Hiroyasu Makino

Force analysis in air-flow press moulding using the Distinct Element Method

In the foundry, green sand moulding is an important process having a major influence on the casting process and product quality. In order to clarify the behaviour of sand particles in air-flow press moulding, the sand moulding process model has been built using the distinct element method (DEM) coupled with air flow analysis. In this model, the individual particle is moved by three forces, namely, contact force, drag force and gravitational force. Numerical simulation is performed to predict the behaviour of the sand particles during the air-flow stage, and laboratory experiments are carried out to examine the calculated results. From the simulation, contact force and drag force of individual particles are obtained as the function of time. It is clarified that effective force acting on the particles is changed from drag force to contact force during the process. This study utilizing DEM, gives useful information such as the effective moulding parameters for the optimisation of the air-flow process.