In house reuse and reclamation of used foundry sands with sodium silicate binder

Reuse and reclamation of sodium silicate sands have long been of interest because of their unique characteristics in both bonding mechanism and high temperature strength, which make them ideal for applications in cast steel production. After analysis of the characteristics of the used sands containing sodium silicate binder and the requirement for moulding sands, a suggestion is proposed for a sand reuse scheme. Used sands can be reclaimed as support sands after dry treatment or reconditioning, but for use as face sands wet reclamation is necessary. This assertion has been confirmed experimentally on newly developed reclamation equipment. The results showed consistent sand properties and casting quality when applying reused support sands and reclaimed face sands. (C) 2004 W. S. Maney Son Ltd.