MANUFACTURING PROCESS OF PISTON RINGS AND CYLINDER LINERS

A Term paper Report

Submitted by

G Madhusudhan Rao (158W5A0315)

SK.K.Khamuruddin (158w5A0324)

K Naveen Teja (148W1A0386)

B Anusha (158W5A0325)

In partial fulfillment of the requirements

For award of the degree of

BACHELOR OF TECHNOLOGY

With specialization in

MECHANICAL ENGINEERING

Under the esteemed guidance of

Mr. N Vijay Kumar, ME

Associative Professor of ME Department

MECHANICAL ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT

VELAGAPUDI RAMAKRISHNA SIDDHARTHA ENGINEERING COLLEGE

VIJAYAWADA 500 007

APRIL 2017
 Department of Mechanical Engineering

CERTIFICATE

This is to certify that the Term Paper titled MANUFACTURING PROCESS OF PISTON RINGS
AND CYINDER LINERS was prepared and presented by G Madhusudhan Rao(158W5A0315),
SK.K.Khamuruddin (158w5A0324), K Naveen Teja (148W1A0386), B Anusha(158W5A0325) of
B.Tech., 6th Semester,Mechanical Engineering in partial fulfillment of requirements for award
of the Degree of Bachelor of Technology in Mechanical Engineering under the Jawaharlal Nehru
Technological University Kakinada, Kakinada during the year 2016-17

TERM PAPER GUIDE HEAD OF THE DEPARTMENT

(N VIJAY KUMAR) (DR.N VIJAYA SAI)

 Acknowledgement

We would like to articulate our profound gratitude and indebtedness to our guide
Mr. N VIJAY KUMAR, ME, Associative Professor who has always been a constant motivation
and guiding factor throughout the Term Paper time in and out as well. It has been a great
pleasure for us to get an opportunity to work under his guidance and complete the Term Paper
successfully.

We wish to extend our sincere thanks to Dr. N.VIJAYA SAI, Professor and Head of the
Mechanical Engineering Department, for his constant encouragement throughout the work.

We sincerely thank our principal Dr. A.V.Ratna Prasad garu for his encouragement during the
course of Term Paper. We thank one and all who have rendered help to us directly or indirectly
in the completion of work.

G Madhusudhan Rao (158W5A0315)

SK.K.Khamuruddin (158w5A0324)

K Naveen Teja (148W1A0386)

B Anusha (158W5A0325)
 DECLARATION

We hereby declare that the work is being presented in this Term Paper MANUFACTURING
PROCESS OF PISTON RINGS AND CYINDER LINERS, submitted towards the partial fulfillment of
requirements for the award of the degree of Bachelor of Technology in Mechanical Engineering in
VR Siddhartha Engineering College, Vijayawada is an authentic record of our work carried out under
the supervision of Mr. N VIJAY KUMAR, Associative Professor in Mechanical Department, V.R
Siddhartha Engineering College, Vijayawada.

The matter embodied in this dissertation report has not been submitted by us for the award of any
other degree. Furthermore, the technical details furnished in various chapters of this report are
purely relevant to the above Term Paper.

G Madhusudhan Rao (158W5A0315)

SK.K.Khamuruddin (158w5A0324)

K Naveen Teja (148W1A0386)

B Anusha (158W5A0325)
 ABSTRACT

A cylinder liner is a cylindrical component that is placed in an engine block. It is one of the most
important functional parts to make up the interior of an engine and it gives a wear protective
surface for piston and piston rings. It is used in petrol engine where combustion takes place.
A piston ring is a split ring that fits into a groove that fits on the outer diameter of a piston in an
IC engine. This paper involves Introduction to piston rings and cylinder liners, production of
piston rings and cylinders, introduction to centrifugal casting, types of centrifugal casting, basic
information about true centrifugal casting, process involved in production, molten metal
preparation with materials, basic introduction on electromagnetic induction furnace and its
features, machining process and various types of inspections done on the products. This paper
also contains the information on the defects occurred while and before the production is done,
there causes and remedies. This whole data was collected from industries visited. The main aim
of the paper is to collect the basic information on production of piston rings, cylinder liners.
Introduction

Cylinder Liners
Ever since its inception in 1960, the cylinder liner manufacturing activity at Cooper has grown
from strength to strength. Today, the company is one of the top three cylinder liner
manufacturers in the country, producing 2000 tons a month, and with expansion plans in the
pipeline. Thanks to our extensive research in the area, the centrifugally cast Cylinder Liners are
manufactured with a special alloy cast iron with selective elements. Basically a cylinder liner is a
hollow cylindrical shape which acts as the enclosure in which the combustion takes place. Of
course the word hollow does not employ that it is weak in strength for it is under the fluid
pressure due to combustion and hence must withstand the high level of hoop stress induced in
it. It provides good surface for the piston rings to slide along its length. Construction is done
either by centrifugal casting in case of smaller liners and sand casting in case of larger liners.
The inner surface of the cylinder liner is usually chrome plated to make it smooth but this
smoothness also has its drawback that it does not allow oil to spread out properly thus
affecting liner lubrication in a negative manner. The raw material comprises of combination of
Pig Iron, Mild Steel, some iron scrap material and cast iron. The correct proportions have to be
chosen for different vehicles depending on properties required by
their matching components and as specified by the original
equipment manufacturers. A small quantity is tested in a sample
cup, for the Material composition. The other impurities such as
Sulphur and Phosphorus are controlled to the permissible Levels.
Slag material is removed before some additives like Nickel,
Molybdenum, Chromium; Copper etc. are added in small quantities
as recommended to develop desired strength, hardness and surface
finish in the final product. Next, the molten metal is taken into ladles
and poured into rotating die machines where it is cast centrifugally.
After rough machining, every piece is thoroughly inspected for casting defects or cracks and for
sufficient material thickness, wherever further machining is to be done. Then hardness is
checked for each and every piece on a Brinell hardness tester. Finally they are dipped into
special anti-corrosion agents to enhance shelf life and high workability.
Piston Rings
A piston ring is a split ring that fits into a groove on the outer diameter of a piston in
a reciprocating engine such as an internal combustion engine or steam engine.
The three main functions of piston rings in reciprocating engines are:

1. Sealing the combustion chamber so that there is minimal loss of gases to the crank case.
2. Improving heat transfer from the piston to the cylinder wall.
3. Regulating engine oil consumption by scraping oil from the cylinder walls back to the
sump.
The gap in the piston ring compresses to a few thousandths of an inch when inside the cylinder
bore. Piston rings are a major factor in identifying if an engine is two strokes or four strokes.
Three piston rings suggest that it is a four stroke engine while two piston rings suggest that it is
a two stroke engine. Most piston rings are made of a very hard and somewhat brittle cast iron.
When fitting new piston rings or breaking them in within an engine, the end gap is a crucial
measurement. In order that a ring may be fitted into the "grooves" of the piston, it is not
continuous but is broken at one point on its circumference. The ring gap may be
checked by putting the ring into the bore/liner (squared to bore) and measuring
with a feeler gauge. End gap should be within recommended limits for size of bore
and intended "load" of engine. Metals expand with a rise in temperature, so too
small a gap may result in overlapping or bending when used under hot running
conditions (racing, heavy loads, towing) and, even at normal temperatures, a small
ring gap may lead to ring gap closure, ring breakage, bore damage and possible
seizure of the piston. Too large a gap may give unacceptable compression and levels
of blow-by gases or oil consumption. When being measured in a used bore, it may
indicate excessive bore wear or ring wear.
During engine assembly, a piston-ring compressor is used to evenly squeeze the rings long
enough to slide the piston into the cylinder.
Rings are not a very expensive part, but fitting new ones is usually very costly. This is because to
fit them, the mechanic must essentially take the whole engine apart. Therefore the labor costs
are the major factor. Once going that far, one might as well correct many other problems found
inside - so fitting new rings is usually done as part of an entire engine rebuild/reconditioning.
Production of cylinder liners and piston rings: - Generally centrifugal casting
process is most widely used for production of cylindrical castings in which molten metal is
poured at suitable temperature into rapidly rotating mould

Centrifugal casting
The centrifugal casting process consists of pouring the molten metal at a suitable temperature
into a rapidly rotating mould or die. It is essential that pouring temperature of molten metal
should be high enough to enable it to reach the farthest point in the mould before solidification
commence. The axis of rotation of mould may be horizontal, vertical or slightly inclined. The
centrifugal force imparted to molten metal enables it to be picked up and held in contact with
the rotating mould. The mould is allowed to rotate till the casting is completely solidified. Thus
the outer shape of casting takes the shape of the inside of the mould and the bore of casting is
truly circular and concentric with axis of rotation. The thickness of casting is determined by the
quantity of molten metal poured, and the length by the length of mould between two end
plates.

In centrifugal casting, a permanent mold is rotated continuously about its axis at high speeds
(300 to 3000 rpm) as the molten metal is poured. The molten metal is centrifugally thrown
towards the inside mold wall, where it solidifies after cooling. The casting is usually a fine-
grained casting with a very fine-grained outer diameter, owing to chilling against the mould
surface. Impurities and inclusions are thrown to the surface of the inside diameter, which can
be machined away.
Casting machines may be either horizontal or vertical-axis Horizontal axis machines are
preferred for long, thin cylinders, vertical machines for rings.
Most castings are solidified from the outside first. This may be used to encourage directional
solidification of the casting, and thus give useful metallurgical properties to it. Often the inner
and outer layers are discarded and only the intermediary columnar zone is used.
Centrifugal casting was the invention of Alfred Krupp, who used it to manufacture cast
steel tyres for railway wheels in 1852.
Types of centrifugal casting:-
*True centrifugal casting

*Semi centrifugal casting

*Centrifuge (or) pressure casting

-Basically cylinder liners and piston rings are produced by true centrifugal casting.

True Centrifugal Casting

No core is used in this method; essentially all of the heat is extracted from the molten metal
through the outer mould wall. The poor thermal conductivity of the air in contact with the
internal diameter results in little heat loss from this direction. Thus, perfect directional
solidification is obtained from outer surface to inner one and grain growth is typically columnar.
Because of favorable thermal gradients, in addition to the outward centrifugal force acting
upon the molten metal, each successive increment of metal to solidify is fed by the residual
liquid metal in contact with it, until solidification is complete. Under proper conditions,
shrinkage porosity is non-existent.

Process Involved In Production

(a) Molten metal preparation
(b) Casting
(c) Machining
(d) Inspection
 Molten Metal preparation
Molten metal is prepared by using electric induction furnace. The electric induction furnace is a
type of melting furnace that uses electric currents to melt metal. Induction furnaces are ideal
for melting and alloying a wide variety of metals with minimum melt losses, however, little
refining of the metal is possible.

Material: pig iron, cast iron, iron scrap

Electromagnetic Induction Furnace

An induction furnace is an electrical furnace in which the heat is applied by induction
heating of metal. Induction furnace capacities range from less than one kilogram to one
hundred tonnes capacity and are used to melt iron and steel, copper, aluminium and precious
metals.
The advantage of the induction furnace is a clean, energy-efficient and well-controllable
melting process compared to most other means of metal melting. Most modern foundries use
this type of furnace, and now also more iron foundries are replacing cupolas with induction
furnaces to melt cast iron, as the former emit lots of dust and other pollutants.
Since no arc or combustion is used, the temperature of the material is no higher than required
to melt it; this can prevent loss of valuable alloying elements. The one major drawback to
induction furnace usage in a foundry is the lack of refining capacity; charge materials must be
clean of oxidation products and of a known composition and some alloying elements may be
lost due to oxidation (and must be re-added to the melt). An induction furnace consists of a
nonconductive crucible holding the charge of metal to be melted, surrounded by a coil of
copper wire. A powerful alternating current flows through the wire. The coil creates a rapidly
reversing magnetic field that penetrates the metal. The magnetic field induces eddy currents,
circular electric currents, inside the metal, by electromagnetic induction. The eddy currents,
flowing through the electrical resistance of the bulk metal, heat it by Joule heating.
In ferromagnetic materials like iron, the material may also be heated by magnetic hysteresis,
the reversal of the molecular magnetic dipoles in the metal. Once melted, the eddy currents
cause vigorous stirring of the melt, assuring good mixing. An advantage of induction heating is
that the heat is generated within the furnace's charge itself rather than applied by a burning
fuel or other external heat source, which can be important in applications where contamination
is an issue. Operating frequencies range from utility frequency (50 or 60 Hz) to 400 kHz or
higher, usually depending on the material being melted, the capacity (volume) of the furnace
and the melting speed required. Generally, the smaller the volume of the melts, the higher the
frequency of the furnace used; this is due to the skin depth which is a measure of the distance
an alternating current can penetrate beneath the surface of a conductor. For the same
conductivity, the higher frequencies have a shallow skin depththat is less penetration into the
melt. Lower frequencies can generate stirring or turbulence in the metal. A preheated, one-
tonne furnace melting iron can melt cold charge to tapping readiness within an hour. Power
supplies range from 10 kW to 42 MW, with melt sizes of 20 kg to 65 tonnes of metal
respectively. An operating induction furnace usually emits a humor whine (due to fluctuating
magnetic forces and magnetostriction), the pitch of which can be used by operators to identify
whether the furnace is operating correctly or at what power level.

FEATURES OF INDUCTION FURNACE

An electric induction furnace requires an electric coil to produce the charge. This heating coil is
eventually replaced. The crucible in which the metal is placed is made of stronger materials that
can resist the required heat, and the electric coil itself cooled by a water system so that it does
not overheat or melt.
The induction furnace can range in size, from a small furnace used for very precise alloys only
about a kilogram in weight to a much larger furnaces made to mass produce clean metal for
many different applications. The advantage of the induction furnace is a clean, energy-efficient
and well-controllable melting process compared to most other means of metal melting.
Foundries use this type of furnace and now also more iron foundries are replacing cupolas with
induction furnaces to melt cast iron, as the former emit lots of dust and other pollutants.
Induction furnace capacities range from less than one kilogram to one hundred tonnes capacity,
and are used to melt iron and steel, copper, aluminium, and precious metals. The one major
drawback to induction furnace usage in a foundry is the lack of refining capacity; charge
materials must be clean of oxidation products and of a known composition, and some alloying
elements may be lost due to oxidation (and must be re-added to the melt).
Casting Preparation by True Centrifugal Process
Machining
Machining Process Description :
The casting are shot blasted and are sent to the machine shop for machining operation,
the first operation is the roughing operation where casting skin is removed, this
operations is performed on a custom designed vertical high speed turning cum boring
machine. The machined liner is then turned on a CNC Turning Centre where all outer
diameter and lengths are maintained, for Dry liners the next sequence of operations
would be Rough Grinding, fine boring, Rough honing followed by Plateau honing and
Finish grinding whereas for Wet Liners after CNC turning, fine boring followed by rough
honing, fine CNC turning and plateau honing would be performed.

Honing has been and will remain to be in the foreseeable future the only process
available that could provide both the required surface roughness and the cross-
hatching in cylinder liners. The cross-hatching lay direction is needed to provide means
for retaining lubricants.

A cylinder liner has fairly intricate surface requirements due to its complicated
functions. It has to provide adequate surface roughness to resist wear and to store and
retain lubricants during high temperatures, in addition to liner hardness, geometric
dimensioning and tolerance to ensure other proper functions.

Fine Boring

Boring is the process which gives the final look of inner diameter. We perform boring
operation on vertical machining center. This is fully computerized control machine. We
also use special purpose boring machine which maintains dimension accuracy, taper,
ovality and surface finish.
Outer Diameter Turning

It perform outer diameter of liner on Lathe machine, which is manually operated

machine, gives high accuracy in dimensional parameters, surface roughness
parameters and geometrical parameters. A main benefit of OD CNC Turing is to
minimize cycle time, repeatability of quality and consistency product.

Grinding and Stage Inspection

Grinding is the process where super surface finish can be maintained on products. We
have two type of grinding process center less grinding and cylindrical grinding.
Grinding controls dimensional parameters, surface parameters and geometrical
parameters.
Honing

Honing is the process where required hex pattern can be maintained in finish inner
diameter. We use Plato honing process. The main benefits of Plato honing process is to
achieve required quality parameters like surface finish

Inspection
Visual inspection

It consists of inspecting the surface of the casting with naked eye or sometimes with a
magnifying glass or microscope. It can only indicate surface defects such as blow holes, fusion,
swells, external cracks, and mismatch. Almost all castings are subjected to certain degree of
visual inspection.

Dimensional inspection

It consists of inspecting the surface of the casting with naked eye or sometimes with a
magnifying glass or microscope. It can only indicate surface defects such as blow holes, fusion,
swells, external cracks, and mismatch. Almost all castings are subjected to certain degree of
visual inspection.

Coordinate measuring machine (CMM)

it is a device for measuring the physical geometrical characteristics of an object. This machine
may be manually controlled by an operator or it may be computer controlled. Measurements
are defined by a probe attached to the third moving axis of this machine. Probes may be
mechanical, optical, laser, or white light, among others. A machine which takes readings in six
degrees of freedom and displays these readings in mathematical form is known as a CMM.

Description of CMM

The typical 3D "bridge" CMM is composed of three axes, X, Y and Z. These axes are orthogonal
to each other in a typical three-dimensional coordinate system. Each axis has a scale system
that indicates the location of that axis. The machine reads the input from the touch probe, as
directed by the operator or programmer. The machine then uses the X,Y,Z coordinates of each
of these points to determine size and position with micrometer precision typically,
A coordinate measuring machine (CMM) is also a device used in manufacturing and assembly
processes to test a part or assembly against the design intent. By precisely recording the X, Y,
and Z coordinates of the target, points are generated which can then be analyzed via regression
algorithms for the construction of features. These points are collected by using a probe that is
positioned manually by an operator or automatically via Direct Computer Control (DCC). DCC
CMMs can be programmed to repeatedly measure identical parts, thus a CMM is a specialized
form of industrial robot
These machines can be free-standing, handheld and portable.
DEFECTS

Blow:
Blow is relatively large cavity produced by gases which displace molten metal form.

Scar:
Due to improper permeability or venting, a scare is a shallow blow. It generally occurs
on flat surf; whereas a blow occurs on a convex casting surface. A blister is a shallow
blow like a scar with thin layer of metal covering it,

Scab:
This defect occurs when a portion of the face of a mould lifts or breaks down and the
recess thus made is filled by metal. When the metal is poured into the cavity, gas may
be disengaged with such violence as to break up the sand which is then washed away
and the resulting cavity filled with metal. The reasons can be: - to fine sand, low
permeability of sand, high moisture content of sand and uneven moulds ramming.
Blow holes:
Blow holes, gas holes or gas cavities are well rounded cavities having a clean and
smooth surface. They appear either on the casting surface or in the body of a casting.

These defects occur when an excessive evolved gas is not able to flow through the
mould. So, it collects into a bubble at the high points of a mould cavity ad prevents the
liquid metal from filling that space.

This will result in open blows. Closed, cavities or gas holes are formed when the
evolved gases or the dissolved gases in the molten metal are not able to leave the m
ass of the molten metal as it solidifies and get trapped within the casting.

These defects are caused by:

i) Excessive moisture content (in the case of green sand moulds) or organic content of
the sand, moisture on chills, chaplets or metal inserts,

ii) Inadequate gas permeability of the molding sand (due to fine grain size of sand, high
clay content, hard ramming),

iii) Poor venting of mould, insufficient drying of mould and cores, cores not properly
vented, high gas content of the molten metal,

iv) Low pouring temperature and incorrect feeding of the casting etc.

Pin holes:
Pin holes are small gas holes either at the surface or just below the surface. When
these are present, they occur in large numbers and are fairly uniformly dispersed over
the surface.
This defect occurs due to gas dissolved in the alloy and the alloy not properly degassed.

Hot tear:
Hot tears are hot cracks which appear in the form of irregular crevices with a dark
oxidized fracture surface. They arise when the solidifying met does not have sufficient
strength to resist tensile forces produced during

solidification.

They are chiefly from an excessively high temperature of casting metal, increased
metal contraction incorrect design of the gating system and casting on the whole
(causing portions of the casting to be restrained from shrinking freely during cooling
which in turn causes excessive high intern resistance stresses), poor deformability of
the cores, and non-uniform cooling which gives rise t internal stresses. This defect can
be avoided by improving the design of the casting and by having a mould of low hot
strength and large hot deformation.

Segregation

Centrifugal castings are under various forms of segregation thus

Pushing less dense constituents at centre

Banding

Sometimes castings produce zones of segregated low melting point constituents such
as eutectic phases and sulphide and oxide inclusions. Various theories explain this, one
states vibration is the main cause of banding

Defects, Causes and There remedies for Casting process

INTRODUCTION

Casting is a process which carries risk of failure occurrence during all the
process of accomplishment of the finished product. Hence necessary action
should be taken while manufacturing of cast product so that defect free parts
are obtained. Mostly casting defects are concerned with process parameters.
Hence one has to control the process parameter to achieve zero defect parts.
For controlling process parameter one must have knowledge about effect of
process parameter on casting and their influence on defect. To obtain this all
knowledge about casting defect, their causes, and defect remedies one has to
be analyse casting defects. Casting defect analysis is the process of finding root
causes of occurrence of defects in the rejection of casting and taking necessary
step to reduce the defects and to improve the casting yield. In this review paper
an attempt has been made to provide all casting related defect with their
causes and remedies. During the process of casting, there is always a chance
where defect will occur. Minor defect can be adjusted easily but high rejected
rates could lead to significant change at high cost. Therefore it is essential for
die caster to have knowledge on the type of defect and be able to identify the
exact root cause, and their remedies.

CASTING DEFECT CAN BE CLASSIFIED AS FOLLOWS:-

Filling related defect
Shape related defect
Thermal defect

These defects are explained as follows.

Filling related defects

Blowhole:-
Blowhole is a kind of cavities defect, which is also divided into pinhole and
subsurface blowhole. Pinhole is very tiny hole. Subsurface blowhole only can be
seen after machining. Gases entrapped by solidifying metal on the surface of
the casting, which results in a rounded or oval blowhole as a cavity. Frequently
associated with slags or oxides. The defects are nearly always located in the
cope part of the mould in poorly vented pockets and undercuts.

Possible causes Resin-bonded sand:-

Inadequate core venting
Excessive release of gas from core
Excessive moisture absorption by the cores
Low gas permeability of the core sand Clay-bonded sand
Moisture content of sand too high, or water released too quickly
Gas permeability of the sand too low
Sand temperature too high
Bentonite content too high
Too much gas released from lustrous carbon produce

Remedies Resin-bonded sand:-

Improve core venting, provide venting channels, and ensure core prints are
free of dressing
Reduce amounts of gas. Use slow-reacting binder. Reduce quantity of binder.
Use coarser sand if necessary.
Apply dressing to cores, thus slowing down the rate of heating and reducing
gas pressure.
Dry out cores and store dry, thus reducing absorption of water and reducing
gas pressure. Clay-bonded sand
Reduce moisture content of sand. Improve conditioning of the sand. Reduce
inert dust content.
Improve gas permeability. Endeavour to use coarser sand. Reduce Bentonite
and carbon carrier content.
 Reduce sand temperature. Install a sand cooler if necessary. Increase sand
quantity.
Reduce Bentonite content. Use Bentonite with a high montmorillonite
content, high specific binding capacity and good thermal stability.
Use slow-reacting lustrous carbon producers or carbon carriers with higher
capacity for producing lustrous carbon. In the last instance, the content of
carbon carriers in the moulding sand can be reduced

Gas porosity:-
The gas can be from trapped air, hydrogen dissolved in aluminium alloys,
moisture from water based die lubricants or steam from cracked cooling lines.
Air is present in the cavity before the shot. It can easily be trapped as the metal
starts to fill the cavity. The air is then compressed as more and more metal
streams into the cavity and the pressure rises. When the cavity is full it
becomes dispersed as small spheres of high pressure air. The swirling flow can
cause them to become elongated.

Possible Causes:-
Metal pouring temperature too low.
Insufficient metal fluidity e.g. carbon equivalent too low.
Pouring too slow.
Slag on the metal surface.
Interruption to pouring during filling of the mould.
High gas pressure in the mould arising from molding material
having high moisture and/or volatile content and/or low permeability.
Lustrous carbon from the molding process.
Metal section too thin.
Inadequately pre-heated metallic moulds.

Remedies:-
Increase metal pouring temperature.
Modify metal composition to improve fluidity.
Pour metal as rapidly as possible without interruption. Improve mould filling
by modification to running and gating system.
Remove slag from metal surface.
Reduce gas pressure in the mould by appropriate adjustment to moulding
material properties and ensuring
 Adequate venting of moulds and cores.
Eliminate lustrous carbon where applicable.
If possible, modify casting design to avoid thin sections.
Ensure metal moulds are adequately pre-heated and use insulating coatings.

Thermal defects

Cracks or tears
Cracks can appear in die castings from a number of causes. Some cracks are
very obvious and can easily be seen with the naked eye. Other cracks are very
difficult to see without magnification.
Possible causes
Shrinkage of the casting within the die
Undercuts or damage in die cavities
Uneven, or excessive, ejection forces
Thermal imbalance in the die
Insufficient draft in sections of the die
Excessive porosity in critical regions of the part
Product design not matched to the process
Inadequate die design

Remedies
Reduce dry strength, add saw dust/ coal dust
Reduce pouring temperature
Avoid superheating of metal
Use chills Provide feeders
Avoid early knockout. Give sufficient cooling time.
Correct composition
Reduce sharp corners

Shrinkage
Shrinkage defects occur when feed metal is not available to compensate for
shrinkage as the metal solidifies. Shrinkage defects can be split into two
different types: open shrinkage defects and closed shrinkage defects. Open
shrinkage defects are open to the atmosphere, therefore as the shrinkage
cavity forms air compensates. There are two types of open air defects: pipes
and caved surfaces. Pipes form at the surface of the casting and burrow into the
casting, while caved surfaces are shallow cavities that form across the surface
of the casting. Closed shrinkage defects, also known as shrinkage porosity, are
defects that form within the casting. Isolated pools of liquid form inside
solidified metal, which are called hot spots. The shrinkage defect usually forms
at the top of the hot spots. They require a nucleation point, so impurities and
dissolved gas can induce closed shrinkage defects. The defects are broken up
into macro porosity and micro porosity (or micro shrinkage), where macro
porosity can be seen by the naked eye and micro porosity cannot.

Possible causes
The density of a die casting alloy in the molten state is less than its density in
the solid state. Therefore, when an alloy changes phase from the molten state
to the solid state, it always shrinks in size. This shrinkage takes place when the
casting is solidifying inside a die casting die. At the centre of thick sections of a
casting, this shrinkage can end up as many small voids known as shrinkage
porosity. If the shrinkage porosity is small in diameter and confined to the very
centre of thick sections it will usually cause no problems. However, if it is larger
in size, or joined together, it can severely weaken a casting. It is also a particular
problem for castings which need to be gas tight or water tight.

Remedies
The general technique for eliminating shrinkage porosity is to ensure that liquid
metal under pressure continues to flow into the voids as they form.

Defects by Appearance

Metallic projection Joint flash or fins

Flat projection of irregular thickness, often with lacy edges, perpendicular to
one of the faces of the casting. It occurs along the joint or parting line of the
mold, at a core print, or wherever two elements of the mold intersect.

Possible causes
Clearance between two elements of the mold or between mold and core;
poorly fit mold joint.

Remedies
Care in pattern making, molding and core making. Control of their dimensions;
Care in core setting and mold assembly.
Cavities
Blowholes, pinholes, Smooth-walled cavities, essentially spherical, often not
contacting the external casting surface (Blowholes). The defect can appear in all
regions of the casting.

Possible causes
Blowholes and pinholes are produced because of gas entrapped in the metal
during the course of solidification:

Remedies
Make adequate provision for evacuation of air and gas from the mold cavity;
Increase permeability of mold and cores.
Conclusions:-
After studying and analyzing cylinder liners and piston rings using some materials following
conclusions were drawn

a) The cylinder liner made up of titanium alloy is lighter than the existing cylinder liners
b) The analysis equivalent stress ( von mises ) but the titanium alloy is slightly less than cast
iron alloy, which is currently used as cylinder liners
c) Total deformation of titanium alloy is less than the current material ( cast iron alloy )
d) Thus, although the cost of titanium alloy is high, titanium alloy is safe to use as cylinder
liner
e) Piston rings of reciprocating engine have several functions apart from sealing gas
pressure which effect performance of engine
f) From literature it appears that piston ring can be designed using experimental,
analytical and numerical techniques

Reference
Industry visit, Lakshmi Chaitanya alloys Vijayawada

E sources:- Wikipedia, lectures