Laboratory of Foundry Machines and Casting Design

Scientific-research profile realised in the Laboratory of Foundry Machines and Casting Design encompasses the following fields:

  1. Theoretical, creating scientific bases of technological processes, realised in casting machines and in optimisation of casting structures. Within this trend the simulation investigations of machines and casting devices are developed, as well as physical modelling and experimental analysis of deformations and stresses in castings loaded mechanically and thermally.
  2. Research:
    3. -Investigations of technological processes occurring in foundry machines, with regard to their optimisation in the constructional and operational aspect.
    -Complex strength testing of casting materials (among others in the classic and modified low cycle fatigue tests, LCFi).
  3. Constructional-designing, supplying assumptions for designing of complex castings, produced with using available technologies and modernised foundry machines, especially related to processes, intensely introduced into the foundry industry after Poland entered the European Union.

Several scientific-research works are realised in the Laboratory, which are directly related to the industry, in the aspect of cooperation in working out design assumptions of industrial installations, in verification of these assumptions in prototype devices as well as in advance investigations of a basic character. Team research works realised with the participation of employees of the Laboratory concerned the following problems:

    • Development of guidelines for construction of improved foundry machines and devices: feeders and batches of moulding sands, devices for the dry reclamation of spent moulding sands, moulding and core machines.
    • Investigations of the selected processes of preparation of materials and spent moulding sands.
    • Reclaimability of spent moulding sands examinations.
    • Constructing foundry equipment elements for production heavy castings and supplementary instrumentations.
    • Testing of the work processes in blowing machines, especially shooting machines.
    • Investigations related to the casting production by die-casting methods.

The following problems, within the range of broadly understood castings structures, are realised in the Laboratory:

    • Investigations of internal stresses in large castings, by resistance tensometry methods (method of cutting at edges, Mathar method) and by a photo-elastic method of optically active layers.
    • Determinations of casting materials properties at an ambient temperature (full tensile test) and at increased temperatures (up to 1050C)
    • Strength testing of casting materials (classic and modified low cycle fatigue tests, LCFi).
    • Works related to the determination of constructing heavy castings and accessories - applied in metallurgical engineering - of a significantly improved durability and reclaimability.
    • Using physical modelling and experimental deformation analysis for shaping and dimensioning of castings loaded mechanically and thermally.
    • Development of constructions and technologies allowing to substitute forged elements by castings.
    • Modelling physical effects by means of the finite elements method (FEM) concerning problems related to the structure mechanics.