COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS ON MOULD FILLING OF A413 ALUMINIUM ALLOY IN SAND AND EVAPORATIVE PATTERN CASTING PROCESS USING VIRTUAL INSTRUMENTATION

Tony Thomas A, Parameshwaran R, Kirubha C, Muthukrishnan A

Abstract: This paper deals with the comparative study on the properties of Aluminium alloy (LM6-12%Si) castings in sand casting and Evaporative pattern casting (EPC) process. Thermocouples are used to measure the temperature of the casting during solidification. Signals from the thermocouples are connected to the DAQ (Data Acquisition Card) 6024E.The software development platform used for this application is LabVIEW. The signals acquired using DAQ card is given to the LabVIEW as an input. The acquired signals from the thermocouples are processed to obtain the mould filling and solidification time for both the process. Mechanical properties and micrographs of the castings were also considered. It is revealed that the properties of the evaporative pattern castings of A413 alloy are comparable to the castings.EPC is the viable alternate for conventional casting process to make intricate Al-Si Castings with energy efficient and environmental friendly way.

Keywords: Evaporative pattern casting (EPC), A413 alloy, mould filling, solidification, Data Acquisition system, microstructure, tensile strength

DOI: https://doi.org/10.15623/ijret.2014.0323002