Katsuya Ikawa

Relationship Between Some Physico-Mechanical Properties and Numerical Indexes of Graphite Shape in Compacted-Vermicular Graphite Cast Irons

The main purpose of this paper is to present some data on the mechanical and physical properties of compacted-vermicular graphite cast iron and to give a reasonable interpretation to the characteristics by using numerical indexes indicating the shape of graphite flakes in the structure. After describing the preparation of the material and a new method for measuring thermal diffusivity of the iron, the influence of kind and amount of alloy added for treatment and of cooling rate upon the graphite shape is discussed by using the indexes of the structure. The thermal diffusivities and mechanical characteristics such as tensile strength and hardness are shown as functions of the indexes to clarify the relationship between them. Furthermore, the present indexes are compared with those proposed earlier to find which is most suitable for the cast iron treated in this work. Authors propose a definition of compacted-vermicular graphite cast iron, which is reasonable from the physico-mechanical point of view, and also show some typical mechanical properties and measures required to produce such cast iron with desirable features.