ASU, Continued from pg 17
college campuses may have air pollution provisos that prevent the operation of coke-burning cupolas. The Arizona State University Foundry
Program, as part of a large Research One University, was uniquely poised to explore more sustainable options. When guest artist Stephen Coles, of Coles Castings (a bespoke artisan foundry in the United Kingdom) first visited the ASU Foundry, he felt that he could adapt one of the old gas-air melt furnaces to vegetable
oil. Through the Foundry
Educational Foundation Fellowship, a Student Organization Research Grant, and Graduate and a Professional Student Organization funding, Stephen Coles returned to Arizona in October of 2023 and worked for several weeks alongside Foundry Faculty Associate Chris Luper, Instructional Specialist Dustin Hesser, Teaching Assistant Anne Sipos, and and President’s Professor Mary Neubauer to adapt this piece of equipment to vegetable oil capability. The result is a portable, self-sustaining melt furnace utilizing a small high-speed, high
18 ❘ March 2024 ®
velocity blower in combination with two burner ports conveying a gravity- fed drip of cooking oil. The oil is initially ignited using wooden kindling. When the oil drip was introduced, the flame temperatures reached up to 2,390ºF (1310ºC) in two trial run iron pours using a #70 crucible. The iron was clean and pure, resulting in the refined result needed for fine arts and precision castings. By reclaiming used cooking oil from recycling companies in the Phoenix area, the new ASU furnace promises to cut down on pollution from foundry coke and natural gas by using a common and abundant recycled material. The process represents an advance in small teaching, hobbyist, and event operations where small batches of iron are appropriate for the task at hand.
About Arizona State School of Art The ASU School of Art Foundry Program consists of art and engineering/ material science students who benefit professionally from their membership and participation in casting and research classes from the sophomore year on into graduate research. The ASU sustainable
Web References
Bollinger Atelier
https://bollingeratelier.com
Coles Castings in Dorset, England
https://www.colescastings.com
International Conference on Contemporary Cast Iron Art
https://icccia.org
The National Conference on Contemporary Cast Iron Art and Practices (situated at Sloss Furnaces National Historic Site in Birmingham, Alabama
https://www.nccciap.com
2024 Western Cast Iron Art Conference
https://wciaa.org
cupola, nicknamed “The Bear”, will have its first off-campus premier at the October 2024 Western Cast Iron Art Alliance
8th Biennial Conference Grossmont College, in El Cajon, CA. at
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