Matrix design of a novel ductile cast iron modified by W and Al: A comparison between thermodynamic modeling and experimental data

In high-temperature applications of ferrous materials, as in the case of exhaust manifolds, high thermal and mechanical stability are required. Stainless steels and Ni-resist alloys having austenitic matrices are good candidates to meet these requirements at elevated temperatures; however, they are expensive materials and present difficulties in casting. Ferritic ductile cast irons, like the commercial SiMo alloy, are comparatively cheaper materials with better castability but they cannot be used above approximately 800 °C. Thus, to meet the requirements with low-cost materials having improved high-temperature properties, new alloys must be developed by ferrite forming elements having the potential to increase equilibrium temperature. In this study, initially, a novel ductile cast iron matrix was designed using 1 W and 0-4 Al wt.-% and their phases stable at room temperature, transformation temperatures, solidification sequences and thermal expansivity values were determined using thermodynamic calculations with Thermo-Calc software. Computational studies revealed that (i) designed alloy matrices had graphite and M6C type carbides embedded in a ferritic matrix at room temperature as expected, (ii) A1 temperature increased as aluminum content increased. The obtained values were all above that of commercial SiMo alloy, (iii) the detrimental effect of increased aluminum addition on graphite content, and thermal expansivity was observed. Secondly, microstructural and thermal characterizations of cast alloys were performed for validation – the obtained data were in good agreement with the thermodynamic calculations.