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Gray Iron
Revised by Charles V. White, GMI Engineering and Management Institute

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Section Sensitivity

In practice, the minimum thickness of section in which any given class of gray iron may be poured is more likely to depend
on the cooling rate of the section than on the fluidity of the metal. For example, although a plate 300 mm (12 in.) square by
6 mm (0.24 in.) thick can be poured in class 50 as well as in class 25 iron, the former casting would not be gray iron
because the cooling rate would be so rapid that massive carbides would be formed. Yet it is entirely feasible to use class 50
iron for a diesel engine cylinder head that has predominantly 6 mm (0.24 in.) wall sections in the water jackets above the
firing deck. This is simply because the cooling rate of the cylinder head is reduced by the "mass effect" resulting from
enclosed cores and the proximity (often less than 12 mm, or 0.47 in.) of one 6 mm (0.24 in.) wall to the other. Thus the
shape of the casting has an important bearing on the choice of metal specification.

It should be recognized that the smallest section that can be cast gray, without massive carbides, depends not only on metal
composition, but also on foundry practices. For example, by adjusting silicon content or by using graphitizing additions
called inoculants in the ladle, the foundryman can decrease the minimum section size for freedom from carbides for a given
basic composition of gray iron.

The mass effect associated with increasing section thickness or decreasing cooling rate is much more pronounced in gray
iron than in cast steel. The mass effect in cast steel results in increased grain size in heavy sections. This also applies to gray
iron, but the most important effects are on graphite size and distribution, and on amount of combined carbon.

For any given gray iron composition, the rate of cooling from the freezing temperature to below about 650 °C (1200 °F)
determines the ratio of combined to graphitic carbon, which controls the hardness and strength of the iron. For this reason
the effect of section size in gray iron is considerably greater than in the more homogeneous ferrous metals in which cooling
rate does not affect the form and distribution of carbon throughout the metal structure.

Typical Effects of Section Size. When a wedge-shape bar with about a 10° taper is cast in a sand mold and sectioned
near the center of the length, and Rockwell hardness determinations are made on the cut surface from the point of the
wedge progressively into the thicker sections, the curves so determined show to what extent continually increasing section
size affects hardness (Fig. 4).

Fig. 4 Effect of section thickness on hardness and structure. Hardness readings were taken at increasing
distance from the tip of a cast wedge section, as shown by inset. Composition of iron: 3.52% C, 2.55% Si,
1.01% Mn, 0.215% P, and 0.086% S. Source: Ref 2

Progressing along the curve from the left in Fig. 4, the following metallographic constituents occur. The tip of the wedge is
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white iron (a mixture of carbide and pearlite) with a hardness greater than 50 HRC. As the iron becomes mottled (a mixture
of white iron and gray iron), the hardness decreases sharply. A minimum is reached because of the occurrence of fine type
D flake graphite, which usually has associated ferrite in large amounts. With a slightly lower cooling rate, the structure
becomes fine type A flake graphite in a pearlite matrix with the hardness rising to another maximum on the curve. This
structure is usually the most desirable for wear resistance and strength. With increasing section thickness beyond this point,
the graphite flakes become coarser, and the pearlite lamellae become more widely spaced, resulting in slightly lower
hardness. With further increase in wedge thickness and decrease in cooling rate, pearlite decomposes progressively to a
mixture of ferrite and graphite, resulting in softer and weaker iron.

The structures of most commercial gray iron castings are represented by the right-hand downward-sloping portion of the
curve in Fig. 4, beyond 5 mm (0.2 in.) wedge thickness, and increasing section size is normally reflected by the gradual
lowering of hardness and strength. However, thin sections may be represented by the left-hand downward-sloping portion.

Figure 5 shows the average tensile strength (up to ten tests per point) of two irons, for each of which six sizes of cylindrical
round bars were cast and appropriate tensile specimens machined. With the class 20 iron, strength increases as the as-cast
section decreases down to the 6 mm (0.24 in.) cast bar. However, for the class 30 iron, a section 6 mm (0.24 in.) in diameter
is so small that the strength falls off sharply, because of the occurrence of type D flake graphite or mottled iron, or both.
The other graph in Fig. 5 shows similar data for the same two classes of iron and for three higher classes.

Fig. 5 Effect of section diameter on tensile strength at center of cast specimen for five classes of gray iron

Section sensitivity effects are used in the form of a wedge test in production control to judge the suitability of an iron for
pouring a particular casting. In this test, a wedge-shape casting is poured and upon solidification is evaluated. The standard
W2 wedge block specified in ASTM A 367 is shown in Fig. 6. The evaluation consists of measuring the length of the
"chilled zone." The measurement, usually made in 0.8 mm ( in.) increments, is related to empirically determined data
obtained from a "good" casting. If the evaluation indicates an excessive sensitivity for a part, corrections are made to the
molten metal prior to pouring.
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Fig. 6 Standard W2 wedge block used for measuring depth of chill (ASTM A 367). Dimensions given in inches

Volume/Area Ratios. It is extremely difficult to predict with accuracy the cooling rate for castings other than fairly
simple shapes. However, because minimum limitations are involved here, the problem can be resolved through comparisons
of the casting design with ratios of volume to surface area or with minimum plate sections.

The volume/area (V/A) ratios for round, square, and plate sections provide a fairly accurate indication of the minimum
casting sections possible in simple geometrical shapes (Table 2). The V/A ratios can be reported in either English or metric
units and can be converted simply by treating them as length measurements.

Table 2 Volume/area (V/A) ratios for round bars, square bars, and plates
V/A ratio
Cast form and size mm in.
3.1 0.12
Bar, 13 mm ( in.) diam × 533 mm (21 in.)
3.1 0.12
Bar, 13 mm ( in.) square × 533 mm (21 in.)
3.0 0.12
Plate, 6.4 × 305 × 305 mm ( × 12 × 12 in.)

Bar, 30 mm (1.2 in.) diam × 533 mm (21 in.) (a) 7.4 0.29

Bar, 30 mm (1.2 in.) square × 533 mm (21 in.) 7.4 0.29

7.1 0.28
Plate, 16 × 305 × 305 mm ( × 12 × 12 in.)
Bar, 50 mm (2 in.) diam × 560 mm (22 in.) 12.2 0.48
Bar, 50 mm (2 in.) square × 560 mm (22 in.) 12.2 0.48
12.0 0.47
Plate, 28.5 × 305 × 305 mm (1 × 12 × 12 in.)
Bar, 100 mm (4 in.) diam × 460 mm (18 in.) 22.9 0.90
Bar, 100 mm (4 in.) square × 460 mm (18 in.) 22.9 0.90
22.8 0.90
Plate, 65 × 305 × 305 mm (2 × 12 × 12 in.)
Bar, 150 mm (6 in.) diam × 460 mm (18 in.) 32.7 1.29
Bar, 150 mm (6 in.) square × 460 mm (18 in.) 32.7 1.29
32.7 1.29
Plate, 114 × 305 × 305 mm (4 × 12 × 12 in.)

Source: Ref 3
(a) ASTM size B test bar

Comparison of the ratios of volume to surface area for different shapes gives good agreement with the actual cooling rates
of castings made in the same mold material. For long round bars and infinite flat plates, V/A is diameter/4 for bars and
thickness/2 for plates; that is, a large plate casting would have the same cooling rate as a round bar with a diameter twice
the plate thickness. Most castings, however, freeze somewhat faster than an infinite flat plate, and rather than establishing a
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2-to-1 ratio of bar to plate, a smaller ratio will often give a better correlation with the cooling rate. The bar and plate sizes
shown in Table 3 are nearly equivalent in cooling rate.

Table 3 Bar and plate sizes of equivalent cooling rate

For 305 mm (12 in.) square plates, as recorded in Table 2
Bar Plate Ratio of bar
diameter, thickness, diameter to
in. in. plate thickness
2.0

1.2 1.92

2 1.78
1
4 1.56
2
6 1.33
4

Similar comparisons have been made for production castings. In one study, the properties of a flat section from a 0.6 m (24
in.) cross pipe fitting having a nominal thickness of 29.5 mm (1.16 in.) were compared with the properties of a 50 mm (2
in.) diam cylindrical test bar cast from the same heat. The tensile strengths of the test bars were within about 16 MPa (2.3
ksi) of the tensile strengths of the cross pipe fittings for eight heats ranging in strength from about 205 to 310 MPa (30 to 45
ksi), an average variation of less than 8%. These results from production castings correlate well with the calculated
equivalence given in Table 3. Other examples of this type of correlation are given in Ref 3.

Relationships developed for various specific castings are valid when an iron of controlled composition, and therefore of
similar section sensitivity, is used consistently. For instance, with a copper-molybdenum iron of well-controlled
composition, a tensile strength of 450 MPa (65 ksi) in the ASTM B test specimen has been found to ensure 345 MPa (50
ksi) tensile strength in a cast crankshaft 2.13 m (7 ft) long with sections thicker than 30.5 mm (1.2 in.). Such translation of
properties of a small test bar to properties expected in a larger section cannot be done indiscriminately, because different
irons may vary widely in section sensitivity.

References cited in this section

2. R. Schneidewind and R.G. McElwee, Composition and Properties of Gray Iron, Parts I and II, Trans. AFS,
Vol 58, 1950, p 312-330
3. H.C. Winte, Gray Iron Castings Section Sensitivity, Trans. AFS, Vol 54, 1946, p 436-443
Copyright © 2002 ASM International®. All Rights Reserved.

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