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Oct 4, 2022Keywords:
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Selection of Optimum Pouring Conditions for Improvement of Aluminum Alloy Castings in Ghana
Abstract
It has been discovered that the pouring conditions (temperature of the molten aluminum alloy and pouring speed) have adverse effects on the mechanical properties of the cast aluminum alloy, either directly or indirectly. This paper develops a model to predict the effect of pouring conditions on the mechanical properties of the cast Aluminum alloy. In this work a 22 factorial design was applied to investigate the effects of temperature of the molten aluminum alloy and pouring speed on three mechanical properties, namely; the hardness, ultimate tensile strength, and elongation. The developed models were used to select optimum pouring conditions for the improvement of the Aluminum alloy in manufacturing companies in Ghana. The study revealed that increasing the pouring conditions causes the hardness to decease as well as the ultimate tensile strength, and elongation. Also, the two - factor interaction effect of the pouring speed and temperature of the molten aluminum alloy on hardness is significant as the interaction effect decreases with increase in hardness but has insignificant effect on the elongation and the ultimate tensile strength. It is established that the optimal pouring conditions to improve the mechanical properties for the production of the Aluminum alloys are 2 cm/s for the pouring speed and 700 ℃ for the temperature of the molten aluminum alloy producing a hardness of 61 HB, ultimate tensile strength of 115 N/mm2 and 17 % elongation.
