Current trends in cast iron production

Abstract

The history of cast iron dates back long before the dawn of human civilization, which would not have been possible without metallurgy in general and cast iron in particular. Today, however, cast iron is going through difficult times. At the one side, in the last hundred years there has been a steep jump in the consumption properties and especially the mechanical properties of cast iron - the tensile strength has increased from ~100 MPa for lamellar graphite iron to ~1800 MPa for nanostructured ausferritic ductile cast iron due to the discovery and implementation of methods for modifying the graphite and matrix structure of cast iron in both liquid and solid states. However, at the other side, scientific interest in development of new properties and production technologies of cast iron castings has lately decreased against the background of growing competition from other industrial materials, especially aluminum alloys. In addition, defects of iron castings have increased, the main reasons for which are growing demands for lower weight and enhanced mechanical properties of castings, widespread use of cheap low quality materials in the production process and the knowledge lagging behind the cast iron modification practices. In the present paper, based on an analytical review of domestic and foreign information, we tried to specify current trends in the production of iron castings, and identify ways to improve the quality and develop the production of domestic iron castings. The main conclusions were that the prospects and necessity of further development of properties and application of cast iron as a unique material with not fully disclosed possibilities of forming unique structures and properties in it, transfer of cast iron from the category of the “widely consumed” material to the category of the “elite” material were evident. Ways of realization of the seambitious tasks are offered.