Observation of the Mold-Filling Process of a Large Hydro-Turbine Guide Vane Casting

The mold-filling process has a determining effect on the quality of castings, and it has always been a hot but difficult research topic. The authors developed a wireless monitoring system for the mold-filling process of castings based on a contact time method and an observation system based on heat-resistant high-speed cameras. By using these two systems, the filling process of a turbine guide vane casting with a stepped gating system was investigated. The filling profile of the casting was recorded, and the filling time of nine typical positions was acquired. These results show that at the beginning, the liquid steel flowed out from the top ingate, which was designed to be the last to fill. The numerical simulation of the filling of the guide vane was performed, and the outflow from the top ingate were predicted. Finally, the gating system of the casting was improved with enlarged sprue. The new design features bigger sprue to ingate ratio; therefore, it could avoid the overflow from the top ingate and realize stable filling.