FOUNDRY AND FORGING LAB

Sand Testing

Syllabus

Part A ( Sand Testing) Testing of moulding and core sand

Compression. Tensile and shear tests on universal sand testing machine Permeability test Hardness tests Sieve analysis Clay content test Moisture content test

Part B (Foundry Practice) Use of foundry tools and other equipments Preparation of moulds using two moulding boxes
Part C( Forging operations) Preparing minimum three forged models involving upsetting, drawing and bending operations. Estimation of length of the raw material

MANUFACTURING
The Process of Converting Raw Materials Into Products

Casting

Casting is the process of pouring molten metal in to a mould cavity of required shape & size and allowing for cooling It involves a series of operations

(Six Basic Steps of Casting) 1. Pattern making 2. Core making 3. Mould making 4. Melting 5. Pouring 6. Cleaning

1. 2.

3.
4. 5. 6.

Pattern making Core making Moulding Melting Pouring Cleaning & inspection

Casting

Casting is one of the oldest manufacturing process and even today is the first step in manufacturing most of the products It is based on the property of a liquid to take up the shape of vessel containing it. Products ranging from a few mm to several m and a few grams to several tons

Foundry is the place where metal is melted and casting are produced

Similar to that of making ice cubes in a refrigerator

Casting Terms

Pattern- replica of the part to be cast Molding material- material that is packed around the pattern to provide the mold cavity Flask- rigid frame that holds the molding aggregate Cope- top half of the pattern Drag- bottom half of the pattern Core- sand or metal shape that is inserted into the mold to create internal features

Casting Terms

Mold cavity- combination of the mold material and cores Riser-additional void in the mold that provides additional metal to compensate for shrinkage Gating system- network of channels that delivers the molten metal to the mold Pouring cup- portion of the gating system that controls the delivery of the metal Sprue- vertical portion of the gating system Runners- horizontal Parting line- separates the cope and drag

Preparation of sand mould

SAND CASTING

Before any casting can take place a wooden pattern is made precisely. This is called pattern making and in industry this is a very skilful job. Any inaccuracy at this stage will result in the final cast being wrong or even failing.

Drag is placed inverted on the mould floor and pattern is placed at the center of the box

Preparation of sand mould

Special casting sand will soon be packed around the pattern for easy removal of pattern from parting powder is sprinkled over and around it. It stops the casting sand sticking to the pattern and pulling away with it when the pattern is finally removed from the sand. Casting sand is then shaken through a sieve (called riddled sand) so that only fine particles fall around the pattern. This is called facing sand and it must be fine so that detail on the pattern shows up on the final casting.

Preparation of sand mould

The drag is then packed with more casting sand and then ram it down firmly using a ramming tool. The tool has two ends, one is cylindrical and is used for general packing down of the sand. The other end is quite pointed and this can be used for packing sand close up to the pattern.

When the drag is packed fully it is levelled off (called strickled off ) using a straight steel bar.

Preparation of sand mould

The entire drag and its contents are then turned over so that the base of the pattern can be seen

A top box called a cope is then placed on top of the drag and locating pins are put in position so that the casting boxes cannot move sideways.

Preparation of sand mould

Sprue pins are positioned. One usually on the back of the pattern and the other to the side. These will eventually provide an entrance and exit for the molten aluminium when it is poured into the sand.

The sand is packed/rammed into the cope in the same way as the drag.

Preparation of sand mould

The top box (the cope) is then removed and if all is well the cope with the sand inside should lift off the drag (bottom box) without the sand falling out. A small gate is cut below the position of one of the sprue pins. This will help the molten metal to flow into the cavity left by the mould. Small tools are available or can easily be made to dig a variety of shapes in the casting sand. They are similar to small trowels

Preparation of sand mould

The pattern is removed using a spike. Before removing the pattern it is a good idea to gently tap the spike so that it loosens the pattern from the sand. It can then be lifted away from the casting box (drag). The cope (top casting box) is placed back on top of the drag and the locating pins put in position. Before this is done vents can be created using a thin piece of welding rod, pushing it through the sand . This allows gases to escape once the molten metal is poured.

Preparation of sand mould

The molten metal is poured with great care. The molten metal is poured down the hole left by the first sprue pin (now called the runner). As it runs down the runner it flows through the gate cut by the trowel, into the cavity left by the pattern and up the riser (the hole left by the second sprue pin). The casting should be left for at least an hour before removal from the sand When removed from the sand, the runner and riser are cut away and the casting is ready for machining

Sand Testing

Foundry Sands

Foundry Sands Silica (SiO2) or silica mixed with other minerals Good refractory properties - capacity to endure high temperatures Small grain size yields better surface finish on the cast part Large grain size is more permeable, to allow escape of gases during pouring Irregular grain shapes tend to strengthen molds due to interlocking, compared to round grains Disadvantage: interlocking tends to reduce permeability

Binders Used with Foundry Sands

Sand is held together by a mixture of water and bonding clay Typical mix: 90% sand, 3% water, and 7% clay Other bonding agents also used in sand molds: Organic resins (e g , phenolic resins) Inorganic binders (e g , sodium silicate and phosphate) Additives are sometimes combined with the mixture to enhance strength and/or permeability

Types of Sand Mold

Green-sand molds - mixture of sand, clay, and water;

Green" means mold contains moisture at time of pouring Dry-sand mold - organic binders rather than clay and mold is baked to improve strength Skin-dried mold - drying mold cavity surface of a green-sand mold to a depth of 10 to 25 mm, using torches or heating lamps

Sand testing

Each foundry should draw out a minimum test programme which should be strictly followed for control of the sand system Controlling quality of sand in a foundry is very important as the quality of the casting depends on the quality of the mould sand The quality of the mould and core depends on the sand, binder, additives used & also on the percentage of each of the constituents Sand testing provides clues for improving casting quality Since molding sands and core sands are important in foundry operations, their control and testing is essential Sand control tests are performed on the sand which has been prepared and is ready to be transferred to the moulding section

Testing of mould & core sand

1)Preparation of standard test specimen 2)Mould hardness test 3)Core hardness test 4)Moisture content test on foundry sand 5)Sieve analysis 6)Clay content test 7)Permeability test 8)Compression, shear test

1)Preparation of standard test specimen

The standard specimen is prepared using a standard sand rammer- and specimen tube accessories. The specimen is rammed with three blows. The weight of the ram may be 63-72 N by weight. The ram is dropped from a height of 50mm . The specimen is rammed with three blows- This is the standard procedure. This operation that is ramming sand three times compacts the sand to a standard hardness

2)Mould hardness test

Mold surface hardness is the resistance offered by the surface of a green sand mold An instrument for determining the mold surface hardness shall measure the depth of penetration in to the mold surface of a plunger having a load applied at a
90 angle to the mold surface

3)Core hardness test

Core hardness is the resistance offered by the surface of a dry sand core

4)Moisture content test on foundry sand

In clay bonded sand some moisture is essential to develop working strength. The influence of moisture may be harmful if the proportion is not controlled within the definite limits.

The strength of a sand is also influenced by its moisture content. It is therefore important to make certain that the sand contains the correct percentage of water Two methods i) simply by measuring the weight difference between the green sand and the dry sand, then calculating percentage of moisture = (W1-W2)/W1X100 ii) chemical method: by speedy moisture teller water + calcium carbide= acetylene gas=pressure=pointer

5)Sieve analysis

The grain size is expressed by number known as grain fineness number. For determination of grain fineness number of a given sand sample, a standard sieve set is used. The apparatus consists of eleven sieves- mounted one above the other. The shaker vibrates the sieve by motor arrangement. So the sand placed at the top sieve gets screened and get collected on different sieves of different sizes depending up on the size of the grain. The sieve system is vibrated for some specific period.

6)Clay content test

The necessary bonding strength for moulding sand is clay, so that after ramming the mould doesnt loose its shape. However as the quantity of the clay is increased, the permeability of the sand decreases. Clay is responsible for bonding the sand particles together. It influences strength permeability and other moulding sand properties. Known quantity moulding sand is taken and washed with water and NaOH. Then dried and reweighed The weight of clay is given by the difference between the original weight and weight after washing

7)Permeability test

Gases and water vapour are released in the mould cavity by the molten metal and sand. If they do not find opportunity to escape completely through the mould, they will get entrapped and form gas holes or pores in the casting
The sand must therefore be sufficiently porous to allow the gases and water vapour to escape out.This property of sand is

referred to as permeability. The apparatus has an arrangement which allows controlled amount of air to pass through a sand sample and the time taken for all the air to pass through the same is measured
VH/PAT

Permeability no =

V= volume of air, H=height, P=pressure A=area of specimen, T= Time

8)Compression, shear test

Strength tests have been devised to test the holding power of various bonding materials in green and dry sand

The strength is governed by the amount of bonding materials The universal sand strength testing machine is used to test the strength of sand Compressive strength, shear strength, tensile strength of the moulding sand is done on this universal sand strength machine by replacing the different grippers Test machine gives direct reading
G
G

Hand tools used in moulding

In hand moulding processes, all the moulding operations, such as ramming the sand, placing and drawing the pattern, turning over the moulding boxes, etc, are performed by hand A number of hand tools which are used by the molder to perform above mentioned operations are shown below 1)Bellow : A bellow is used to blow loose sand particles from the pattern and the mold cavity

Hand tools used in moulding

2) Lifter or cleaner: It lifts dirt or loose sand from the mold. It is used for repairing and finishing the sand mold cavity 3)Heart & square: It is employed for finishing the mould cavity

4)Hand rammer It is used for ramming the sand in molds

Hand tools used in moulding

5)Floor rammer : It is larger in size as compared to hand rammer. It is used for floor molding 6)Hand riddle :It consists of wire mesh fitted into a circular wooden frame. It is used for cleaning, removing foreign matter from sand 7)Sprue pin: It is tapered wooden rod which is placed in the cope to make sprue cavity.

Hand tools used in moulding

8) Trowels : used to finish flat surfaces of the mould, cut ingrates, make joints or repair moulds

9)Smoothers and corner slics: They are employed to repair and finish corners, edges, round and flat surfaces

Hand tools used in moulding

9)Gate cutter: it is a shaped piece of sheet metal . It is used to cut the gate 10)Shovel : used to transfer moulding sand from store to place of use. Also used to mix and temper the moulding sand

Thank u