Effect of casting/mould interfacial heat transfer during solidification of aluminium alloys cast in CO2-sand mould

The ability of heat to flow across the casting and through the interface from the casting to the mold directly affects the evolution of solidification and plays a notable role in determining the freezing conditions within the casting, mainly in foundry systems of high thermal diffusivity such as chill castings. An experimental procedure has been utilized to measure the formation process of an interfacial gap and metal-mould interfacial movement during solidification of hollow cylindrical castings of Al-4.5 % Cu alloy cast in CO₂-sand mould. Heat flow between the casting and the mould during solidification of Al-4.5 % Cu alloy in CO₂-sand mould was assessed using an inverse modeling technique. The analysis yielded the interfacial heat flux (q), heat transfer coefficient (h) and the surface temperatures of the casting and the mould during solidification of the casting. The peak heat flux was incorporated as a dimensionless number and modeled as a function of the thermal diffusivities of the casting and the mould materials. Heat flux transients were normalized with respect to the peak heat flux and modeled as a function of time. The heat flux model proposed was to estimate the heat flux transients during solidification of Al-4.5 % Cu alloy cast in CO₂-sand moulds.     

Effect of melt superheat and chill material on interfacial heat-transfer coefficient in end-chill Al and Al-Cu alloy castings

Solidification of metal castings inside moulds is mainly dependent on the rate of heat removal from the metal to the mould. During casting solidification, an air gap usually develops at the interface between the solidfying metal and the surrounding mould or chill. This condition occurs in most casting geometries, except in some cases such as the cast metal solidifying around a central core. An overall heat-transfer coefficient, which includes all resistances to heat flow from the metal to its surroundings can be determined. The objective of this work was to determine the overall heat-transfer coefficient,h, using experimental and computersimulation results on commercial purity aluminium and Al-4.5 wt% Cu alloy solidifying in a vertical end-chill apparatus. The cast ingots had a cylindrical shape with 12.5 mm diameter and different lengths of 95 and 230 mm. It solidified at different superheats (ranging from 50–110 °C) against two different chill materials: copper, and dry moulding sand. A computer program solving the heat-conduction equation and taking into consideration the convection in the melt, was used to compute the temperature history at numerous points along the ingot length. Differenth values were assumed as a function of time, until agreement between experimental and computed cooling curves was obtained. The variation ofh as a function of time, surface temperature, specimen length for each melt superheat and chill material was found. The thickness of the air gap was also evaluated. The results indicate that the variation of heat-transfer coefficient with time followed a pattern of sudden increase for the first few seconds, followed by a steady state, after whichh decreased and reached another lower constant value. Theh values were also found to decrease rapidly when the liquidus temperature was reached in the melt. For longer specimen and higher melt superheat, the heat-transfer coefficient increased. It was also higher for a copper than for a sand chill.     

Effect of melt superheat on heat transfer coefficient for aluminium solidifying against copper chill

Solidification of metal castings inside moulds is mainly dependent on the heat flow from the metal to the mould which is in turn proportional to an overall heat transfer coefficient h which includes all resistances to heat flow such as the presence of an air gap. In the present work the heat transfer coefficient is determined using a directional solidification set-up with end chill for solidifying commercial-purity aluminium with different superheats (40 K and 115 K) against copper chill. A computer program solving the heat conduction and convection in the solidifying metal is used together with the experimental temperature history in order to determine the heat transfer coefficient at the interface. The variation of h as a function of time, surface temperature and gap temperature for each melt superheat is found. The results indicate that h reaches a maximum value for surface temperature close to the liquidus. The analysis of heat flux from the metal to the mould indicates that it is mainly by conduction. The air gap size is evaluated with time, surface temperature and with melt superheat. It is found that higher h values and smaller gap sizes are obtained with higher superheats.     

Stochastic modeling of columnar-to-equiaxed transition in Ti–(45–48 at%) Al alloy ingots

A two-dimensional (2-D) stochastic model of macro–micro type for predicting the columnar-to-equiaxed transition (CET) during solidification processes of the large size Ti–(45–48 at%) Al alloy ingots is developed in this paper. The macroscopic part is based on a finite differential method (FDM) for modeling of heat transfer. The microscopic part consists of a cellular automaton method (CA) for modeling of nucleation and growth. The formation of a shrinkage cavity at the top of ingot is taken into account. The effects of casting variables on CET are presented and discussed. A quantitative relation between CET position and casting variables is obtained. The columnar zone is found to expand with decreasing alloy composition, mold-preheated temperature and convection, and increasing the thermal conductivity of mold, superheat and heat transfer coefficient.     

Dendritic solidification microstructure affecting mechanical and corrosion properties of a Zn4Al alloy

In the present article some important trends have been shown regarding the relationship between solidification variables, microstructure, mechanical and corrosion properties of Zn-4 wt%Al alloy castings. The aim of the present work is to investigate the influence of heat transfer solidification variables on the microstructure of Zn-4 wt%Al castings and to develop correlations with mechanical and corrosion properties. Experimental results include transient metal/mould heat transfer coefficient (h_i), secondary dendrite arm spacings (λ₂), corrosion potential (E_Corr), corrosion rate (i_Corr), ultimate tensile strength (σ_u) and yield strength (σ_y) as a function of solidification conditions imposed by the metal/mould system. It was found that a structural dendritic refinement provides both higher corrosion resistance and better mechanical properties for a hypoeutectic Zn4Al alloy.     

The effects of cell spacing and distribution of intermetallic fibers on the mechanical properties of hypoeutectic Al–Fe alloys

The aim of the present investigation was to contribute to provide a basis for understanding how to control solidification parameters, microstructure and mechanical strength of Al–Fe alloys. Upward directional solidification experiments have been carried-out with commercially pure Al and Al–0.5 wt.% Fe, Al–1.0 wt.% Fe and Al–1.5 wt.% Fe alloys. The tensile tests results have been correlated to cell spacing (λ₁), since cellular growth has prevailed along all obtained Al–Fe castings. The used casting assembly was designed in such way that the heat was extracted only through the water-cooled system at the bottom of the casting. In order to investigate the nature of Al–Fe intermetallic fibers, they were extracted from the aluminum-rich matrix by using a dissolution technique. These fibers were then investigated by SEM-EDAX microscopy. It was found that the ultimate tensile strength, yield tensile strength and elongation increase with decreasing cell spacing. The highest ultimate tensile strength was that obtained for the most refined microstructure, i.e. for the Al–1.5 wt.% Fe alloy sample, where a higher density of eutectic fibers was found distributed in a more homogeneous way along the casting section due to lower cell spacings. In contrast, the elongation was found to decrease with increasing solute content.     

Microstructural investigations on as-cast and annealed Al–Sc and Al–Sc–Zr alloys

Al–Sc and Al–Sc–Zr alloys containing 0.05, 0.1 and 0.5 wt.% Sc and 0.15 wt.% Zr were investigated using optical microscopy, electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction. The phase composition of the alloys and the morphology of precipitates that developed during solidification in the sand casting process and subsequent thermal treatment of the samples were studied. XRD analysis shows that the weight percentage of the Al₃Sc/Al₃(Sc, Zr) precipitates was significantly below 1% in all alloys except for the virgin Al0.5Sc0.15Zr alloy. In this alloy the precipitates were observed as primary dendritic particles. In the binary Al–Sc alloys, ageing at 470 °C for 24 h produced precipitates associated with dislocation networks, whereas the precipitates in the annealed Al–Sc–Zr alloys were free of interfacial dislocations except at the lowest content of Sc. Development of large incoherent precipitates during precipitation heat treatment reduced hardness of all the alloys studied. Growth of the Al₃Sc/Al₃(Sc, Zr) precipitates after heat treatment was less at low Sc content and in the presence of Zr. Increase in hardness was observed after heat treatment at 300 °C in all alloys. There is a small difference in hardness between binary and ternary alloys slow cooled after sand casting.     

Effects of Sn addition on as-cast microstructure, mechanical properties and casting fluidity of ZA84 magnesium alloy

The effects of Sn addition on the as-cast microstructure, mechanical properties and casting fluidity of the ZA84 magnesium alloy are investigated. The results indicate that adding 0.5–2.0 wt.%Sn to the ZA84 alloy not only can result in the formation of Mg₂Sn phase but also can refine the Mg₃₂(Al, Zn)₄₉ phase and suppress the formation of Mg₃₂(Al, Zn)₄₉ phase, and with the increase of Sn amount from 0.5 wt.% to 2.0 wt.%, the morphology of Mg₃₂(Al, Zn)₄₉ phase gradually changes from coarse continuous and/or quasi-continuous net to relatively fine quasi-continuous and/or disconnected shapes. In addition, adding 0.5–2.0 wt.%Sn to the ZA84 alloy can improve the tensile and creep properties, and casting fluidity of the alloy. Among the Sn-containing ZA84 alloys, the ZA84 alloy added 1.0 wt.%Sn exhibits the best ultimate tensile strength, elongation and casting fluidity while the ZA84 alloy added 2.0 wt.%Sn has the best yield strength and creep properties.     

On the growth of the minority phase during downward transient directional solidification of hypomonotectic and monotectic Al–Pb alloys

Al–Pb alloys were solidified under non steady heat flow conditions using a casting assembly in order to promote vertical downward directional solidification. The downward configuration enables the effects of gravity-driven convection on the final microstructure to be evaluated since the collective movement of Pb-rich particles downwards is favored, due to density differences between the two coexisting liquid phases. Investigations have been made of the obtained solidification structures. Growth rates (v) and cooling rates ( \mathop T^· \mathop T\limits^{\cdot} ) of the Al–Pb alloys solidified downwards were experimentally determined by the cooling curves recorded along the casting length. The monotectic structure was characterized by metallography and a microstructural transition has been observed in all cases. The microstructure was characterized by well-distributed Pb-rich droplets in the aluminum-rich matrix from the casting cooled surface up to a certain position in the casting, followed by a mixture of fibers and strings of pearls from this point to the bottom of the casting. The increase in alloy lead content delays the formation of fibers for alloys solidified downwards, which occurs for v < 0.48 mm/s and v < 0.15 mm/s for Al–0.9 wt%Pb and Al–1.2 wt%Pb alloys, respectively. Experimental power laws relating the interphase spacing, λ, to v and characterized by −2.0 and −6.5 exponents, were found to represent the growth of droplets and fibers, respectively, for both alloys solidified downwards.     

Estimation of air gap and heat transfer coefficient at different faces of Al and Al–Si castings solidifying in permanent mould

Abstract

In the casting processes, the heat transfer coefficient at the metal/mould interface is an important controlling factor for the solidification rate and the resulting structure and mechanical properties. Several factors interact to determine its value, among which are the type of metal/alloy, the mould material and surface conditions, the mould and pouring temperatures, casting configuration, and the type of gases at the interfacial air gap formed. It is also time dependent. In this work, the air gap formation was computed using a numerical model of solidification, taking into consideration the shrinkage and expansion of the metal and mould, gas film formation, and the metallostatic pressure. The variation of the air gap formation and heat transfer coefficient at the metal mould interface are studied at the top, bottom, and side surfaces of Al and Al–Si castings in a permanent mould in the form of a simple rectangular parallelepiped. The results show that the air gap formation and the heat transfer coefficient are different for the different casting surfaces. The bottom surface where the metallostatic pressure makes for good contact between the metal and the mould exhibits the highest heat transfer coefficient. For the sidewalls, the air gap was found to depend on the casting thickness as the larger the thickness the larger the air gap. The air gap and heat transfer coefficient also depend on the surface roughness of the mould, the alloy type, and the melt superheat. The air gap is relatively large for low values of melt superheat. The better the surface finish, the higher the heat transfer coefficient in the first few seconds after pouring. For Al–Si alloys, the heat transfer coefficient increases with increasing Si content.     

Solidification modelling

The modelling of solidification of a metal/alloy in a mold cavity is increasingly becoming popular with numerous attempts being made to understand the phenomena that occur at the level of the casting (macro level) and that which occur at the microscopic level (micro level). In this paper, an attempt has been made to describe the phenomena occurring at both the macro and the micro levels. At the macro level, the effect of fluid flow on various thermal and solidification parameters has been studied. The results were compared with simulations carried out considering conduction alone and with experimental results. The relative importance of including fluid flow on solidification simulation of a casting has been brought out. At the micro level, an algorithm based on the macro-micro model to take the melt superheat into account while numerically predicting the grain size and dendritic arm spacing at different locations of an Al-7% Si alloy sand casting has been developed. The results are compared with the experimental values.     

Enhanced room-temperature tensile ductility of columnar-grained polycrystalline Cu-12 wt.%Al alloy through texture control by Ohno continuous casting process

The Ohno continuous casting (OCC) process is a practical way to control the solidification texture of Cu-12 wt.%Al alloy with a perfect < 001>β fiber texture along the solidification direction. Compared with the conventional randomly oriented polycrystalline Cu-12 wt.%Al alloy, the reorientation of β₁′ martensite and stress-induced phase transformation occurred at the same time within every columnar grain sharing the same [001]β orientation during tensile test, which would reduce the elastical and phase-transformational incompatibility and enhance the intergranular accommodation. As a consequence, a high tensile ductility up to 28% with transgranular fracture can be obtained for OCC columnar-grained Cu-12 wt.%Al alloy instead of intergranular fracture due to the incompatible stress at the grain boundary for randomly oriented polycrystalline Cu-12 wt.%Al alloy.     

Interfacial Thermal Resistance and the Solidification Behavior of the Al/SiCp Composites

The objective of this investigation is to study the effects of applied pressure on the solidification time and interfacial thermal resistance of A356/10% SiC_p during squeeze casting. Samples were prepared for various but constant squeeze pressures up to 130 MPa while maintaining the melt and mold temperatures at 800°C and 400°C, respectively. It was observed that the solidification time was 60 s when no squeeze pressure was applied but it decreased to 42 s when the squeeze pressure was maintained at 130 MPa. The results also showed that the cooling rate increased with squeeze pressure. The solidification time calculated from one-dimensional heat flow theory was found to be close to that obtained from the experimental cooling curves. The interfacial thermal resistance between the mold and the casting was calculated and it decreases when the squeeze pressure increases.     

Hot tearing mechanisms of B206 aluminum–copper alloy

In this study, the mechanisms of hot tearing in B206 aluminum alloy were investigated. Castings were produced at three mold temperatures (250 °C, 325 °C and 400 °C) and with two levels of titanium (0.02 wt% and 0.05 wt%) to investigate the effects of cooling rate and grain refinement. A constrained-rod casting mold attached to a load cell was used to monitor the contraction force during solidification and subsequently determine the onset temperature of hot tearing in B206. The corresponding onset solid fraction of hot tearing was estimated from the solid phase evolution of α-Al in B206 using in situ neutron diffraction solidification analysis. Hot tears were found to occur at solid fractions ranging from 0.81 to 0.87. Higher mold temperatures significantly reduced hot tearing severity in B206 but did not alter the onset solid fraction. In contrast, additions of titanium to B206 were effective at eliminating hot tears by transforming the grain structure from coarse dendrites to finer and more globular grains. Finally, in situ neutron diffraction solidification analysis also successfully determined the solid phase evolution of intermetallic Al₂Cu during solidification, which in turn, provided a better understanding of the role of Al₂Cu in the development of hot tears in B206.     

Microstructure development and mechanical properties of rapidly solidified Ti–Fe and Ti–Fe–Bi alloys

Even though rapidly solidified Ti–Fe eutectic alloys may achieve good mechanical strength, increase in ductility is already a task to be accomplished. Addition of tin and arrangements of nano- and ultrafine-grain metallic materials have been shown as potential alternatives to overcome such drawback. Also, to address this problem, it seems that alternative alloy chemistries and processing routes must be adopted when manufacturing Ti-based alloys. In the present investigation, Ti–26 wt.%Fe (Ti–24.5 at.%Fe) and Ti–20 wt.%Fe–3 wt.%Bi (Ti–18 at.%Fe–0.7 at.%Bi) alloys have been prepared in a stepped copper mold using centrifugal casting. The as-cast Ti–Fe(–Bi) microstructures were formed by equiaxial arrangements of cells. Finer cell spacing (λ_c) was associated with the Ti–20 wt.%Fe–3 wt.%Bi alloy. The results include cell spacing measurements, segregation profile by X-ray fluorescence (XRF), uniaxial compression tests, optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). A wide variation on the scale of the microstructure was noted especially in the case of the Ti–26 wt.%Fe alloy with the λ_c varying from 11−30 μm. This is due to the different cooling conditions of each diameter along the as-cast rod. Hall–Petch type equations are proposed relating σ_max to λ_c. Bi was dissolved in the β-Ti solid solution as well as TiFe compound formed in the cellular structure of the Ti–20 wt.%Fe–3 wt.%Bi.     

Aluminium and Al–4·5Cu alloy end chill: structural observation and heat flow analysis

Abstract

End chill experiments were performed on aluminium and Al–4·5Cu (wt-%) in order to study the effect of melt superheat (20–150 K), chill material (copper, iron, or sand), and specimen length (890–230 mm) on the type and size of macrostructure. Increasing melt superheat increases the length of columnar zone, which is shorter for the alloy than for the commercial purity metal. The columnar fraction increases with the thermal conductivity of the chill material and the heat transfer coefficient. The results are correlated with the temperature gradient, solidification rate, and growth rate obtained from a heat flow model. The columnar to equiaxed transition is found to occur at a critical temperature gradient and growth rate. These critical values differ with alloy composition. The grain size of columnar and equiaxed grains is found to follow a power relationship with solidification rate.

MST/1709     

Microstructural characterization and high cycle fatigue behavior of investment cast A357 aluminum alloy

In order to observe the influence of strontium (Sr) modification and hot isostatic pressing (HIP) on an aluminum–silicon cast alloy A357 (AlSi7Mg0.6), the microstructure and the high cycle fatigue behavior of three batches of materials produced by investment casting (IC) were studied. The parts were produced by an advanced IC proprietary process. The main process innovation is to increase the solidification and cooling rate by immersing the mold in cool liquid. Its advantage is to produce finer microstructures. Microstructural characterization showed a dendrite arm spacing (DAS) refinement of 40% when compared with the same part produced by conventional investment casting. Fatigue tests were conducted on hourglass specimens heat treated to T6, under a stress ratio of R = 0.1 and a frequency of 25 Hz. One batch of material was unmodified but two batches were modified with 0.007% and 0.013% Sr addition, from which one batch was submitted to HIP after casting. Results reported in S–N diagrams show that the addition of Sr and the HIP process improve the 10⁶ cycles fatigue strength by 9% and 34% respectively. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) observation of the fracture surfaces showed a variety of crack initiation mechanisms. In the unmodified alloy, decohesion between the coarse Si particles and the aluminum matrix was mostly observed. On the other hand, in the modified but non HIP-ed alloy, cracks initiated from pores. When the same alloy was subjected to HIP, a competition between crystallographic crack initiations (at persistent slip bands) and decohesion/failure of intermetallic phases was observed. When compared to fatigue strength reported for components produced by permanent mold casting, the studied material are more resistant to fatigue even in the unmodified and non HIP-ed states.     

Mechanical properties of rolled A356 based composites reinforced by Cu-coated bimodal ceramic particles

Three kinds of A356 based composites reinforced with 3 wt.% Al₂O₃ (average particle size: 170 μm), 3 wt.% SiC (average particle size: 15 μm), and 3 wt.% of mixed Al₂O₃–SiC powders (a novel composite with equal weights of reinforcement) were fabricated in this study via a two-step approach. This first process step was semi-solid stir casting, which was followed by rolling as the second process step. Electroless deposition of a copper coating onto the reinforcement was used to improve the wettability of the ceramic particles by the molten A356 alloy. From microstructural characterization, it was found that coarse alumina particles were most effective as obstacles for grain growth during solidification. The rolling process broke the otherwise present fine silicon platelets, which were mostly present around the Al₂O₃ particles. The rolling process was also found to cause fracture of silicon particles, improve the distribution of fine SiC particles, and eliminate porosity remaining after the first casting process step. Examination of the mechanical properties of the obtained composites revealed that samples which contained a bimodal ceramic reinforecment of fine SiC and coarse Al₂O₃ particles had the highest strength and hardness.     

Abrupt Increase of the Absorption Coefficient of Alumina at Melting by Laser Radiation and Its Decrease at Solidification

Experimental data for the normal-hemispherical reflectivity R of remolded aluminum oxide ceramics for wavelengths of (0.488, 0.6328, 1.15, and 3.39) μm and effective (radiance) temperatures T _eff1 and T _eff2 for wavelengths of 0.55 μm and 0.72 μm were obtained in the process of rapid subsecond heating by CO₂ laser radiation in air and vacuum from room temperature to the formation of thin molten layers of 0.6 mm to 0.7 mm thickness and of subsequent rapid free cooling with solidification of the melt when the laser radiation was blocked. Experimentally and by numerical simulation of combined radiation and conduction heat transfer, the influence of the heating radiation flux on the formation of the thin melt on the surface of ceramics with an abrupt increase of T _eff1 and T _eff2 and on the signal of the spectrometer in the infrared range from 2 μm to 11 μm at melting and on its decrease at solidification were studied. The radiation heat flux varied from 500 W · cm⁻² to 2000 W · cm⁻². It is shown that the determining effect on the temperature field and on the intensity of outgoing radiation is caused by the formation of the isothermal continuous two-phase zone and the abrupt increase (decrease) of the absorption coefficient of the melt. The importance of kinetics in the abrupt change of the absorption coefficient of molten Al₂O₃ is noted.