Vacuum assisted lost foam casting (v-LFC) is used to cast from simple to highly intricate products. LFC maintains high precision and excellent surface finish in the final products.
Steel, ductile iron, grey iron, aluminum, magnesium and brass all can me casted successfully through lost foam casting. It requires no draft, and has no parting lines, therefore no flash of fins are formed.
The finish accuracy is so good that even machining in many cases is not required.
The Lost Foam Casting Technology
This technology takes advantage of the low boiling point of polymer foams to simplify the investment casting process by removing the need to melt the wax out of the mold.
As compared to investment type Lost Wax casting, it is cheaper because it is a simpler process and the EPS/ STMMA-FD foam is also cheaper than the wax.
Risers are not usually required due to the nature of the process; because the molten metal vaporizes the foam first, then metal into the mold cools more quickly than the rest, which results in natural directional solidification.
Lost foam casting process
The LFC process includes 5 steps:
Pattern design, applying the coating; placing the pattern into the flask & activating the vacuum, pouring the molten metal, and knock-out after cooling.
How lost foam pattern is made?
The foam pattern making is based on product’s design and complexity. Firstly an EPS molding machine is used.
Foam is easy to manipulate, carve and glue, due to its unique properties. The flexibility of LFC often allows for consolidating the parts into one integral component by CNC gluing; other forming processes would require the production of one or more parts to be assembled; also a CNC hot wire foam cutter can be used.
The lost foam casting process has extreme potential in India, because of its economic effectiveness and great quality. Indian Foundrymen are preferring to switch into LFC and modernize their foundry for greater profits, increased customer retention and subsequent increase in number of orders.
General Dynamic Multi-Technical Consultancy LLP is a pioneer for Lost Foam Casting technology in India. We are a leading project consultant and a lost foam casting equipment supplier in India. We serve all the foundry clusters of India; Bhilai, Raipur, Vadodara, Rajkot, Ludhiana, Kolhapur, Belgaum, Indore etc. and internationally at Germany, African region and Iran.
Application of lost foam casting
Lost foam technique can be used to cast various metals, ranging from alloy steel, carbon steel, alloy cast iron, ferrous alloy to alloy aluminum.
We cater various industries with LFC turnkey projects; Steel Plants; Sinter Plants, Pellet Plants, Coke Ovens; Railway Coach Factories, Pump Casings, Valve Bodies, Automobile Sector, Motor Bodies, Bi-metallic Crusher Parts, Foundries, Mass Manufacturing Industry etc.