Ductile iron castings fabricated using metallic moulds

The features and suitability of high requirements ductile iron castings production using metallic moulds have been studied in the present work. The structural and mechanical properties of the produced castings have been analysed and compared to the corresponding ones but fabricated using green sand moulds according to a conventional production process. The higher cooling rate in the metallic moulds is the main cause for the appearance of the detected structural changes in castings. The mechanical and microstructural properties obtained directly on castings are remarkable due to the higher nodule count among other factors. Finally, the benefits and inconveniences found in this kind of production methodology using metallic moulds are also discussed.