This project built on earlier, self-funded work to identify po- tential energy savings opportunities in foundry operations. This earlier effort was conducted by Sensor Synergy in col- laboration with the American Foundry Society Energy Com- mittee (1-G). In this study, Sensor Synergy and AFS corporate member Alu-Bra Foundry (Bensenville, IL), tested the use of real-time, power monitoring equipment to help identify elec- tricity cost saving opportunities. The work conducted extend- ed the approach to better identify the type of measurements required to capture and exploit foundry-based energy saving opportunities. The project was conducted at two foundries and included three types of manufacturing operations
During these foundry case studies, additional energy use mon- itoring projects, the earlier work was extended to include:
•
Confirmation of robustness and reliability of the sen- sors in the foundry environment.
• Extend the testing beyond induction melting to other foundry equipment and energy consumption points within the foundry (such as air compressors).
•
Investigating the use of sensors to define natural gas consumption.
Status Update: Work has been completed on a V-Process, vac- uum system for real-time energy-use data collection and remote access, measurements in the melt systems at that facility and also the melt, molding and finishing systems of a no-bake ductile iron foundry. Significant energy savings have been identified via gain- ing a better understanding of operations, equipment and energy usage. The work indicates that there may be 4 essential metrics to monitor the power usage and operational efficiency of induc- tion furnaces. One of these metrics is a new way of looking at induction furnace operations and is only available through the use of our high, time-resolution power-use monitoring measurement. When data is aggregated for extended periods of time including days, weeks or months and then categorized into broad operational modes – off, hold, medium and full power – staff, management, and energy specialists can better understand current operations and use these metrics as a reference point “to beat” (baseline en- ergy use) for on-going improvement projects. In many cases, op- erators and management were unaware as to what fraction of the work week their furnaces were off or operating at hold, medium and full power levels. These numbers provide valuable aggregated insights into induction furnace operations and efficiency. As a re- sult of this work and the implementation of the results, this project was selected to receive the 2014 AFS Applied Research Award. The results and findings from this project will be discussed during the 118th Casting Congress Tuesday, April 8, 3:45 PM Engineer- ing AFS R&D Energy Project Update: Savings Opportunities for Melt Deck, Shakeout and Air-Handling Systems (14-092) and the Wednesday, April 9, 3:45 PM Cast Iron Computerization in the Foundry Industry (Panel 14-132). The work is being monitored by the AFS Energy Committee (1-G). A Phase 2 is being considered that will extend the work into analysis of data and recommended actions to take. Those wishing more information about the project or participation should contact the Steering Committee chair Brian
International Journal of Metalcasting/Volume 8, Issue 2, 2014
Reinke at
breinke@tdi-consulting.com or the principal investigator James Wiczer at
jwiczer@sensorsynergy.com.
Influence of Mn and S on the Properties of Cast Iron (12-13#04)
Coordinator: Richard (Rick) B. Gundlach, Element Materials and AFS Ductile Iron, CG Iron & Gray Iron Research Committee (5-R)
Sulfur is generally considered a tramp element in cast iron, and its level must be controlled. When manganese is not present at sufficient concentrations, sulfur reacts with iron to produce a low-melting phase that can produce hot-shortness in iron cast- ings. Consequently, the industry has always added manganese to control sulfur in cast iron. Various formulae have been pro- mulgated in the industry for balancing Mn and S in cast iron. Many employ a stoichiometric relationship between Mn and S, requiring an excess Mn content to avoid FeS formation. Some simply employ a Mn to S ratio (such as 5 – 7) to assure that no FeS forms. Others advocate that the sulfur content must simply be at or above 0.04%S to obtain adequate inoculation response.
This study intends to define a new concept in the practice of bal- ancing Mn and S in gray cast iron, by employing thermodynamic principles to determine the level of free sulfur in the molten iron during eutectic solidification. It also intends to show that the nu- cleation and solidification behaviors of cast iron vary depending on whether the composition is below or above the MnS solubility limit at the time (temperature) of eutectic solidification. To our knowledge, past research has not addressed the two regions in cast iron chemistry – the regions above and below the solubility limit of MnS. No work has purposely investigated the influence of S on strength at lower Mn concentrations where MnS precipi- tation occurs only after the beginning of eutectic solidification. This research will be conducted with a view to account for the thermodynamic relationship between Mn and S. Another prima- ry objective is to learn how to produce gray cast iron with excep- tional strength, without the use of expensive alloying elements.
The primary objective of this study is to characterize the rela- tionship between S, Mn and the strength of cast iron in a wide range of section sizes. The strength is expected to vary sig- nificantly as sulfur is increased and approaches the MnS solu- bility limit. Further changes in strength are expected as sulfur rises above the MnS solubility limit. The maximum attainable strength is also expected to correlate with Mn content. A sec- ond objective of this study is to further develop the correlation between Mn, S and the fineness of the graphite structure. A third objective of this study is to learn how to develop higher strengths in heavy section castings, through balancing the Mn and S contents. It is anticipated that the need for alloying to produce high-strength grades of cast iron will be significantly reduced. A fourth objective of this study is to develop a better understanding of the multiple roles of sulfur in the nucleation and eutectic solidification processes in cast iron.
Status Update: The project is complete. At the upcoming 118th Metalcasting Congress in Schaumburg, IL. during the Cast Iron
89
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92 |
Page 93 |
Page 94 |
Page 95 |
Page 96 |
Page 97