68th Annual Technical Conference & Exposition TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 9, 2021
8:00 a.m. - 8:40 a.m.
Paper No. 9: Smart Guss Goes Smart Factory Andrej Wetzel, Feinguss Blank, GmbH
The cost reduction of parts and processes is always a big issue for companies. Also, environmental protection and the conservation of resources are more important than ever, especially for a resource- intensive industry like investment casting. To fulfill all the requirements and be competitive in the global market, there are a few possibilities. The concepts of digital transformation and the German industry 4.0 may be clear for some industries, but possibly not for the investment casting industry. In such a mature process, there are huge possibilities to utilize modern technology. Automation is just part of the process. Also, Artificial Intelligence on the basis of big data has a significant amount of potential to reduce scrap and provide stable processes. The investment casting process is not just from the tool shop until the finishing. It is definitely better to think about the complete supply chain. This paper provides an overview of digital transformation and the technologies behind that. There is a change in the customer requests, coming from the Business-to-Consumer business, in terms of delivery times and information flow for a foundry. Also, platforms are gaining market share which can be critical because they are the point of contact for the customers. We will give an overview of what a Smart Factory in investment casting will look like in the future.
AGENDA 8:40 a.m. - 9:20 a.m.
Paper No. 10: Development of Investment Casting Shells based on Calcia Stabilised Zirconia for Ti-6AI-4V M. Weissenbacher, Imerys Technology Center This study describes the development of an investment casting mould with calcia stabilised zirconia /ammonium zirconium carbonate as face coat for Ti-6Al-4V. The slurry stability was evaluated by aging studies measuring the pH, Zahn cup viscosity and plate weight. Full investment casting shells were built up and tested for MOR and with dilatometry for the softening point. Finally, casting trials were made and alpha case formation was assessed by measuring the hardness and chemical composition with ICP-OES and hot gas extraction. The study provides recommendations on the preparation of the zirconia slurry to improve quality and reduce alpha case formation.
9:20 a.m. - 10:00 a.m. Paper No. 11: Advanced Plasma Coating of Wax Injection Moulds- Eliminating Release Agents from the Investment Casting Process Dr. Ing. Dirk Lehmhus,
Fraunhofer Institute for Manufacturing Technology and Advanced Materials Investment casting is based on processing large quantities of lost wax patterns. The common process for producing these is wax injection moulding, which requires release agents (e.g. silicone oils) to facilitate the demoulding process. Without these release agents, ejection of the wax patterns without damage is impossible. However, the use of release agents entails a number of disadvantages, among them economic and environmental as well as health issues. These include the cost of cleaning wax patterns to wash away residues of release agents, as well as the contamination of the working environment and thus possible health hazards for employees caused by silicone aerosols. Furthermore, release agents can bring about quality issues in the wax room and necessitate costly efforts at their removal from the injection moulds. In our successfully completed research project funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy (BMWi, AiF IGF 18915N), an innovative, ready-to-use alternative has been developed in the form of a long-term stable plasma-polymer release coating which allows complete elimination of any additional release agent. This surface coating is characterized by its excellent adhesion to the metallic mould and in particular by its high cohesion strength and low surface energy. The coating exactly reproduces the geometry and surface features of the injection mould and does not influence its dimensional accuracy, as the maximum layer thickness is limited to approx. 2 µm. The coating can be applied both on new and already used production moulds. Re-coating has also been demonstrated successfully. In the course of an initial validation in an industrial environment, a German Foundry has produced more than 40,000 wax parts (turbocharger wheel) completely free of release agents. Other pilot customers are already using the coating successfully and profitably in series production.
10:00 a.m. - 10:20 a.m. COFFEE BREAK August 2021 ❘ 17 ®
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