the casting design and conditions in large cast iron castings for marine engine. By the simulation of mold filling and solidification sequences the problems of the previous casting conditions were analyzed and marked improvements for large cylinder liner parts were derived from these results. Especially the amount and positions of chills were optimized to increase the mechanical properties and to minimize the shrinkage and microporosity in the castings. Ultrasonic testing, penetration testing and mechanical property testing were carried out for the parts with the modified casting conditions. It showed that no defects in the castings were found and the productivity could be distinctly increased. The mechanical properties satisfied also the specification demanded.

Determining the Thermal Conductivity in Walls of Cast Iron Castings by the Ultrasound Technique

Research results concerning the application of ultrasound technique for determining the averaged thermal conductivity in walls of castings produced of cast iron(solidifying in a steady system)containing carbon precipitates in a graphite form,are presented in the hereby paper.Investigations concern castings of unalloyed cast iron.The influence of the form of graphite precipitates on the cast iron thermal conductivity as well as on the propagation velocity of the ultrasound wave,including the longitudinal wave velocity CL,was investigated in the study.The influence of the graphite form,described by the shape indicator(f),on the thermal conductivity(l)(determined on samples by the steady heat flow method)as well as the influence of this indicator(f)on the wave propagation velocity(CL),was investigated.A series of melts of cast iron,of the near eutectic chemical composition,were performed.Magnesium introduced in a wide range,allowed obtaining various graphite forms from flake,via mixed,vermicular to nodular.Dependences:l=f(CL),CL=f(f)were determined and at the final phase the empirical dependencel=f(CL)was also determined.The thermal conductivity and ultrasound wave velocity were tested on the same samples.The thermal conductivity coefficient of cast iron(l)was changing in a wide range from approximately 32 to 46 W/s·m,while the wave velocity CL respectively:from approximately 4,300 to 5,800 m/s.The empirical dependencel=f(CL),determined in the described variability ranges,is of a linear character and the correlation level equals:R2=0.87.The validation of the experimental results was performed on cast iron castings of slag ladles,since they are required to be of a good thermal conductivity.The possibility of assessing the thermal conductivity directly in walls of such castings by means of non-destructive ultrasound method,was confirmed.The real thermal conductivity determined in the walls of the castings is used to simulate the heating and cooling process of slag ladles,ingot molds and similar structures,which was one of the main objectives of the research.

Extension of Flow Behaviour and Damage Models for Cast Iron Alloys with Strain Rate Effect

Cast iron alloys with low production cost and quite good mechanical properties are widely used in the automotive industry.To study the mechanical behavior of a typical ductile cast iron(GJS-450)with nodular graphite,uni-axial quasi-static and dynamic tensile tests at strain rates of 10^(-4),1,10,100,and 250 s^(-1)were carried out.In order to investigate the influence of stress state on the deformation and fracture parameters,specimens with various geometries were used in the experiments.Stress strain curves and fracture strains of the GJS-450 alloy in the strain rate range of 10^(-4)to 250 s^(-1)were obtained.A strain rate-dependent plastic flow model was proposed to describe the mechanical behavior in the corresponding strain-rate range.The available damage model was extended to take the strain rate into account and calibrated based on the analysis of local fracture strains.Simulations with the proposed plastic flow model and the damage model were conducted to observe the deformation and fracture process.The results show that the strain rate has obviously nonlinear effects on the yield stress and fracture strain of GJS-450 alloys.The predictions with the proposed plastic flow and damage models at various strain rates agree well with the experimental results,which illustrates that the rate-dependent plastic flow and damage models can be used to describe the mechanical behavior of cast iron alloys at elevated strain rates.The proposed plastic flow and damage models can be used to describe the deformation and fracture analysis of materials with similar properties.

Surface Graphite Degeneration in Ductile Iron Castings for Resin Molds

The objective of this paper is to review the factors influencing the formation of degenerated graphite layers on the surfaces of ductile iron castings for chemical resins-acid molding and core-making systems and how to reduce this defect. In the resin mold technique the sulphur in the P-toluol sulphonic acid （PTSA）, usually used as the hardener, has been identified as one factor causing graphite degeneration at the metalmold interface. Less than 0.15% S in the mold （or even less than 0.07% S） can reduce the surface layer depth. Oxygen may also have an effect, especially for sulphur containing systems with turbulent flows in the mold, water-bearing no-bake binder systems, Mg-Silica reactions, or dross formation conditions. Despite the lower level of nitrogen in the iron melt after magnesium treatment （less than 90 ppm）, nitrogen bearing resins have a profound effect on the frequency and severity of surface pinholes, but a limited influence on surface graphite degeneration.

Optimized DISA system parameters of a thin-wall malleable iron pipe casting by numerical simulation

The filling and solidification of a malleable iron pipe casting manufactured by DISA casting mold line with different design parameters were calculated by using software MAGMASOFT. Then the shrinkage porosity was predicted by thermal criterion. Based on the simulation results, the influences of the runner ratio and feeder position on the porosity were discussed. The results show that synchronization of injection can be significantly influenced by the size of downsprue section, and an de-sign structure of DISA gating system was used to solve the problem of flow imbalance in the filling procegs. At the same time, the riser was designed on the hotspot for feeding shrinkage. At last, the optimizated gating system and feeding system were ac-complished to eliminate shrinkage porosity.

Effect of vibration frequency on primary phase and properties of grey cast iron fabricated by lost foam casting

The properties of gray cast iron(GCI)are affected by density of matrix,size of flake graphite and primary austenite.In this paper,the Y-type specimen of GCI was prepared by lost foam casting(LFC)with and without vibration,and the influence of vibration frequency on the density of matrix,size of primary phase,and properties of the GCI was studied.The results show that the length of the flake graphite and the size of the primary austenite in GCI firstly decrease and then increase with the increase of the vibration frequency.With a vibration frequency of 35 Hz,the length of the flake graphite is the shortest,the primary austenite is the finest and the density of the matrix is the highest.In addition,the tensile strength,elongation and hardness of the GCI firstly increase and then decrease with the increase of the vibration frequency,due to the refinement of the primary phase and the increase of the matrix density.In order to analyze the refinement mechanism of the primary phase of the GCI fabricated by the LFC with vibration,the solidification temperature fields of the GCI fabricated by the LFC with the vibration frequency of 0 and 35 Hz were measured.The results show that the vibration reduces the eutectic point of the GCI and increases the supercooling degree during the eutectic transformation.As a result,the length of the flake graphite and the size of the primary austenite in GCI fabricated by LFC with the vibration frequency of 35 Hz decrease.

High Cr white cast iron/carbon steel bimetal liner by lost foam casting with liquid-liquid composite process

Liners in wet ball mill for mineral processing industry must bear abrasive wear and corrosive wear, and consequently, the service life of the liner made from traditional materials, such as Hadfield steel and alloyed steels, is typically less than ten months. Bimetal liner, made from high Cr white cast iron and carbon steel, has been successfully developed by using liquid-liquid composite lost foam casting process. The microstructure and interface of the composite were analyzed using optical microscope, SEM, EDX and XRD. Micrographs indicate that the boundary of bimetal combination regions is staggered like dogtooth, two liquid metals are not mixed, and the interface presents excellent metallurgical bonding state. After heat treatment, the composite liner specimens have shown excellent properties, including hardness 〉 61 HRC, fracture toughness ak 〉16.5 J.cm2 and bending strength 〉1,600 MPa. Wear comparison was made between the bimetal composite liner and alloyed steel liner in an industrial hematite ball mill of WISCO, and the results of eight-month test in wet grinding environment have proved that the service life of the bimetal composite liner is three times as long as that of the alloyed steel liner.

Centrifugal Casting of High Speed Steel/Nodular Cast Iron Compound Roll Collar

The centrifugal casting of compound HSS/nodular cast iron roll collar was studied,and the factors affecting transition zone quality were analyzed.The pouring temperature and interval in pouring are the main factors affecting transition zone quality.By controlling process parameter and flux adding during casting,high quality roll collar was obtained.The cause,why in the casting of HSS part,segregation appears easily,was analyzed and the countermeasure eliminating segregation was put forward,the measure eliminating heat treatment crackling was also put forward.

Microstructural and mechanical characteristics of Al-alloyed ductile iron upon casting and annealing

Ductile iron containing 6.16wt% A1 was developed to investigate the effects of aluminum on both its microstructure and hardness. It was found that aluminum not only increases the nodule count and pearlite content but also improves the hardness in both sand mold and metal mold castings. Annealing treatments were conducted to attain a homogenous microstructure and improve high-temperature serviceabil- ity. A ferrite/carbide or ferritic matrix was gained depending on the annealing temperature. It is also discovered that annealing has inverse in- fluences on the hardness of the bulk alloy and the ferrite phase. Although it causes a small decrease in the bulk hardness of the specimens, it leads to an increase in the microhardness of the ferrite. Micro-segregation of the alloying elements was also investigated by means of electron probe micro-analysis for the specimens with different annealing durations and the as-cast specimen as well. An optimum annealing time was proposed to result in the least amount of micro-segregation of aluminum and silicon between graphite nodules.

Microstructure and Property of Hypereutectic High Chromium Cast Iron Prepared by Slope Cooling Body-Centrifugal Casting Method

In this paper, the ring-type ingot of hypereutectic high Cr cast iron was obtained by slope cooling bodycentrifugal casting method （SC-CCM）, and its microstructure and impact toughness were investigated, respectively. The results indicated that, first, the primary carbides in the microstructure are prominently finer than those in the hypereutectic high Cr cast iron prepared by conventional casting method. Second, in the ring-type ingot, the primary carbides near radial outer field are finer than those near radial inner field; furthermore, there is dividing field in the microstructure. Finally, the impact toughness values of the specimens impacted on the radial outer face and on the radial inner face are improved respectively about 36% and 138% more than that of the hypereutectic high Cr one prepared by conventional casting method.

Fabrication of plain carbon steel/high chromium white cast iron bimetal by a liquid–solid composite casting process

High-chromium white cast iron （HCWCI） is one of the most widely used engineering materials in the mining and cement industries. However, in some components, such as the pulverizer plates of ash mills, the poor machinability of HCWCI creates difficulties. The bimetal casting technique is a suitable method for improving the machinability of HCWCI by joining an easily machined layer of plain carbon steel （PCS） to its hard part. In this study, the possibility of PCS/HCWCI bimetal casting was investigated using sand casting. The investigation was conducted by optical and electron microscopy and non-destructive, impact toughness, and tensile tests. The hardness and chemical composition profiles on both sides of the interface were plotted in this study. The results indicated that a conventional and low-cost casting technique could be a reliable method for producing PCSYdCWCI bimetal. The interfacial microstructure comprised two distinct lay- ers： a very fine, partially spheroidized pearlite layer and a coarse full pearlite layer. Moreover, characterization of the microstructure revealed that the interface was free of defects.

Optimization of Casting Process for Heat and Abrasion Resistant Large Gray Iron Castings

Numerical simulations were used to optimize the casting design and conditions for large cast iron castings for marine engines, Simulations of the mold filling and solidification sequences were used to analyze the problems of previous casting conditions with marked improvements for large cylinder liner parts, The amount and positions of chills were optimized to improve the mechanical properties and to minimize the shrinkage and micro porosity in the castings. Ultra sonic testing, penetration testing, and mechanical property testing show no defects in the castings with the productivity significantly increased.

Construction and analysis of dynamic solidification curves for non-equilibrium solidification process in lost-foam casting hypoeutectic gray cast iron

Most lost-foam casting processes involve non-equilibrium solidification dominated by kinetic factors, while construction of a common dynamic solidification curve is based on pure thermodynamics, not applicable for analyses and research of non-equilibrium macro-solidification processes, and the construction mode can not be applied to nonequilibrium solidification process. In this study, the construction of the dynamic solidification curve(DSC) for the nonequilibrium macro-solidification process included: a modified method to determine the start temperature of primary austenite precipitation(T_(AL)) and the start temperature of eutectic solidification(T_(ES)); double curves method to determine the temperature of the dendrite coherency point of primary austenite(T-(AC)) and the temperature of eutectic cells collision point(T_(EC)); the "technical solidus" method to determine the end temperature of eutectic reaction(T_(EN)). For this purpose, a comparative testing of the non-equilibrium solidification temperature fields in lost-foam casting and green sand mold casting hypoeutectic gray iron was carried out. The thermal analysis results were used to construct the DSCs of both these casting methods under non-equilibrium solidification conditions. The results show that the transformation rate of non-equilibrium solidification in hypoeutectic gray cast iron is greater than that of equilibrium solidification. The eutectic solidification region presents a typical mushy solidification mode. The results also indicate that the primary austenite precipitation zone of lost-foam casting is slightly larger than that of green sand casting. At the same time, the solid fraction(f_s) of the dendrite coherency points in lost-foam casting is greater than that in the green sand casting. Therefore, from these two points, lost-foam casting is more preferable for reduction of shrinkage and mechanical burntin sand tendency of the hypoeutectic gray cast iron. Due to the fact that the solidification process(from the surface to center) at primary austenite growth area in the lost-foam cylinder sample lags behind that in the green sand casting, the mushy solidification tendency of lost-foam casting is greater and the solidification time is longer.

Microstructural analysis of EN-GJS-450-10 ductile cast iron via vibrational casting

EN-GJS-450-10 ductile cast iron was produced with and without vibration to evaluate microstructural features. To investigate the effect of vibration, a reference, and two different castings having amplitudes of 0.9 mm and 1.8 mm were cast with a fixed vibration frequency of 50 Hz. The nodule count (density), form (type), size distribution, nodularity, and the fraction of graphite, percentages of both ferrite and pearlite phases, length of ferrite shell, and pore, were evaluated via optical microscopy using an image analysis software. It is observed that the microstructure of the cast iron is more uniform by vibrational casting than that by non-vibrational casting. Additionally, mechanical vibration enhances nodule count and nodularity, also, more ferritic matrix could be obtained after the application of vibration. Nodule count and nodularity of vibrational casting with 1.8 mm amplitude increased from 226 nodule per mm2 and 80% to 311 nodule per mm2 and 86.5% of non-vibrational casting. Percentages of ferrite and graphite area dramatically improved from 24% and 16.5% for non-vibrational casting to 57% and 22.3% for vibrational casting with 1.8 mm amplitude, whereas the percentages of pearlite and pores decreased significantly from 56.1% and 5% to 20% and 1%, respectively.