New Perspectives for Casting Steel by Low-Pressure Pouring

Hagedorn discusses the low-pressure pouring. One major advantage of low-pressure pouring is the smaller sprue/feeder system and thus the smaller amount of recirculated material. Less recirculated material means that less feedstock is required and production costs are reduced, including costs of the downstream process steps. The application of the low-pressure pouring process is not confined to thin-walled lightweight components. The essential advantages--such as low-turbulence mold filling, reduced gating and feeder systems and adjustable and reproducible pouring conditions--are equally beneficial for virtually all other areas of application in cast steel. The environmental factor also plays a major role. Minimizing recirculated and scrap material reduces the energy required per kilogram of good castings by up to 50%. Finally, lower quantities of liquid material and lower pouring temperatures mean that less molding material is required, which is also a major driver of energy consumption and costs.