Solidification Behavior and Detection of Hotspots in Aluminium Alloy

INTERNATIONALJOURNALOFAPPLIEDENGINEERINGRESEARCH,DINDIGUL
Volume1,No 4,2011
Copyright2010AllrightsreservedIntegratedPublishingAssociation
RESEARCHARTICLE
ISSN09764259
Solidificationbehavioranddetectionof HotspotsinAluminiumAlloy
castings:ComputerAidedAnalysisandexperimentalvalidation
RabindraBehera1,Kayal.S1,Sutradhar.G2
1ResearchScholar,DepartmentofMechanicalEngineering,FacultyofEngineeringand
Technology,JadavpurUniversity,Kolkata700032
2 Professor,DepartmentofMechanicalEngineering,FacultyofEngineeringand
Technology,JadavpurUniversity,Kolkata700032
rabi_lisha@yahoo.com
ABSTRACT
Manufacturingofsoundcastingisthemainaimforfoundrymen.Toachievethisnumberof
trialcastinghascarriedoutontheshopfloorandonerepetitioncantakeupaweekormore,
whichaffectstheregularproduction.Manyresearchersreportedthatabout90%ofthedefects
in castings are due to wrong design of gating & risering system and only 10% due to
manufacturingproblems. Castingsimulationprocesscanabletoovercometheseproblems.It
hasobservedthatvarioustypeofsimulationsoftwarehasusedinfoundry,outofwhich FEM
and VEM based casting simulations are widely used in foundry. In the present paper, a
benchmark model has considered to study the solidification behavior of aluminium alloy
(LM6) and detection of hot spots in castings with the help of mentioned above casting
simulationsoftwares.Thesimulatedresultsalsocomparedwiththeexperimentalworks.
Keywords:Sandcastings,Moldfilling,solidification,HotspotandSimulation.
1.Introduction
Casting,oneoftheeconomicalmanufacturingprocessesusedinindustries,isacomplicated
process, which involves considerable metallurgical and mechanical aspects. The rate of
solidification governs the microstructure largely, which in turn controls the mechanical
propertieslikestrength,hardness,machinability,etc.Thelocation,sizeandshapeofriserina
castingdependonthegeometryofthecasting,moulddesignandthermalpropertiesofmetal,
oldandotherprocessparameters.Wrongdesignedriserresultseitherdefectivecastingwith
shrinkagecavityorloweryield,asdirectionalsolidificationhasnotachieved.Hence,proper
design of risering system and good control over the process parameters are necessary for
qualitycastings.Fromrealisticconsiderations,theexperimentalroutesarealwaysbetterfor
design and development of mould and for arriving at the optimum process parameters.
However, it is costly, time consuming, and may be impossible in some cases. Therefore,
casting simulation process is a convenient way of proper design of risering system and
analyzingtheeffectofvariousparameters.Therearenumberofcastingsimulationsoftware
are developed and are used in foundry worldwide. The application of casting simulation
softwares are also increasing day to day in Indian foundry as it essentially replaces or
minimizestheshopfloortrialstoachievethedesiredinternalqualityatthehighestpossible
time.ThelistofvariouscastingsimulationsoftwareshavegivenintheTable1.
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Table 1:Alistofcastingsimulationprograms,alongwiththeirvendoraddresses
SYSTEM
VENDOR
AFSOLID
AFS,INC.,505STATESTREETDESPLAINES,ILLINOIS60016
USA
AUTOCAST ADVANCEDREASONINGTECHNOLOGIESPVT.LTD.,MUMBAI
400703,INDIA
FLOW3D
FLOWSCIENCE,INC.,125740TH STREET,LOSALAMOS,NEW
MEXICO87544USA
MAGMASOFT MAGMAGmbH,KACKERSTRASSE11,52072AACHEN,
GERMANY
NOVASOLID NovaCastABSOFTCENTER,SRONNEBY,37225SWEDEN
ProCAST
SIMTEC
UESSOFTWARE,INC.,4401DATONEXENIAROAD,DAYTON,
OHIO,45432USA
RWPGmbH,ALTHAARENERSTRASSE251D52080AACHEN,
GERMANY
Themaininputsforthecastingsimulation processare
The geometry of the mould cavity (3D model of the casting, feeders, and gating
channels),
Thermophysical properties (density, specific heat, and thermal conductivity of the
castmetalaswellasthemouldmaterial,asafunctionoftemperature),
Boundaryconditions(i.e.themetalmouldheattransfercoefficient,fornormalmould
aswellasfeedaidsincludingchills,insulationandexothermicmaterials),
Processparameters(suchaspouringrate,timeandtemperature).
There were lot of research work had been done on casting simulation by using different
casting simulation softwares. Such as Prabhakara Rao et.al studied on the simulation of
mouldfillingsolidificationofcastingofgreensandductileironcastingsandconcludedthat
the useof casting simulation software like Pro CAST canableto eliminate the defects like
shrinkage, porosity etc. in the casting. It also improves yield of the casting, optimize the
gatingsystemdesignandthemouldfilling.B.Ravi Studied onoptimizationofmoldcavities,
feeders and gating system of an industrial component by using Auto CAST casting
simulationprocess.Authorshownthatthetotaltimeformethoddesignandoptimizationof
the casting reduces to about one hour .B. Ravi also studied on Casting Simulation and
Optimization:Benefits,Bottlenecks,andBestPractices.B.Raviet.al.studiedon 3DJunctions
in Castings: Simulationbased DFM Analysis and Guidelines. They have also studied on
defectlikeshrinkageporosityatcastingof3DjunctionssuchasL/V,T/YandX/K. Authors
were predicted the location of shrinkage porosity by casting solidification simulation, and
correctedbyminormodificationtopartdesign.Authorswereinvestigatesthebestvaluesand
ratiosofjunctionparametersbyusingcastingsimulationsoftwarelikeAutoCAST.
In the present work, simulation of mould filling, solidification behavior of green sand
aluminium alloy castings have carried out by using VEM based and FEM based casting
simulationprocess andtheeffectofriserneckonthe natureofsolidificationhave studied.
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Authoralsodetectsthelevelofporosity,locationofhotspotandrateofsolidificationofmetal
withrespecttotime.
2.Objectivecomputermodelingofsolidificationofcastings
Manycomputersimulationprogramsnowexist,butsomerequirecomputersofapowernot
generallyavailabletopracticalfoundrymen,whileotherstakeanunacceptablylongtimeto
obtainmeaningfulresults.
Theaimofcomputermodelingisto:
Predictthepatternofsolidification,indicatingwhereshrinkagecavitiesand
associateddefectsmayarise.
Simulatesolidificationwiththecastinginvariouspositions,sothattheoptimum
positionmaybeselected.
Calculatethevolumesandweightsofallthedifferentmaterialsinthesolidmodel.
Provideachoiceofqualitylevels,allowing,forexample,thehighlightingor
ignoringofmicroporosity.
Performoverarangeofmetals,includingsteel,whiteiron,greyironandductile
ironandnonferrousmetals.
3.Numericalsimulationofsolidification
Thenumericalsimulationofsolidificationinvolvesthefollowingsteps
a.Formulationofanaccuratemathematicalmodelofthesolidificationprocess
b.Specifyingaccuratevaluesforthermalpropertiesofmaterialinvolved.
c.Performingtheanalysistoobtainthetemperaturehistoryofcastingandmouldpoints.
d.Post processingtheresultstovisualizethesolidificationthesolidificationpatternand
identifydefectsinthecasting
Thesolidificationofthemoltenmetalinthemouldcavitytakeplaceduetoheattransferfrom
themetaltomould(showninFigure1) [9],whichfollowsanunsteadyheattransferequation
i.e.
Theheatfluxacrossthemetal mouldinterface=h x T
where,
h=heattransfercoefficient
T=Temperaturedifferenceacrosstheinterface.
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Figure 1: Heattransferbetweenmetal mouldinterface

3.1SolidliquidInterface
Theenergybalancehasobtainedbyequatingtherateofheatremovedfromthesolidphaseto
thesumoftherateofheatsuppliedtotheinterfacefromtheliquidphaseandtherateofheat
liberated at the interface during solidification. Hence, Ksc and K lc are the thermal
conductivity of the solid and liquid metal respectively. The L denotes the latent heat, n
denotesthenormaltothesurface(Directionofheattransfer)andsdenotesfractionsolidified
(Thatreleasethelatentheat).
3.2CastingMouldInterface
Beforetheairgapformation,heattransferredfromcastingtomouldbyconduction.GivenTc
and Tm are the temperature of the casting and mould the temperature at casting mould
interfacecanbefoundfromheatflux
After air gap formation, heat transfer is by convection and radiation. Thus the heat flux
equationbetweencastingandmouldsideis
+ T=
Where,Tcs andTms arethetemperatureatthecastingandmouldsideoftheinterface,isthe
Boltzmannsconstant,istheemissivity,andFistheformfactor.
4.Resultanddiscussion
4.1.Analysisofmouldfillingbysimulationprocess
Thegatingdesignhasdrivenbytheidealmouldfillingtime,whichdependsonthecastmetal,
casting weight and minimum wall thickness. Fast filling leads to turbulencerelated defects
(such as mould erosion, air aspiration and inclusions). On the other hand, slow filling may
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cause defects related to premature solidification (such as cold shuts and missruns). To
optimize the gating design, the program simulates themould filling and computes the total
filltime.
Thecasting simulationsoftwareshavesolvedformouldfillingandsolidificationprocessesat
thesametime.ThediscussionaboutmouldfillinghassolelybasedonVEMbasedandFEM
basedcastingsimulationresults.Inthepresentinvestigation,abenchmarkstudyonstepped
(three) casting has considered, shown in Figure2 and four 3D models of the casting has
preparedwith their gating and riseringsystem byusingsolid works software withdifferent
sizeofriserneckatconstantsizeofriser.Thesizeofriseranditsneckofdifferentmodels
have given in the Table2 and the different parameters used in casing simulation processes
have given in Table3. The mould filling processes at different step has visualized from
Figure3(ac).Ithasfoundthatforeverysuccessionofonesecond,thefractionofsolidand
temperaturesarechanging(encompassessprue,ingate,castingandfeeder)willbefilledup.
Due to the design of taper sprue and unpressurized gating system (gating ratio 1:1.5), the
molten metal enters the mould through gate andrises almost uniformly in the cavityof the
mould until it has completely filled up. This is a good filling because it ensures no sand
erosioninthemouldandsolidificationofliquidmetalimmediatelystartsinthemouldcavity.
On changing the dimension of the riser neck, the total mould filing time is not so much
changed.Thetotalmouldfillingtimeisapprox.6.111 secondincaseallmodels.
Table 2: Dimensionofgatingsystem,riserandriserneck
Ingate
Size
Riser
Height
Riser
Diameter
NeckHeight
Neck
Diameter
Model 1
10mm.x12mm.
82.00mm
55.00mm
6mm
18.00mm
Model 2
10mm.x12mm.
82.00mm
55.00mm
6mm
22.00mm
Model 3
10mm.x12mm.
82.00mm
55.00mm
6mm
40.70mm
Model 4
10mm.x12mm.
82.00mm
55.00mm
Noriserneck
Table3:TheInput ParametersforCasting Simulation
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Figure 2: 3Dmodelofthecasingpartwithitsriseringsystem
(a)At step150
(b)Atstep200
(c)At step590
Figure 3(ac): Mouldfillingatdifferentstepformodel I,using FEM basedcasting

simulation software.
4.2.Analysisofsolidification andhotspotsincastingsbyusingsimulationsoftwares
Thesolidificationofliquidmetalinthemouldcavitytakesplaceimmediatelyafterentering
into the cavity. For the cast materiali.e.LM6,solidification will start when the temperature
drops below 5720C and fully completed beneath 5700C. Solidification is a result of heat
transferfrominternalcastingtoexternalenvironment.Asitwasasteppedcasting,therateof
solidificationisnotuniformthroughoutthecasting.Thesolidificationofliquidmetalinthe
mould cavity starts from the edges of the casting and it progress towards the center of the
casting.Thesolidificationfrontdirectedfromthethinnestsectiontowardsthethickestsection
andthethinnersectionsolidifiesquickercomparisontothethickestsection.Thepositionof
hotspot detected in different casting models. It has observed that the position of hotspot
changed due to change in diameter of riser neck keeping the riser size constant. The
dimensionsofshrinkagedefectsarealsodifferentatdifferentriserneck.
4.3ModelI
TheinputparametersforcastingsimulationinallcasesaresameasgivenintheTable2and
thesizeofgatingandriseringsystemhas givenintheTable1.InmodelI,thesizeofriser
neck is 18.0mm i.e. about 33% of riser diameter. The Figure 4 (ac) shows the simulated
results obtained by using FEM based casting simulation of modelI, the simulated results
indicated thatthe shrinkage defect and shrinkage porosity remains in the casting. The same
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results are also found in the simulated results ofVEM based casting simulation, shown in
Figure5andtheactualcastingshown inFigure6.TheFigure7 showsthecutsectionofthe
casting. However, theposition of hot spot in the actual castingisalmost matching with the
simulatedresultobtainedbyProCASTandMAGMAsoft.TheAutoCASTsimulatedresult
showsslightlydifferenttotheactualcasting.
(a)Atstep1330
(b)At step1350
(c)Porosityinthecasting
Figure 4:Solidificationsimulationofthecastingusing FEMbased castcastingsimulation

software
(a&b)Fractionofsolid(F.S.)at differentstepand(c) Porosityinthecasting
Figure 5: SolidificationsimulationofthecastingusingVEMbasedcastcastingsimulation
software.
Figure 6:CastingofmodelI
Figure7:Sectionofcastingwithshrinkagedefect
4.4ModelII
ThegatingandriseringofthethreesteppedcastinghasgivenintheTable1.InmodelII,the
sizeofriserneckis22.0mmi.e.about40%oftheriserdiameterforthesamegatingsystem.
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The Figure8 (ac) shows the simulated results obtained by using FEM based casting
simulation,thesimulatedresultsindicatedthatthenoshrinkagedefectpresentinthecasting
but,slightlyshrinkageporosityvisibleatthebottomoftheriserneck.Thesimulatedresultof
VEM based simulation process has shown inFigure9, theresult indicates thata very small
sizeofhotspotpresentatthebottomoftheriserneck.TheFigure10showsthecutsections
of the actual casting, it has observed that casting is sound and there is neither shrinkage
defect norporosity inthe casting. This result almostsame as the simulated resultsobtained
fromthethreecastingsimulationsoftwares.
(a)Atstep1400
(b)Atstep1420
Figure 8:Solidificationsimulationofthecastingusing FEMbased castcastingsimulation

software
(a&b)Fractionofsolid(F.S.)atdifferentstepand(c)Porosityinthecasting.
Figure 9: Solidificationsimulationofthecastingusing VEMcastingsimulationsoftware.
Figure10:Sectionofcastingshowsnoshrinkagedefect
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4.5ModelIII
ThegatingandriseringofthethreesteppedcastinghasgivenintheTable1.Forthemodel
III,thesizeofriserneckis40.7mmi.e.about74%oftheriserdiameter,forthesamegating
system.TheFigure11 (ac)showsthesimulatedresultsobtainedbyusing FEMbasedcasting
simulation thesimulatedresultsindicatedthattheverysmallshrinkagedefectandporosity
visible at the bottom of the riser neck of the casting. The simulated result of VEM based
simulation process has shows in Figure12 the result indicates that small size of hot spot
present at the bottom of the riser neck. The Figure13 shows the cut sections of the actual
casting,ithasobservedthatasmallshrinkagedefectpresentatthebottomoftheriserneckin
thecasting.Thisresultmatchedtosomeextentwiththesimulatedresultsofthethreecasting
simulationsoftwares.
(a)Atstep1580
(b) Atstep1600
(c) Porosityinthe
casting
Figure11:Solidificationsimulationofthecastingusing FEMbased castcastingsimulation
software,(a &b)Fractionofsolidatdifferentstepand(c) Porosityinthecasting.
Figure12:Solidificationsimulationofthecastingusingautocastcastingsimulationsoftware.
Figure13:Sectionofcastingwithshrinkagedefect
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4.6ModelIV
For the modelIV, no riser neck has used with the risering system of the casting. The
Figure14(ac)showsthesimulatedresultsobtainedbyusingFEMbasedcastingsimulation,
thesimulatedresultsindicatedthatthepositionofthehotspotmovingtowardstheriserand
the porosityin the casting visible at the bottomof the riser. The simulated result of VEM
basedcastingsimulationhasshowninFigure15theresultindicatesthatasmallsizeofhot
spotpresentinthecastingatthebottomoftheriser.TheFigure16showsthecutsectionsof
the actual casting, it has observed that the casting having neither shrinkage defect nor
porosity. This result matched with the simulated results of FEM & VEM based casting
simulationsoftware.
(a)Atstep1410
(b)Atstep149.
Figure14:SolidificationsimulationofthecastingusingFEMbasedcastcastingsimulation
software,(a&b)Fractionofsolid(F.S.)atdifferentstepand(c)Porosityinthecasting.
Figure15:SolidificationsimulationofthecastingusingVEMbasedcastingsimulation
software.
Figure16:Sectionofcastingshowsnoshrinkagedefect.
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The above simulation and experimental work shows that the riser neck plays a vital role
castingprocess.Theuseofcastingsimulationprocesscanabletooptimizethedesignofriser
neckinveryshorttimecomparabletotheconventionalmethods.
5.Conclusion
The application of computeraided methoding, solid modeling, and casting simulation
technologiesinfoundriescanabletominimizethebottlenecksandnonvalueaddedtimein
castingdevelopment,asitreducesthenumberoftrialcastingrequiredontheshopfloor.In
addition, the optimization of riser neck reduces or completely removes the occurrence of
shrinkagedefectinthecasting.Theapplicationof castingsimulationsoftwarebasedonfinite
element method and vector element method, shows good results and matched with the
experimental results. The benchmark study reveals that the use of casting simulation
softwares reduces the iteration time for modification of methoding and to reach at a safe
designofriserneck.Ithasalsoproventobeveryusefulforverifyingthemanufacturability
of a casting and improving it by minor modifications to part geometry, before freezing the
design in early stages of product lifecycle. Application of casting simulation softwares in
foundriescanbeabletooptimizethesizeandthepositionoftheriserneck toavoidshrinkage
defectinthecasting.
Acknowledgement
AuthorsthankfullyacknowledgethefinancialsupportprovidedbyU.G.C,NewDelhiunder
MajorResearchProjectGrant[F.No.3288/2006(SR)dated09.03.2007]withoutwhich
thisworkcouldnotbeattempted.
6.References
1. Application of Commercial Software Package Procast to the Prediction of Shrinkage
Porosityin InvestmentCastings.www.mmat.ubc.ca/databases/ Details.asp?id=354,accessed
duringFebruary,2011.
2. Viswanathan, W.D.Porter, Using of Simulation in Optimizing Mould Filling, AFS
Transactions98(59), pp.477483.
3. Ravi, B. and Joshi, D., (2007) Feedability Analysis and Optimisation Drivenby Casting
Simulation,IndianFoundryJournal,53(6), pp.7178.
4.PrabhakaraRao,P.,Chakravarthy,G.,S.Kumar,A.C. andSrinivasaRao,G.(2009),57th
IndianFoundry Congress,Computerizedsimulation ofsandcastingprocessInstituteofIndia
Foundrymen,Kolkata,February.
5. Ravi, B. (2008), Casting method optimization driven by simulation, Minerals & Metals
ReviewMarch,54(1), pp.3943.
6. Ravi, B. (2008), Casting Simulation and Optimisation: Benefits, Bottlenecks, and Best
Practices,IndianFoundryJournal,54(1),4752.
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7.Joshi,D.andRavi,B.(2008),ClassificationandSimulationbasedDesignof3DJunctions
in Castings,American FoundrySociety.
8.Ravi,B.andSrinivasan,M.N.(1990),HotspotsinCastingscomputeraidedLocationand
ExperimentalValidation,TransactionsoftheAFS, 98, pp.353357.
9.Ravi,B.(2005),Metal Casting: ComputerAidedDesignandAnalysis,PrenticeHallIndia,
NewDelhi,1st edition.
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INTERNATIONALJOURNALOFAPPLIEDENGINEERINGRESEARCH,DINDIGUL

Figure 1: Heattransferbetweenmetal mouldinterface

Table3:TheInput ParametersforCasting Simulation

Figure 3(ac): Mouldfillingatdifferentstepformodel I,using FEM basedcasting

Figure 4:Solidificationsimulationofthecastingusing FEMbased castcastingsimulation

Figure 8:Solidificationsimulationofthecastingusing FEMbased castcastingsimulation

Figure 9: Solidificationsimulationofthecastingusing VEMcastingsimulationsoftware.

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