An investigation of wettability and work of adhesion in ferrous alloy/moulding sand systems

Abstract

During the formation of surface defects in a casting an important part is played by the surface energy and by the phenomenon of wettability of the moulding material by a liquid alloy. The surface tension and contact angle were measured by the sessile drop method (in a Leitz high-temperature microscope) for different metal/moulding materials systems. The following materials were examined: metals—grey cast iron, plain carbon cast steel, Cr—Ni cast steel; moulding sand—silica sand + bentonite, zircon sand + bentonite, chromite sand+ bentonite, silica sand + water-glass, chromite sand + water-glass, and silica sand + gypsum + H3PO4. The values of the surface tension and contact angle were then used for calculation of the work of adhesion.