Furan sand is one of the most commonly used chemically bonded molding materials in foundries across the world. It consists of a furfuryl alcohol-based resin and an acid-based liquid catalyst. When the molding material comes in contact with the molten metal, it undergoes a thermal shock accompanied by a certain release of volatile gases. In order to evacuate these gases, molds and cores should have optimal gas permeability values and proper venting by design. If the volatile compounds are not appropriately evacuated, they are prone to enter the melt before the first layer of solidified metal is formed which can lead to the formation of gas-related casting defects. Standard gas permeability measurements are commercially available tools used in the industry to compare and to quality control different sands, however, they only provide reference numbers without actual units. Permeability in a standard unit, m2, provides uniformity and helps the comparison of results from difference sources. In this paper, a new method using Darcy’s law (prevalent in earth sciences), was adapted to measure the gas-permeability of furan samples made of silica sand with various grain size distributions. The effect of grain size distribution on the gas-permeability of furan sand samples was studied. Gas-permeability values in m2 were then correlated with mercury-porosity measurement results to bring new light on the relation between pore size, pore volume and the permeability of molding materials.
Gas permeability of moulds and cores is an important factor to consider in the casting process. In foundries, gas permeability is measured by using instruments which give dimensionless numbers. This approach enables the comparison of values between samples and is often not quantified in units. In this study, a custom-made measurement system is introduced that applies Darcy's law, where pressure gradients for different flow rates are studied. The Darcian permeability in standard cylindrical samples was determined using a method that is familiar with those in earth sciences. Two types, steady-state and unsteady-state approaches were used for the calculations, and the difference in permeability values generated by these two methods is discussed. The results of a silica sand sample with furan resin and a 3D-printed sample that consists of artificial granulous material with phenolic resin were compared.
The density of moulding mixtures used in the foundry industry plays a significant role since it influences the strength, porosity, and permeability of moulds and cores. The latter is routinely tested in foundries using different solutions to control the properties of the moulding materials that are used to make moulds and cores. In this paper, the gas permeability of sand samples was measured using a custom-made setup to obtain the gas permeability in standard units instead of the usual permeability numbers (PN) with calibrated units. The aim of the work was to explore the effect of density variations in moulding materials on their gas permeabilities. Permeability in this work is quantified in SI units, square metres [m2]. The setup works based on Darcy’s law and the numbers obtained from the measurements can be used to deduce the gas permeability, k, of a sample. Two furan resin bonded mixtures with the same grain size distribution were hand-rammed with varying compaction forces to obtain a variation in density. Cylindrical samples (50 × 50 mm) were prepared using a silica sand aggregate sourced from a Swedish lake. The results of the measurement provided the difference in gas permeability between the samples that have varying densities. The results of permeability were then extrapolated by modifying the viscosity value of the air passed through the sample. In order to find the effect of apparent density variation on the pore characteristics of the samples, mercury intrusion porosimetry (MIP) was also performed. The results were in line with the gas permeability measurements.
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