innovations CASTING
Simulation Proves Valuable in Casting Case Study
motive production lines. In the past, due to the complexity of castings, including engine blocks and cylinder heads, experienced designers had diffi culty creating dies that produced quality parts on the fi rst attempt. Be- sides the extra time involved in build- ing and testing processes, multiple die trials cost as much as $50,000 each. In response, Honda invested
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in ProCAST, a casting simulation software from ESI North America, Farmington Hills, Mich. Simulation analysis helped evaluate initial die designs and avoid potential errors or
he Honda of America Mfg. engine facility in Anna, Ohio, produces aluminum die castings for Honda and Acura auto-
flaws before tooling was built or test- ed. The simulations optimized flow and solidification to avoid common problems related to gas and shrink- age porosity. As a result, Honda was able to reduce the average number of dies per casting and shorten the development process. With the introduction of ProCAST software, Honda was able to deliver products sooner while minimizing unnecessary development costs. In one instance for an unspecifi ed
iron casting (Fig. 1), the copper per- manent mold for one of Honda’s fer- rous production lines began experienc- ing problems due to die erosion (Fig. 2). Each die had to be taken apart daily, cleaned out and repaired, which led to increased costs. T ese complica-
tions extended run time, increased scrap rate and led to more downtime. “We might see a thermal imbal- ance that causes one area of the part to solidify long before other areas which, in turn, results in hot cracks or porosity when the frozen area shrinks without access to additional molten metal to fi ll the shrunken area,” said James Kreitzer, engineering coordina- tor, Honda of America. “Or we might see fl ow velocities inside the mold that are high enough to run the risk of galling or erosion of the cavity or low enough to prevent the mold from fi ll- ing completely. We can also see when temperatures drop too low around the front of an advancing wave of molten metal, which can lead to fl ow marks on external surfaces. Flow marks may be acceptable if they are only on exter- nal surfaces. However, if they pen- etrate to the interior of the casting, they may cause leakage.” Engineers believed the ductile iron
was eroding certain regions of the six- cavity die (Fig. 3). During computer modeling, the team wanted to iden-
The ductile iron eroded the copper die when casting the component (shown).
46 | METAL CASTING DESIGN & PURCHASING | Nov/Dec 2014
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