Ceramic Molds

A foundry is a factory which produces metal castings from either ferrous or non-ferrous alloys. Metals are turned into parts by melting the metal into a liquid, pouring the metal in a mold, and then removing the mold material or casting. more...

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The most common metal alloys produced are aluminum and cast iron. However, other metals, such as steel, magnesium, copper, tin, and zinc, can be processed.

The people who work in the foundry making molds and pouring castings traditionally worked moving sand extensively, and thus were affectionately called sandrats.

Melting

Melting is performed in a furnace. Virgin material, external scrap, internal scrap, and alloying elements are used to charge the furnace. Virgin material refers to commercially pure forms of the primary metal used to form a particular alloy. Alloying elements are either pure forms of an alloying element, like electrolytic nickel, or alloys of limited composition, such as ferroalloys or master alloys. External scrap is material from other forming processes such as punching, forging, or machining. Internal scrap consists of the gates, risers, or defective castings.

The process includes melting the charge, refining the melt, adjusting the melt chemistry and tapping into a transport vessel. Refining is done to remove deleterious gases and elements from the molten metal. Material is added during the melting process to bring the final chemistry within a specific range specified by industry and/or internal standards. During the tap, final chemistry adjustments are made.

Furnace

Furnaces are refractory lined vessels that contain the material to be melted and provide the energy to melt it. Modern furnace types include electric arc furnaces (EAF), induction furnaces, cupolas, reverberatory, and crucible furnaces. Furnace choice is dependent on the alloy system and quantities produced. For ferrous materials, EAFs, cupolas, and induction furnaces are commonly used. Reverberatory and crucible furnaces are common for producing aluminum castings.

Furnace design is a complex process, and the design can be optimized based on multiple factors. Furnaces in foundries can be any size, ranging from mere ounces to hundreds of tons, and they are designed according to the type of metals that are to be melted. Also, furnaces must be designed around the fuel being used to produce the desired temperature. For low temperature melting point alloys, such as zinc or tin, melting furnaces may reach around 327 Celsius. Electricity, propane, or natural gas are usually used for these temperatures. For high melting point alloys such as steel or nickel based alloys, the furnace must be designed for temperatures over 3600 Celsius. The fuel used to reach these high temperatures can be electricity or coke.

Read more at Wikipedia.org