Direct-chill casting is the major production route for wrought aluminium and magnesium alloys that are later deformed (rolled, extruded, forged) to the final products. To aid in this process, this book provides comprehensive coverage on topics such as the history of process development in this field, industrial applications, including vertical and horizontal casting, melt preparation, fundamentals of solidification in DC casting, and more. The first book targeted for the industrial researcher and practitioner, it pulls together the practice and process of physics with the goal of improving process performance.

Pulling together information previously scattered throughout numerous research articles into one detailed resource, this book connects the fundamentals of structure formation during solidification with the practically observed structure and defect patterns in billets and ingots. The author examines the formation of a structure, properties, and defects in the as-cast material in tight correlation to the physical phenomena involved in the solidification and the process parameters. Compiling recent results and data, the book discusses the fundamentals of solidification together with metallurgical and technological aspects of DC casting. It gives new insight and perspective into DC casting research.

Spawned by growing interest in ultrasonic technology and new developments in ultrasonic melt processing, the Second Edition of Ultrasonic Treatment of Light Alloy Melts discusses use of ultrasonic melt treatment in direct-chill casting, shape casting, rapid solidification, zone refining, and more, exploring the effects of power ultrasound on melt d

The book contains the proceedings of the honorary symposium “Advances in the Science and Engineering of Casting Solidification” (TMS2015, Orlando, Florida, March 15-19, 2015) held in honor of Professor Doru Michael Stefanescu, Emeritus Professor, Ohio State University and the University of Alabama, USA. The book encompasses the following four areas: (1) Solidification processing: theoretical and experimental investigations of solidification processes including castings solidification, directional solidification of alloys, electromagnetic stirring, ultrasonic cavitation, mechanical vibration, active cooling and heating, powder bed-electron beam melting additive manufacturing, etc. for processing of metals, polymers and composite materials; (2) Microstructure Evolution: theoretical and experimental studies related to microstructure evolution of materials including prediction of solidification-related defects and particle pushing/engulfment aspects; (3) Novel Casting and Molding Processes: modeling and experimental aspects including high pressure die casting, permanent casting, centrifugal casting, low pressure casting, 3D silica sand mold printing, etc.; and (4) Cast Iron: all aspects related to cast iron characterization, computational and analytical modeling, and processing.

The Direct-Chill (DC) casting process is used in the non-ferrous metals industry to produce ingots, blooms and cylindrical billets. During DC casting, primary cooling in the mould is followed by secondary cooling, in which the cast product surface is directly cooled by water jets. The formation of defects during the direct-chill casting process can be reduced by controlling the heat extraction in the secondary cooling zone during the start-up phase. The control and optimization of this process requires an accurate knowledge of the boundary conditions and their relationship with casting parameters. This research project studied the effect of different parameters on the heat transfer in the secondary cooling zone of the direct-chill casting process. This process was simulated by quenching instrumented samples of industrial DC-cast aluminum AA5 182 and magnesium AZ3 1 with water jets and recording the thermal history within the sample using sub-surface thermocouples. An inverse heat conduction algorithm specifically developed for this research project converted this thermal history into surface heat fluxes and surface temperatures. The relationship between heat flux and surface temperature was expressed by a boiling curve. Cooling experiments showed the influence of the cooling water flow rate on characteristic features of the boiling curve. The effect of thermophysical properties, initial sample temperature and water temperature on high temperature boiling regimes was also quantified. The influence of other parameters such as the water jet velocity and the surface roughness was determined in a qualitative fashion. Results from the quench tests were used as boundary conditions in a finite element model for the direct-chill casting of AZ3 1 billets. Simulations of the process start-up phase showed the critical role played by stable film boiling and water film ejection in determining the thermal history within the billet.

The Light Metals symposia at the TMS Annual Meeting & Exhibition present the most recent developments, discoveries, and practices in primary aluminum science and technology. The annual Light Metals volume has become the definitive reference in the field of aluminum production and related light metal technologies. The 2017 collection includes papers from the following symposia:Alumina and BauxiteAluminum Alloys, Processing, and CharacterizationAluminum Reduction TechnologyCast Shop TechnologyCast Shop Technology: Recycling and Sustainability Joint SessionElectrode TechnologyThe Science of Melt Refining: An LMD Symposium in Honor of Christian Simensen and Thorvald Abel Engh

The 2015 collection will include papers from the following symposia: Alumina and Bauxite Aluminum Alloys: Fabrication, Characterization and Applications Aluminum Processing Aluminum Reduction Technology Cast Shop for Aluminum Production Electrode Technology for Aluminum Production Strip Casting of Light Metals