Shrinkage evaluation in ductile iron as influenced by mould media and inoculant type.pdfVIP

Shrinkage evaluation in ductile iron as influenced by mould media and inoculant type M. Chisamera1, I. Riposan*1, S. Stan1, P. Toboc1, T. Skaland2 and D. White3 The present work was undertaken in hypereutectic ductile irons, to simultaneously study cooling curves, specimen contraction curves, microstructures and shrinkage tendencies as a function of inoculant selection and mould rigidity. Specific equipment was developed for simultaneous recording of cooling and contraction curves. The highest level of both concentrated and total shrinkage was recorded on the green sand mould system, where a much higher level of the initial eutectic expansion was observed, as compared to furan resin moulds. It was found that the Ca,Ce,S,O–FeSi inoculation gives the highest nodule count and a unique wide distribution of nodules sizes (large and small size nodules, in a peculiar ratio), as well as lower tendency to shrinkage formation. Also, the strongest graphitising effect before the start of eutectic solidification and more prolonged graphitising throughout the end of eutectic freezing characterise were observed with this complex inoculant system in addition to its peculiar action on minimising the shrinkage tendency of ductile irons. Keywords: Ductile cast iron, Inoculant type, Mould type, Cooling and contraction curves, Shrinkage Introduction The major factors which are associated with the development of shrinkage in ductile iron castings were identified to be mainly the chemistry of treated iron (compositional factor2Cz1=7Si, Mgres, minor ele- ments), mould features (rigidity/deformability, hardness stability), casting geometry (section modulus, feeding path), charge and melting practice (steel scrap/pig iron ratio, superheating level), pouring temperature, inocula- tion treatment (type and amount of inoculant, nodule count).1–4 A previous paper5 pointed out the shrinkage behaviour of ductile irons cast in green sand moulds (GSMs), which are known for high shrinkage sensitivity,