WORKSHOP

CASTING
DEFINITION :

Casting is a manufacturing process

in which a liquid material is usually
poured into a mold ,which contains
a hollow cavity of the desired shape,
and then allowed to solidify.
The solidified part is also known as
a casting,which is ejected or broken
out of the mold to complete the process .
 TYPES OF CASTING PROCESS

1) Exapandable / collapsable casting process

2) Permanent casting process

Expandable casting process :

Expandable mold casting is a process that utilizes
reusable molds , for low volume or single use production
to produce metal components . Types of expandable
mold casting are :

● Plaster mould casting

● Ceramic mould casting
● Investiment mould casting
● Sand casting
● Shell moulding
● Vaccum moulding
● Expanded polysterene
PERMANENT CASTING PROCESS :

Permanent mold casting is a process in which

molten metal is poured into a metal mold made
from steel or cast iron to create new metal pieces.
The metal mold is called a permanent mold because
it can be reused .

(or)

If mould be being used again and again is called

permanent mold casting.Types of permanent
mould casting are:

● Die casting
● Centrifugal casting

-True centrifugal
- Semi centrifugal
-Centrifuging
● Low pressure casting
● Vaccum casting
● Squeeze casting
 TOOLS REQUIRED

The common hand tools in foundry work as following :

1) SHOVEL : It is an iron pan fitted with a wooden or metal handle.

It is used in mixing and conditioning the sand manually
and transfering it to the flask.

2) HAND RIDDLE : It consists of wooden frame fitted with a standard

wire mesh fitted at the bottom side,used for sorting
out sand from the foreign particles like stones , etc.
3) RAMMERS : Rammers are used for striking the sand mass in the moulding box to pack
it uniformly around the pattern .The common forms of rammers used in
hand hammering are following:

a) Peen hammer : It is wedge shaped construction formed at bottom of

mettalic rod .It is common hand tool and is quite useful
in packing the sand in packets and corners.

b) Hand rammer : It is smaller than former and generally made of wood or

metal and one side is wedge shaped called peen on other
end is solid cylindrical shape .
 c) Floor rammer :It consists of a long steel bar carrying a peen at one end and
flat part on the other . It is larger and heavier tool than all the
above.

4) STRIKE OF BAR : It is flat bar made of wood or iron to strike at the axis and from the top
of a box after ramming.one of its edge made beveled and opposite
side surface is made perfectly smooth and plane.
5) VENT WIRE : It is a thin steel rod or wire carrying a pointed edge at one end and a
wooden handle on the opposite side or a bent look at the other after
ramming and striking of excess sand , it is used to make small holes
called vents through sand mould to allow the exit of gases and steam
during casting .

6) TROWELS : Trowels are used for finishing flat surfaces and joints in mould .
The common shapes of trowels are flat iron pan attached with a
a wooden handle.
7) SLICKS : They are used for repairing and finishing the mould surfaces and edges after
the pattern has been withdrawn.The commonly used slicks are heart ,leaf,
spoon and bead shaped .

8) LIFTERS / CLEANERS : It’s a finishing tool used for repairing and finishing the sand
mould after withdrawal of pattern . They are also used for
removing loose sand from mould cavity.
9) DRAW SPIKE : It’s a tapered steel rod having a loop or ring at it’s one end and other end
is shaped.It’s used to rap and draw patterns from mould .

10) BELLOW : A hand operated bellow is used to blow away the loose or unwanted sand
from the surface and cavity of mould .

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 SAND CASTING

Sand casting process is a thermoforming process by utilizing expendable and

reusable sand to produce castings with complex geometry and structure. Since
the economy of the mold material, sand casting process is the most popular
casting process, and more than 70% casting components are produced via sand
casting globally. Sand casting process is suitable for both ferrous metal and
almost all nonferrous metal as aluminium alloy.
 Preparation for sand casting process

 Making Patterns and Core Box

Fabricate patterns and core boxes according to the designing of sand casting.
The material of patterns and core boxes is made of wood, plastic or metal.
Patterns are used to make sand mold as drag and cope, while core boxes are used to
make sand cores.
• Mold Sand Prefabrication
Mold material for sand casting mainly consists of sand and binder.
There are two kinds of mold sand: green sand and resin sand. Green
sand consists of sand, clay and moisture, which is the most popular process
in sand casting. Resin sand consists of sand and synthetic binder cured physically
and chemically.

• Sand Core Preparation

Sand core is fabricated by utilizing manual labor or machine to fill the resin
sand into the sand box. After sand core is solidified, open the core box and
get the sand core. Sand core is used to insert the sand mold to form the inside
structure of a castings.

• Metal Smelting

Metal smelting is carried out by utilizing smelting furnace to smelt metal alloy.
The aim of smelting process is to get pure molten metal alloy with qualified
chemical property and right pouring temperature.
STEPS INVOLVED IN CASTING PROCESS
1)Pattern Making
2) Sand preparation
3) Mould creation
4) Melting of metal
5) Pouring molten metal
6) Cooling
7) Shake out
8) Fettling
9) Heat treatment
10) Inspection and cleaning
 A TYPICAL SAND CASTING PROCESS

Sand Casting Process Step 1

Place casting flask over the drag pattern, and fill the prefabricated
sand in the flask. Squeeze the sand with pestle, and strickle off the
extra sand to get the drag.
Sand Casting Process Step 2
Turn over the drag, and assemble the cope pattern on the drag
patternwith location pins. Place and locate casting flask over the
cope pattern to make cope.

Sand Casting Process Step 3

Fill the prefabricated sand in the flask with the pouring pins and
riser pins are fixed. Squeeze the sand with pestle, and strickle off
the extra sand to get the cope.

Sand Casting Process Step 4

Disassemble cope and drag. Remove patterns, pouring pins and
riser pins. Make pouring system, which includes pouring basin,
sprue hole, choke, runner and gate.
Sand Casting Process Step 5
Clean up the parting plane. Insert and locate the prefabricated sand
core in the drag. Assemble cope on the drag to get ready for pouring.

Sand Casting Process Step 6

Pour molten metal into the sand mold via pouring system until
molten metal overflow from riser. The castings is cooled and
solidified in the air condition.

Sand Casting Process Step 7

Break away the sand mold and sand core after the castingis cooled and solidified. Cut off the
riser and runner on the castings. After finishing processes as heat treatment, surface treatment,
CNC machining and inspection, the castings is processed to the designed component finally.
THE MAIN TOOLS USED IN SAND CASTING

Riser pin :

A riser, also known as a feeder, is a reservoir built into a metal casting mold to prevent
cavities due to shrinkage. Most metals are less dense as a liquid than as a solid so
castings shrink upon cooling, which can leave a void at the last point to solidify. Risers
prevent this by providing molten metal to the casting as it solidifies, so that the cavity forms
in the riser and not the casting.Risers are not effective on materials that have a large
freezing range, because directional solidification is not possible. They are also not needed
for casting processes that utilized pressure to fill the mold cavity.
Sprue pin :

A sprue is a large diameter vertical channel through which liquid material is introduced into
a mold. It connects the pouring basin to the runner. In many cases it controls the flow of
material into the mold. During casting or molding, the material in the sprue will solidify and
need to be removed from the finished part. It is usually tapered downwards to minimize
turbulence and formation of air bubbles.

Cope and Drag box:

In foundry work, the terms cope and drag refer

respectively to the top and bottom parts of a
two-part casting flask, usedin sand casting.
The flask is a wood or metal frame, which
contains the molding sand, providing support
to the sand as the metal is poured into the
mold. In flaskless molding, the same terms are
used, cope for the top or upper piece and
drag for the bottom or lower piece.
TYPES OF PATTERNS :

● Single piece pattern

• Sweep pattern
• Shell pattern
• Segmental pattern
• Match plate pattern
• Multi piece pattern
• Lose piece pattern
• Gated pattern
• Follow board pattern
• Cope and drag pattern
• Two piece pattern
• Skeleton pattern
Single Piece Pattern
Solid pattern is another name for the single-piece pattern. It is the least expensive casting pattern
available. Casting producers prefer these types of patterns as the rectangular blocks used are
appropriate for simple operations and small-scale manufacturing. It is used to create stuffing boxes
for steam engines.