Prediction of solidification time during solidification of aluminum base alloy castings cast in CO2-sand mold

Solidification of molten metals during various casting methods poses many practical problems associated with phase transformation and heat transfer processes. Evaluation of solidification time is one of the very important parameters used for assessing the properties of the material. In the present study, experimental investigation was carried out to measure the solidification time in a cylindrical hollow casting cast in CO2-Sand molds and the same has been compared with the results obtained through computed by using an implicit alternating direction (IAD) method, including the treatment of interfacial nodes between metal and mold, and boundary nodes at the mold surface. Aluminum-4.5% copper alloy has been used. Computed cooling curves at various locations and temperature distributions in core-metal-mold were presented. The results shows that the solidification time obtained by experimental study compares well with the one predicted by the analysis made through IAD modeling. A successful comparison with reported experimental results shows that the technique is appropriate for simulation of solidification process of aluminum castings.