Centrifugal castings can be produced economically and with excellent soundness. They are used in the automotive, aviation, chemical, and process industries for a variety of parts having a hollow, cylindrical form or for sections or segments obtainable from such a form.
There are three modifications of centrifugal casting: (1) true centrifugal casting, (2) semi-centrifugal casting, and (3) centrifuging.
1. True centrifugal casting is used for the production of cylindrical parts. The mold is rotated, usually in a horizontal plane, and the molten metal is held against the wall by centrifugal force until it solidifies.
2. Semicentrifugal casting is used for disk- and wheel-shaped parts. The mold is spun on a vertical axis, the metal is introduced at the center of the mold, and centrifugal force throws the metal to the periphery.
3. Centrifuging is used to produce irregular-shaped pieces. The method differs from static casting only in that the mold is rotated. Mold cavities are fastened at the periphery of a revolving turntable, the metal is introduced at the center, and thrown into the molds through radial ingates.
The nature of the centrifugal casting process assures a dense, homogeneous cast structure free from porosity. Because the metal solidifies in a spinning mold under centrifugal force, it tends to be forced against the mold wall while impurities, such as sand, slag, and gases, are forced toward the inside of the tube. Another advantage of centrifugal casting is that recovery can run as high as 90% of the metal poured.
Certain types of castings are produced in centrifugal casting machines. There are essentially two types of those machines — the horizontal type that rotates about a horizonal axis and the vertical type that rotates about a vertical axis. In general, horizontal machines are used to make pipe, tubes, bushings, cylinder sleeves, and other cylindrical or tubular castings that are simple in shape. Castings that are not cylindrical, or even symmetrical, can be made using vertical centrifugal casting machines.
Ferrous Castings
Centrifugal castings can be made of many of the ferrous metals — cast irons, carbon and low-alloy steels, and duplex metals.
Mechanical Properties
Regardless of alloy content, the tensile properties of irons cast centrifugally are reported to be higher than those of static castings produced from the same heat. Hydrostatic tests of cylinder liners produced by both methods show that centrifugally cast liners withstand about 20% more pressure than statically cast liners.
Freedom from directionality is one of the advantages that centrifugal castings have over forgings. Properties of longitudinal and tangential specimens of several stainless grades are substantially equal.
Shapes, Sizes, Tolerances
The external contours of centrifugal castings are not limited to circular forms. The contours can be elliptical, hexagonal, or fluted, for example. However, the nature of the true centrifugal casting process limits the bore to a circular cross section.
Iron and steel centrifugally cast tubes and cylinders are produced commercially with diameters ranging from 28.6 to 1500 mm, wall thickness of 0.25 to 102 mm, and in lengths up to 14.30 m. Generally it is impractical to produce castings with the a ratio of the outside diameter to the inside diameter greater than about 4 to 1. The upper limit in size is governed by the cost of the massive equipment required to produce heavy castings.
As-cast tolerances for centrifugal eastings are about the same as those for static castings. For example, tolerances on the outside diameter of centrifugally cast gray iron pipe range from 0.3 mm for 76 mm diameter to ±0.6 mm. for 1.2 m diameter. Inside-diameter tolerances are greater, because they depend not only on the mold diameter, but also on the quantity of metal cast; the latter varies from one casting to another. These tolerances are generally about 50% greater than those on outside diameters. Casting tolerances depend to some extent also on the shrinkage allowance for the metal being cast.
The figures given above apply to castings to be used in the unmachined state. For castings requiring machining, it is customary to allow 2.35 to 3.2 mm on small castings and up to 6.4 mm on larger castings. If the end use requires a sliding fit, broader tolerances are generally specified to permit additional machining on the inside surface.
Cast irons
Large tonnages of gray iron are cast centrifugally. The relatively low pouring temperatures and good fluidity of the common grades make them readily adaptable to the process. Various alloy grades that yield pearlitic, acicular, and chill irons are also used. In addition, specialty iron alloys such as "Ni-Hard" and "Ni-Resist," have been cast successfully.
Carbon and Low-Alloy Steels
Centrifugal castings are produced from carbon steels having carbon contents ranging from 0.05 to 0.90%. Practically all of the AISI (American Iron and Steel Institute) standard low-alloy grades have also been cast.
Small-diameter centrifugally cast tubing in the usual carbon steel grades is not competitive in price with mechanical tubing having normal wall thicknesses. However, centrifugally cast tubing is less expensive than statically cast material.
High-Alloy Steels
Most of the AISI stainless and heat-resisting grades can be cast centrifugally. A particular advantage of the process is its use in producing tubes and cylinders from alloy compositions that are difficult to pierce and to forge or roll.
The excellent ductility resulting in the stainless alloys from centrifugal casting makes it possible to reduce the rough cast tubes to smaller-diameter tubing by hot- or cold-working methods. For example, billets of 18-8 stainless steel, 114.5 mm outside diameter by 16 mm wall, have been redated to 27-gauge capillary tubing without difficulty.
Duplex Metals
Centrifugal castings with one metal on the outside and another on the inside are also in commercial production. Combinations of hard and soft cast iron, carbon steel, and stainless steel have been produced successfully.
Duplex metal parts have been centrifugally cast by two methods. In one, the internal member of the pair is cast within a shell of the other. This method has been used to produce aircraft brake drums by centrifugally casting an iron liner into a steel shell.
In the second method, both sections of the casting are produced centrifugally; the metal that is to form the outer portion of the combination is poured into the mold and solidified and the second metal is introduced before the first has cooled. The major limitation of this method is that the solidification temperature of the second metal poured must be the same or lower than that of the first. This method is said to form a strongly bonded duplex casting.
The possibilities of this duplex method for producing tubing for corrosion-resistant applications and chemical pressure service have been developed.
Nonferrous Castings
Nonferrous centrifugal castings are produced from copper alloys, nickel alloys, and tin- and lead-base bearing metals. Only limited application of the process is made to light metals because it is questionable whether any property improvement is achieved; for example, differences in density between aluminum and its normal impurities are smaller than in the heavy metals and consequently separation of the oxides, a major advantage of the process, is not so successful.
Shapes, Sizes, Tolerances
As with ferrous alloys, the external shapes of nonferrous centrifugal castings can be elliptical, hexagonal, or fluted, as well as round. However, the greatest overall tonnage of non-ferrous castings is produced in plain or semi-plain cylinders. The inside diameter of the casting is limited to a straight bore or one that can be machined to the required contour with minimum machining cost.
Nonferrous castings are produced commercially in outside diameter ranging from about 25.4 mm to 1.8 m and in lengths up to 8.1 m. Weights of individual castings range from 0.2268 to 27300 kg.
Although tolerances on as-cast parts are about the same as those for sand castings, most centrifugal castings are finished by machining. An advantage of centrifugal casting is that normally only a small machining allowance is required; this allowance varies from as little as 1.53 mm on small castings to 6.4 mm on the outside diameter of large-diameter castings. A slightly larger machining allowance is required on the bore to permit removal of dross and other impurities that segregate in this area.
Copper Alloys
A wide range of copper casting alloys is used in the production of centrifugal castings. The alloys include the plain brasses, leaded brasses and bronzes, tin bronzes, aluminum bronzes, silicon bronzes, manganese bronzes, nickel silvers, and beryllium copper. The ASTM lists 32 copper alloys for centrifugal casting; in addition, there are a number of proprietary compositions that are regularly produced by centrifugal casting.
Most of these alloys can be cast without difficulty. Some trouble with segregation has been reported in casting the high leaded (over 10% lead) alloys. However, alloys containing up to 20% lead are being cast by some foundries; the requirements are (1) rapid chilling to prevent excessive lead segregation and (2) close control of speed.
The mechanical properties of centrifugally cast copper alloys vary with the composition and are affected by the mold material used. Centrifugal castings produced in chill molds have higher mechanical properties than those obtained by casting in sand molds. However, centrifugal castings made in sand molds have properties about 10% higher than those obtained on equivalent sections of castings produced in static sand molds. (Castings produced in centrifugal chill molds have properties 20 to 40% higher than those produced in static sand molds.)
Nickel Alloys
Centrifugal castings of nickel 210, 213, and 305; "Monel" alloys 410, 505, and 506; and "Inconel" alloys 610 and 705 are commercially available in cylindrical tubes. Centrifugal castings are also produced from the heat-resisting alloys 60% nickel-12% chromium and 66% nickel-17% chromium. These alloys should behave like other materials and show improved density with accompanying improvement in mechanical properties. The nickel alloys are employed for service under severe corrosion, abrasion, and galling conditions.
Bearing Metals
Centrifugal casting is a standard method of producing lined bearings. Steel cylinders, after being cleaned, pickled, and tinned, are rotated while tin- or lead-base bearing alloys are cast into them. The composite cylinder is then cut lengthwise, machined, and finished into split bearings.
