Moulding Sand Recycling and Reuse in Small Foundries

Abstract

A number of small foundries do not reuse their sand while some reuse it. In this paper we explore how the EffSAfound a German project in collaboration with the Metal Casting Technology Station (MCTS) at the University of Johannesburg reused spent foundry sand in a small foundry. We look at economics of reuse and quality of the reusable sand. Currently there are a number of small foundries with no sand reuse options. The following properties of the reusable sand were looked at as part of the collaboration with the German project. The two important properties looked at are strength and loss on ignition. All the test procedures related to sand reuse were conducted according to the American Foundry Society moulding and core making test procedures. Our research indicates that a number of small foundries have not explored the qualities of spent foundry sand which could have been reused in the foundry. As part of the EffSAfound project we tested the quality of sand in particular to ensure reusability. We also looked at potential cost savings in the foundry. The major challenge remains the cost of investment required to install reclamation units in small foundries.