Casting Defects

Unwanted irregularities that appear in the casting during metal casting

process
Types
Casting defects can be categorized into 5 types
• 1. Gas Porosity: Blowholes, open holes, pinholes
2. Shrinkage defects: shrinkage cavity
3. Mold material defects: Cut and washes, swell, drops, metal
penetration, rat tail
4. Pouring metal defects: Cold shut, misrun, slag inclusion
5. Metallurgical defects: Hot tears, hot spot.
• 1. Shift or Mismatch
The defect caused due to misalignment of upper and lower
part of the casting and misplacement of the core at parting
line.
• Cause:
(i) Improper alignment of upper and lower part during
mould preparation. (pattern / core / mould box)
(ii) Misalignment of flask (a flask is type of tool which is
used to contain a mold in metal casting. it may be square,
round, rectangular or of any convenient shape.)
• Remedies
(i) Proper alignment of the pattern or die part, molding
boxes.
(ii) Correct mountings of pattern on pattern plates.
(iii) Check the alignment of flask.
• 2. Swell
It is the enlargement of the mold cavity
because of the molten metal pressure, which
results in localised or overall enlargement of
the casting.
Causes
(i) Defective or improper ramming of the
mould.
Remedies
• (i) The sand should be rammed properly
• and evenly.
3. Blowholes:
When gases entrapped on the surface of the casting due to solidifying metal, a
rounded or oval cavity is formed called as blowholes. These defects are always
present in the cope part of the mould.
Causes
(i) Excessive moisture in the sand.
(ii) Low Permeability of the sand.
(iii) Sand grains are too fine.
(iv) Too hard rammed sand.
(v) Insufficient venting is provided.
Remedies
(i) The moisture content in the sand must be controlled and kept at desired level.
(ii) High permeability sand should be used.
(iii) Sand of appropriate grain size should be used.
(iv) Sufficient ramming should be done.
(v) Adequate venting facility should be provided.
4. Drop
Drop defect occurs when there is cracking on the upper surface
of the sand and sand pieces fall into the molten metal.
• Causes
(i) Soft ramming and low strength of sand.
(ii) Insufficient fluxing of molten metal. Fluxing means addition of
a substance in molten metal to remove impurities. After fluxing
the impurities from the molten metal can be easily removed.
(iii) Insufficient reinforcement of sand projections in the cope.
• Remedies
(i) Sand of high strength should be used with proper ramming
(neither too hard nor soft).
(ii) There should be proper fluxing of molten metal, so the
impurities present in molten metal is removed easily before
pouring it into the mold.
(iii) Sufficient reinforcement of the sand projections in the cope.
• 5. Metal Penetration
These casting defects appear as an uneven and
rough surface of the casting. When the size of
sand grains is larges, the molten fuses into the
sand and solidifies giving us metal penetration
defect.
• Causes
It is caused due to low strength, large grain size,
high permeability and soft ramming of sand.
Because of this the molten metal penetrates in
the moulding sand and we get rough or uneven
casting surface.
• Remedies
This defect can be eliminated by using high
strength, small grain size, low permeability and
soft ramming of sand.
• 6. Pinholes
They are very small holes of about 2 mm in size which
appears on the surface of the casting. This defect happens
because of the dissolution of the hydrogen gases in the
molten metal. When the molten metal is poured in the mould
cavity and as it starts to solidify, the solubility of the hydrogen
gas decreases and it starts escaping out the molten metal
leaves behind small number of holes called as pinholes.
• Causes
(i) Use of high moisture content sand.
(ii) Absorption of hydrogen or carbon monoxide gas by molten
metal.
(iii) Pouring of steel from wet ladles or not sufficiently
gasified.
• Remedies
(i) By reducing the moisture content of the molding sand.
(ii) Good fluxing and melting practices should be used.
(iii) Increasing permeability of the sand.
(iv) By doing rapid rate of solidification.
• 7. Shrinkage Cavity
The formation of cavity in the casting due
to volumetric contraction is called as
shrinkage cavity.
• Causes
(i) Uneven or uncontrolled solidification of
molten metal.
(ii) Pouring temperature is too high.
• Remedies
(i) This defect can be removed by applying
principle of directional solidification in
mould design.
(ii) Wise use of chills (a chill is an object
which is used to promote solidification in a
specific portion of a metal casting) and
padding.
8. Cold Shut
It is a type of surface defects and a line on the
surface can be seen. When the molten metal
enters into the mould from two gates and when
these two streams of molten metal meet at a
junction with low temperatures than they do not
fuse with each other and solidifies creating a cold
shut (appear as line on the casting). It looks like a
crack with round edge.
• Causes
(i) Poor gating system
(ii) Low melting temperature
(iii) Lack of fluidity
• Remedies
(i) Improved gating system.
(ii) Proper pouring temperature.
9. Misrun
When the molten metal solidifies before completely
filling the mould cavity and leaves a space in the
mold called as misrun.
• Causes
(i) Low fluidity of the molten metal.
(ii) Low temperature of the molten metal which
decreases its fluidity.
(iii) Too thin section and improper gating system.
• Remedies
(i) Increasing the pouring temperature of the
molten metal increases the fluidity.
(ii) Proper gating system
(iii) Too thin section is avoided.
10. Dross or Slag Inclusion
This defect is caused when the molten
metal containing slag particles is
poured in the mould cavity and it gets
solidifies.
• Causes
(i) The presence of slag in the molten
metal
• Remedies
Remove slag particles form the molten
metal before pouring it into the mould
cavity.
11. Hot Tears or Hot Cracks
• when the metal is hot it is weak and the
residual stress (tensile) in the material
cause the casting fails as the molten
metal cools down.
• The failure of casting in this case is looks
like cracks and called as hot tears or hot
cracking.
• Causes
(i) Improper mould design.
• Remedies
(i) Proper mould design can easily eliminate
these types of casting defects.
(ii) Elimination of residual stress from the
material of the casting.
12. Hot Spot or Hard Spot:
Hot spots are sections of casting which
have cooled down more slowly than the
surrounding material due to higher
volume than its surrounding. This causes
abnormal shrinkage in this region, which
can lead to porosity and cracks
Causes
The slow cooling an area of the casting
than the surrounding materials causes this
defect.
• Remedies
(i) This defect can be avoided by using
proper cooling practice.
(ii) By changing the chemical composition
of the metal.
13. Sand Holes
It is the holes created on the external surface or inside the casting. It occurs
when loose sand washes into the mold cavity and fuses into the interior of
the casting or rapid pouring of the molten metal.
• Causes:
(i) Loose ramming of the sand.
(ii) Rapid pouring of the molten metal into the mould results in wash away of
sand from the mold and a hole is created.
(iii) Improper cleaning of the mould cavity.
• Remedies
(i) Proper ramming of the sand.
(ii) Molten metal should be poured carefully in the mould.
(iii) Proper cleaning of the molten cavity eliminates sand holes.
14. Dirt
The embedding of particles of dust and sand in the casting surface, results
in dirt defect.
• Causes:
(i) Cursing of mould due to improper handling and Sand wash (A sloping
surface of sand that spread out by stream of molten metal).
(ii) Presence of slag particles in the molten metal.
• Remedies:
(i) Proper handling of the mould to avoid crushing.
(ii) Sufficient fluxing should be done to remove slag impurities from
molten metal.
15. Honeycombing or Sponginess
It is an external defect in which there is a
number of small cavities in close proximity
present in the metal casting.
• Causes:
(i) It is caused due to dirt and scurf held
mechanically in the suspension of the
molten metal.
(ii) Due to imperfect skimming in the ladle.
• Remedies
(i) Prevent the entry of dirt and scurf in the
molten metal.
(ii) Prevent sand wash.
(iii) Remove slag materials from the molten
metal by proper skimming in the ladle.
16. Warpage:
• It is an accidental and unwanted deformation in
the casting that happens during or after
solidification.
• Due to this defect, the dimension of the final
product changes.
• Causes:
(i) Due to different rates of solidification of different
sections. This induces stresses in adjoining walls and
result in warpage.
(ii) Large and flat sections or intersecting section
such as ribs are more prone to these casting defects.
• Remedies
(i) It can be prevented by producing large areas with
wavy, corrugated construction, or add sufficient rib-
like shape, to provide equal cooling rates in all areas.
(ii) Proper casting designs can reduce these defects
more efficiently.
17. Fins
A thin projection of metal, not considered as
a part of casting is called as fins or fin. It is
usually occurs at the parting of the mold or
core section.
• Causes:
(i) Incorrect assembling of mold and cores.
(ii) Insufficient weight of the mold or
improper clamping of the flask may produce
the fins.
• Remedies
(i) Correct assembly of the mold and cores.
(ii) There should be sufficient weight on the
top part of the mold so that the two parts fit
together tightly.
18. Rat tail
Rat tail is caused by the compression
failure of the skin of the mould
cavity because of the excessive heat
in the molten metal, this high heat
causes sand to expand and the mould
wall moves backwards and when the
walls give away the casting surface
they have the marked lines.
 Common Casting Defects

Examples of common defects in castings. These defects can be minimized or eliminated by proper design and
preparation of molds and control of pouring procedures. Source: After J. Datsko.
 Common Casting Defects
• Scab is sand casting defect caused due to improper ramming of moulding
sand. Scab refers to the rough, thin layer of a metal, protruding above the
casting surface, on top of a thin layer of sand.
• Scars are shallow blows that appear on a flat surface, while blisters are scars
covered with a thin layer of metal.
• Scab is sand casting defect caused due to improper ramming of moulding
sand. Scab refers to the rough, thin layer of a metal, protruding above the
casting surface, on top of a thin layer of sand.
• Cuts and washes are caused when the liquid metal erodes away part of the
mold when pouring in and the sand doesn't have enough heat strength to
resist it.
 Types of Internal and External Chills used in
Casting

Various types of (a) internal and (b) external chills (dark areas at corners) used in castings to eliminate porosity
caused by shrinkage. Chills are placed in regions where there is a larger volume of metal, as shown in (c).
 Hot Tears in Castings

Hot tears occur because the casting cannot shrink freely during cooling, owing to constraints in various portions
of the molds and cores. Exothermic (heat-producing) compounds may be used (as exothermic padding) to
control cooling at critical sections to avoid hot tearing
 Classification of defects
(as per International committee of Foundry Technical
Association)
• Metallic projections: fins, flash or massive projections like swell and rough
surfaces.
• Cavities: exposed cavities including blow holes and shrinkage cavities.
• Discontinuities: cracks, cold or hot tearing, and cold shuts.
• Defective surface: surface folds, laps, scars and oxide scale
• Incomplete casting: misruns, runout
• Incorrect dimension or shape: improper shrinkage allowance, mismatch,
irregular contraction, deformed pattern and warped casting.
• Inclusions: non metallic inclusions
Typical Cast Parts

(c)

(a)

(b) (d)
Figure 11.1 (a) Typical gray-iron castings used in automobiles, including the transmission valve body
(left) and the hub rotor with disk-brake cylinder (front). Source: Courtesy of Central Foundry Division
of General Motors Corporation. (b) A cast transmission housing. (c) The Polaroid PDC-2000 digital
camera with a AZ191D die-cast high-purity magnesium case. (d) A two-piece Polaroid camera case
made by the hot-chamber die-casting process. Source: Courtesy of Polaroid Corporation and Chicago
White Metal Casting, Inc.
Manufacturing, Engineering & Technology, Fifth Edition, by Serope Kalpakjian and Steven R. Schmid.
ISBN 0-13-148965-8. © 2006 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ. All rights reserved.
Characteristics of Casting