Molten titanium flow in a mesh cavity by the flow visualization technique.

Abstract

The tracer element molten (TEM) method, which provides titanium flow visualization in a mold cavity, was applied to investigate the flow in a mesh pattern. When a pressure casting machine was used, most of the mesh rods were composed of many solidification layers, which implied that the flow was laminar and almost steady. When a centrifugal casting machine was used, the flow was almost irregular and a stack of solidification layers was observed in only a few segments. These results indicate that the flow was turbulent. In a complicated cavity, such as a mesh pattern, pressure rather than centrifugal force acts as an effective casting force. Therefore, in such a cavity, favorable castability can be achieved with high pressure and laminar flow.