2316 Design and optimization of runner and gating systems for permanent mould casting

Abstract

Fluid flow plays a major role in producing good quality casting. The fluid flow is influenced by the pouring velocity and the runners and gating design of the mold. The design process is the most important stages in any product manufacturing same as permanent mold making. The current practice is the experimenting method to predict the best design. By using computational fluid dynamic analysis the process of designing runners and gating can be improved. The main objective of this paper is to design and optimize the runner and gating systems for permanent mold casting. The method use in this paper is Solidworks 3D modeling and ANSYS FLUENT computational fluid dynamic analysis software. Transient, turbulence flow model has been applied to simulate the flow of molten aluminum LM6. The ANSYS FLUENT analyzed 4 runners and gating design concept from the aspect static pressure, velocity magnitude, turbulent kinetic energy, internal energy and cell Reynolds numbers. The results gained from the simulation are optimized to create a perfect mold. As a conclusion a permanent mold casting was designed and optimized and it fulfilled the objective of the project. The simulation analysis is a very powerful tool for engineers that can be used as a reference to improve productivity and quality of product, system or process.