An experimental study of heat transfer in aluminum castings during water quenching

The influence of quenching orientation and agitation conditions on heat transfer of aluminum alloys during water quenching was experimentally investigated with a test casting. The results indicate that heat transfer in water quenching of casting aluminum alloy consists of film boiling, nucleate boiling and convection stages. The highest heat transfer coefficients (HTC) are observed in the nucleate boiling, while the lowest is in the convective cooling stage. The heat transfer coefficients on the horizontal surfaces facing down during quenching are lower than those of other surfaces regardless whether the water is agitated or not. Agitation enhances heat transfer process especially when castings are at high temperatures and heat transfer process is in the film boiling stage. (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.