Design, Fabrication and Structural Analysis of a 5 Tons Hydraulic Press and Mould Machine for Crucible Production

Abstract

A hydraulic press machine comprising of the frame, cylinder, hand pump, and pressure gauge was designed, fabricated, and evaluated. The machine is manually operated and the frame was modeled using the Solidwork application software 2018 version. The maximum stress, maximum displacement, maximum strain, and factor of safety of the machine are 97.09 MPa, 0.337696 mm, 0.000361326, and 2.32 respectively. The performance of the developed machine was successfully carried out by using it to mould clay of different sieve sizes (0.6-4.75 mm) into crucible form with an applied maximum pressure of 100 bar. The results showed that the smaller the size of the sieve, the lower the pressure required for compaction, as a result, the hydraulic press designed is effective for clay compaction and the design is safe. The machine which was fabricated with local materials will enhance the production of suitable crucibles, thereby, reducing the over-reliance on the foreign crucible by small and medium scale foundry operators.