Advantages & process of Investment casting

1. Features of Investment Casting Process For Valve Components

2. There are many types of valves such as butterfly valves, gate valves, check valves, ball valves, control valves and many more which are used in industrial and domestic piping applications. The components of valves such as body, bonnet, flange and disc are manufactured using casting process. Almost all metals can be casted into valve components. Stainless steel, carbon steel and other carbon alloys are also widely casted into valve components. There are many types of casting process. Here we will discuss about Lost Wax or investments castings for valves. Investment casting produces intricate valve components accurately. The valve components produced by investment casting have precise dimensions and are very sturdy. Energy expended and material waste generated by investment casting process are also low. These are the reasons why foundries are mainly using investment casting for valve components.

3. Process of Investment Casting • In the very first step, patterns are created using a metal injection die. The design of the patterns created are same as the patterns required on the final component. However, thermal shrinkage is also taken into account when creating patterns. The patterns are made of molten wax injected into the metal die. Complex patterns can be created by joining multiple wax patterns using adhesive. • The wax patterns are assembled together to form a gate and runner metal delivery system called tree. Many wax patterns can make up a single tree depending upon the size and configuration of the valve component being casted.

4. In order to create the mould shell, the wax pattern is dipped in a ceramic slurry. The slurry coats the wax. Thereafter, it is covered with a sand stucco and left to dry. The process of dipping in slurry and drying using sand stucco is repeated multiple times till the mould shell acquires the required thickness and strength as per the dimensions of the final component to be casted. • The ceramic coated shell or tree is then put in an autoclave and heated up to 200 degrees to melt the wax. When the wax has melted away completely, the temperature is increased to 900 degrees to impart strength to the mould. The mould is in the shape of the component and has a cavity.

5. Molten metal is poured in the mould which is preheated. The molten metal must be at the correct temperature for proper solidification. The velocity of the pour must also be accurate to prevent pattern damage and formation of gas bubbles. There are software tools available to ensure that the pouring and cooling process takes place in complete accordance with the various required parameters as per the specific metal or alloy used. • Once the molten metal solidifies and cools to form a cast, the mould is broken in a process called knockout. The cast is then subjected to machining, grinding and sandblasting. Dimensional and other inspections are done before packing.

6. Advantages of Investment Casting • Investments castings for valves produces components in a plethora of sizes and weights. Multiple components can be turned into a single component using investment casting because highly intricate designs and shapes are possible using this process. The components have highly smooth surfaces. Thus, investment casting is an manufacturing procedure developed on the lost-wax casting, one of the firstborn method called as metal-forming procedures. The products of Investment Castings are useful for various industrial usages like water, oil, gas, steam, nitric acid, and acetic acid. A few clients expect to give projecting, yet in addition expect us to offer handled or surface treatment. The parts offered not just address the client's issues simultaneously, yet in addition the quality is profoundly trusted by the clients. Subsequently, the extent of completed items is expanding.

7. superqualicast Behind Rajkamal Petrol Pump, Off GondalRoad, PunitnagarRoad, Kotharia, Rajkot-360004, Gujarat, (India) +91-281-2388848 info@superqualicast.com