Group: Indian Foundry Industry

Discussion: Hello can any body send some details on green sand high pressure

moulding, controlling moisture content , vertical casting, etc.

Gentlemen, this discussion is fantastic and all points are valid, however we digress from the
original question?
Moulding sand is a complicated subject, it is a living organism with many aspects affecting
performance. In order to achieve the optimum performance our sand has to meet the
following criteria,
1. It must posses a high degree of flowability to enable it to pack uniformly around the pattern
and enable optimum compaction of the mould to be realised, without this ability the risk for
the formation of defects increases.
2. It must possess good malleability that will allow for deformation under compressive stress
without cracking or to put more simply, able to be moulded.
3. It must have a high degree of plasticity so that once the mould has been compacted the
pattern can be stripped and the mould formed will maintain close definition and tolerance.
4. It must possess a high degree of mechanical properties (Green strength) to allow pattern
stripping without sand fracture and to be able to withstand the pressure of the molten metal.
5. There should be a high resistance against erosion during pouring it should have high hot
strength.
6. There should be sufficient permeability to ensure that gas formed during pouring from the
mould and cores does not become so great that gas defects are formed in the casting or in
the worse case produce mould explosion.
7. There is a requirement for a high degree of refractoriness to prevent the sand from
sintering and preventing mould / metal reactions. To enable this all of the components must
be free from impurities.
8. It should have good disintegration properties to ensure minimal sand carry over at
shakeout, the sand /casting separation should be high for minimal cleaning costs the dry
strength should not be too great.
How the above criteria is met depends on many points, in my opinion to ensure a high
degree of flowability moisture control is critical and dependent on composition and raw
material selection. The moldability of the sand should be achieved by compactability control,
and ideally should be between 38-42%, this of course can be adjusted +/- depending on
casting geometry and defect analysis, for example a brake disc may benefit from values
between 36-38% being a simple shape, providing the friability of the sand is low defect ratio
should be likewise.
Plasticity, mechanical properties, resistance to erosion depend on the quality and quantity of
bentonite in the sand, fines will affect these properties with higher values detrimental to
plasticity but increase green strength.
Silica grading, shape and distribution all affect permeability with moisture playing an
important part.
Purity of the silica and degree of oolitisation of the sand will affect the refractoriness and the
sinter point.
shakeout is affected by moisture, active clay and the level of carbon contained in the sand.
To come back on the silica, most foundries are not in a position to import sand from other
regions due to cost and quantity used,and therefore are limited to what is available in the
area. Grading is important and ultimately is dependent on the casting type with horizontal
lines utilising coarser material than a vertically parted m/c as ferro static pressure is not as
important and lower incidence of mechanical penetration is seen. The round grain sand
typically used in Western Europe is purely by chance, however as long as the foundryman
understands his grain shape then it can be accomodated.

With the majority of foundries using activated bentonite water quality is extremely important,
impurities will affect the activation level and resultant performance, therefore conductivity is
important to measure.
Sample weight is important and provides indication of mould density as well as
fines/moisture/oolitisation etc. In my experience, a low sample weight due to silica shape.
surface area etc does not always mean poor casting quality?
Posted by Nick Richardson