The paper deals with possibility to improve operating performance of cast-iron heat exchangers by providing them with a copper alloy (CuTi2Cr) with the use of the flame spraying method. A test exchanger was cast of a gray cast iron with vermicular graphite in ferriticpearlitic matrix obtained in production conditions at KAW-MET Iron Foundry with the wire method used to vermicularize the material. The test samples were two plates cast in sand molds, of which one was given a flame-sprayed CuTi2Cr coat on one side. The operating performance of such model cast-iron heat exchangers, with and without CuTi2Cr coating, was tested on a set-up for determining the heat flow rate (thermal power) transferred by the heat exchanger to environment. The obtained results indicate that the value of the heat flow rate characterizing the CuTi2Cr-coated cast-iron heat exchanger was by 10% higher compared to the flow rate of heat conveyed to environment by the heat exchanger without coating.

The paper presents results of a study on the effect of passage of time on magnesium content in iron alloys and the effect of magnesium content on the number of vermicular graphite precipitations per unit surface area and value of the longitudinal ultrasonic wave velocity for two different vermicularization methods. The study was carried out with the use of inspection bar castings. For specific production conditions, it has been found that in case of application of both the cored wire injection method and the method of pouring liquid metal over magnesium master alloy on ladle bottom, the satisfactory level of magnesium content in the bottom-pour ladle, for which it was still possible to obtain castings with vermicular graphite, was 0.018% Mg. In case of the cored wire injection method, the “time window” available to a pouring station at which castings of vermicular cast iron are expected to be obtained, was about 5 minutes. This corresponds to the longitudinal ultrasonic wave velocity values exceeding 5500 m/s and the number of graphite precipitations per unit surface area above 320 mm–2. In case of the master alloy method, the respective “time window” allowing to obtain castings of vermicular cast iron was only about 3 minutes long. This corresponds to the longitudinal ultrasonic wave velocity value above 5400 m/s and the number of graphite precipitations per unit surface area above 380 mm–2.

The objective of the study reported in this paper was to determine the effect of structure on thermal power of cast-iron heat exchangers which in this case were furnace chambers constituting the main component of household fireplace-based heating systems and known commonly as fireplace inserts. For the purpose of relevant tests, plate-shaped castings were prepared of gray iron with flake graphite in pearlitic matrix (the material used to date typically for fireplace inserts) as well as similar castings of gray cast iron with vermicular graphite in pearlitic, ferritic-pearlitic, and ferritic matrix. For all the cast iron variants of different structures (graphite precipitate shapes and matrix type), calorimetric measurements were carried out consisting in determining the heat power which is quantity representing the rate of heat transfer to the ambient environment. It has been found that the value of the observed heat power was affected by both the shape of graphite precipitates and the type of alloy matrix. Higher thermal power values characterize plate castings of gray iron with vermicular graphite compared to plates cast of the flake graphite gray iron. In case of plates made of gray cast iron with vermicular graphite, the highest values of thermal power were observed for castings made of iron with ferritic matrix.

The study presented in this paper concerned the possibility to apply a heat treatment process to ductile cast-iron thin-walled castings in order to remove excessive quantities of pearlite and eutectic cementite precipitates and thus meet the customer’s requirements. After determining the rates of heating a casting up to and cooling down from 900°C feasible in the used production heat treatment furnace (vh = 300°C/h and vc = 200°C/h, respectively), dilatometric tests were carried out to evaluate temperatures Tgr, TAc1start, TAc1end, TAr1start, and TAr1end. The newly acquired knowledge was the base on which conditions for a single-step ferritizing heat treatment securing disintegration of pearlite were developed as well as those of a two-step ferritization process guaranteeing complete disintegration of cementite and arriving at the required ferrite and pearlite content. A purely ferritic matrix and hardness of 119 HB was secured by the treatment scheme: 920°C for 2 hours / vc = 60°C/h / 720°C for 4 hours. A matrix containing 20–45% of pearlite and hardness of 180–182 HB was obtained by applying: 920°C for 2 hours or 4 hours / vc = 200°C/h to 650°C / ambient air.