Drops of molten cast iron were placed on moulding sand substrates. The composition of the forming gaseous atmosphere was examined. It

was found that as a result of the cast iron contact with water vapour released from the sand, a significant amount of hydrogen was evolved.

In all the examined moulding sands, including sands without carbon, a large amount of CO was formed. The source of carbon monoxide

was carbon present in cast iron. In the case of bentonite moulding sand with seacoal and sand bonded with furan resin, in the composition

of the gases, the trace amounts of hydrocarbons, i.e. benzene, toluene, styrene and naphthalene (BTX), appeared. As the formed studies

indicate much higher content of BTX at lower temperature it was concluded that the hydrocarbons are unstable in contact with molten

iron

Gas atmosphere at the sand mould/cast alloy interface determines the quality of the casting obtained. Therefore the aim of this study was to measure and evaluate the gas forming tendency of selected moulding sands with alkyd resins. During direct and indirect gas measurements, the kinetics of gas evolution was recorded as a function of the temperature of the sand mixture undergoing the process of thermal destruction. The content of hydrogen and oxygen was continuously monitored to establish the type of the atmosphere created by the evolved gases (oxidizing/reducing). The existing research methodology [1, 7, 8] has been extended to include pressure-assisted technique of indirect measurement of the gas evolution rate. For this part of the studies, a new concept of the measurement was designed and tested.

This article presents the results of measurements and compares gas emissions from two sand mixtures containing alkyd resins known under the trade name SL and SL2002, in which the polymerization process is initiated with isocyanate. Studies of the gas forming tendency were carried out by three methods on three test stands to record the gas evolution kinetics and evaluate the risk of gas formation in a moulding or core sand.

Proprietary methods for indirect evaluation of the gas forming tendency have demonstrated a number of beneficial aspects, mainly due to the ability to record the quantity and composition of the evolved gases in real time and under stable and reproducible measurement conditions. Direct measurement of gas evolution rate from the tested sands during cast iron pouring process enables a comparison of the results with the results obtained by indirect methods.

Changes of gas pressure in the moulding sand in the zone adjacent to mould cavity were analysed during pouring of cast iron. No significant effect of pressure on the surface quality of castings was observed. In the second series of tests, the concentration of hydrogen in the gas atmosphere was measured. It has been found that the value of this concentration depends on metal composition and is particularly high in cast iron containing magnesium. This is due to the reduction of water vapour with the element that has high affinity to oxygen. The presence of hydrogen causes the formation of gas-induced defects on the casting surface.

The new investigation method of the kinetics of the gas emission from moulding sands used for moulds and cores is presented in this

paper. The gas evolution rate is presented not only as a function of heating time but also as a function of instantaneous temperatures. In

relation to the time and heating temperature the oxygen and hydrogen contents in evolving gases was also measured. This method was

developed in the Laboratory of Foundry Moulds Technology, Faculty of Foundry Engineering, AGH. Gas amounts which are emitted from

the moulding sand at the given temperature recalculated to the time unit (kinetics) are obtained in investigations. Results of investigations

of moulding sand with furan resin are presented - as an example - in the paper.

The obtained results of heating of sand moulds with binders by means of a thermal radiation of liquid metal are presented in this study.

Standard samples for measuring Rg made of the tested moulding sands were suspended at the lower part of the cover which was covering

the crucible with liquid metal (cast iron), placed in the induction furnace. The authors own methodology was applied in investigations. The

progressing of the samples surface layers heating process was determined as the heating time function. Samples of a few kinds of

moulding sands with chemical binders were tested. Samples without protective coatings as well as samples with such coatings were tested.

The influence of the thermal radiation on bending resistance of samples after their cooling was estimated. The influence of several

parameters such as: time of heating, distance from the metal surface, metal temperature, application of coatings, were tested. A very fast

loss of strength of moulding sands with organic binders was found, especially in cases when the distance between metal and sample

surfaces was small and equaled to 10÷15 mm. Then, already after app. 15 seconds of the radiation (at Tmet=1400o

C), the resistance

decreases by nearly 70%. Generally, moulding sands with organic binders are losing their strength very fast, while moulding sands with

water glass at first increase their strength and later slightly lose. The deposition of protective coatings increases the strength of the mould

surface layers, however does not allow to retain this strength after the metal thermal radiation.

In sand moulds, at a distance of 3 mm from the metal- mould interface, the sensors of temperature, and of oxygen and hydrogen content were installed. Temperature and the evolution of partial gas pressure have been analysed in moulds bonded with bentonite with or without the addition of seacoal, water glass or furan resin. Moulds were poured with ductile iron. For comparison, also tests with the grey iron have been executed. It was found that the gas atmosphere near the interface depends mainly on the content of a carbonaceous substance in the mould. In the green sand moulds with 5% of seacoal or bonded with furan resin, after the mould filling, a sudden increase in the hydrogen content and the drop of oxygen is observed. This gas evolution results from the oxidation of carbon and reduction of water vapour in the mould material, and also from the reduction of water vapour and alloy reoxidation. In carbon-free sand, the evolution in the gas composition is slower because water vapour is reduced only at the interface. Changes of oxygen and hydrogen content in the controlled zone are determined by the transport phenomena.

A large number of defects of castings made in sand moulds is caused by gases. There are several sources of gases: gases emitted from moulds, cores or protective coatings during pouring and casting solidification; water in moulding sands; moisture adsorbed from surroundings due to atmospheric conditions changes. In investigations of gas volumetric emissions of moulding sands amounts of gases emitted from moulding sand were determined - up to now - in dependence of the applied binders, sand grains, protective coatings or alloys used for moulds pouring. The results of investigating gas volumetric emissions of thin-walled sand cores poured with liquid metal are presented in the hereby paper. They correspond to the surface layer in the mould work part, which is decisive for the surface quality of the obtained castings. In addition, cores were stored under conditions of a high air humidity, where due to large differences in humidity, the moisture - from surroundings - was adsorbed into the surface layer of the sand mould. Due to that, it was possible to asses the influence of the adsorbed moisture on the gas volumetric emission from moulds and cores surface layers by means of the new method of investigating the gas emission kinetics from thin moulding sand layers heated by liquid metal. The results of investigations of kinetics of the gas emission from moulding sands with furan and alkyd resins as well as with hydrated sodium silicate (water glass) are presented. Kinetics of gases emissions from these kinds of moulding sands poured with Al-Si alloy were compared.

Gas emission from casting moulds, cores and coatings applied for sand and permanent moulds is one of the fundamental reasons of casting defects occurrence. In the previous studies, gas emission was measured in two ways: normalized, in which the evolving gas volume was measured during heating of the moulding sand sample in a sealed flask, or by measuring the amount of gas from sand core (sample) which is produced during the pouring of liquid metal. After the pouring process the sand mould is heated very unequally, the most heated areas are layers adjacent to the liquid metal. The emission of gas is significantly larger from the surface layer than from the remaining ones. New, original method of measuring kinetics of gas emission from very thin layers of sand moulds heated by liquid metal developed by the authors is presented in the hereby paper. Description of this new method and the investigation results of kinetics of gas emission from moulding sand with furan and alkyd resin are shown. Liquid grey cast iron and Al-Si alloy were used as a heat source in the sand moulds. Comparison of the kinetics of gas emission of these two kinds of moulding sands filled with two different alloys was made. The momentary metal temperature in sand mould was assigned to the kinetics of gas emission, what creates a full view of the possibility of formation of casting defects of the gaseous origin. Moulding sand with alkyd resin is characterized by larger gas emission; however gases are emitted slower than in the case of moulding sands with furan resin. This new investigation method has a high repeatability and is the only one which gives a full view of phenomenon’s in the surface layer which determines quality of the casings. The obtained results are presented on several graphs and analyzed in detail. They have a great application value and can be used in the production of iron as well as light metal alloy castings.