Method and apparatus for evaluating the flowability of core forming materials

• US 7,104,148 B2
• Filed: 09/30/2004
• Issued: 09/12/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 09/30/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Engine Intellectual Property Company, LLC (Volkswagen AG)
• Original Assignee: International Engine Intellectual Property Company, LLC (Volkswagen AG)
• Inventors: Werling, Joshua M., Baker, Stephen G.
• Primary Examiner(s): RAEVIS, ROBERT R
• Application Number:
  US10/954,602
• Publication Number:
  US 20060070427A1
• Time in Patent Office: 712 Days
• Field of Search: 738/637.1
• US Class Current: 73/866
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2203/0298 Manufacturing or preparing specimens
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 3/02 Details

Abstract

A method and apparatus for evaluating the flowability of a core-forming material in which an airborne core-forming material is blown downwardly into a first, downwardly extending, long and confining passageway for a predetermined time, and the airborne core-forming material is allowed to escape the first long, confining passageway by diverting it into a short, transverse passageway, and further diverting it into a second, upwardly extending confining passageway, and the flowability of the core-forming material is evaluated from the quantity of core-forming material that has entered the second, upwardly extending confining passageway.

Claims

1. A method of evaluating the flowability of a core-forming material comprising the steps of:

providing a test fixture forming a pair of substantially parallel core-forming passages several inches long and joined adjacent their one ends by a transverse passageway, with vent openings at their one ends and with an inlet opening at the other end of a first one of the core-forming passageways for admission of core-forming material;

blowing the core-forming material into the inlet opening until the first one core-forming passageway is filled;

curing the core-forming material in the test fixture;

opening the test fixture and removing the cured core-forming material; and

evaluating the flowability of the core-forming material from the quantity of core-forming material that has entered the second one of the pair of substantially parallel core-forming passageways.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the pair of substantially parallel core-forming passageways have a cross-sectional area of about 1 square inch, and the transverse passageway has a cross-sectional area of about 1.15 square inches and a length of about 0.50 inches.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the pair of substantially parallel core-forming passageways each have a square cross-section that is about 1 inch by 1 inch and wherein the transverse passageway has a rectangular cross-section about 1 5/16 inch by about ⅞

inch.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein each of the substantially parallel core-forming passageways is about 8 inches long.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein a flowability number is determined by weighing the total quantity of cured core-forming material that has been removed from the test fixture, cutting the cured core-forming material that has been removed from the test fixture to produce a sample including only cured core-forming material that has entered the second one of the pair of substantially parallel core-forming passageways, weighing the sample of the cured, core-forming material that has entered the second one of the pair of substantially parallel passageways, and dividing the weight of the sample of cured, core-forming materials that has entered the second one of the pair of substantially parallel passageways by the weight of the total quantity of cured, core-forming material that has been removed from the test fixture.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein different core-forming materials are used and the flowability numbers of the different core-forming materials are recorded for comparison and future use and for comparison with the actual performance of the different core-forming materials in production.

7. An apparatus for testing the flowability of mixtures for forming cores for castings comprising a metal test fixture forming a pair of substantially parallel core-forming passages joined adjacent their one ends by a transverse passageway, and including vent openings at their one ends, an inlet for core-forming materials at the other end of one of the substantially parallel core-forming passages, and means for admitting a flow of airborne core-forming material in the inlet opening at the other end of the one of the substantially parallel core-forming passageways.

8. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the core-forming passageways have a square cross-section one inch by one inch and a length of eight inches.

9. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the transverse passageway has a length of ½

inch and a cross-sectional area of 1.15 square inches.

10. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the means for admitting a flow of airborne core-forming material into the metal test fixture comprises the same means used in producing cores in production.

11. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein each of the pair of substantially parallel core-forming passageways has a cross-sectional area of about 1 square inch and the transverse passageway has a cross-sectional area of about 1.15 square inches.

12. A method of evaluating the flowability of a core-forming material comprising the steps of:

blowing an airborne core-forming material downwardly into a first, downwardly extending, long, confining passageway for a predetermined time;

allowing the airborne core-forming material to escape the first long, confining passageway by diverting it into a short, transverse passageway, and further diverting it into a second, upwardly extending, confining passageway; and

evaluating the flowability of the core-forming material from the quantity of core-forming material that has entered the second, upwardly extending, confining passageway.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the first, downwardly extending, long, confining passageway and second, upwardly extending, confining passageway have a cross-sectional area of about one square inch, and the short transverse passage has a cross-sectional area of about 1.15 square inches and a length of about 0.50 inches.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the first and second long confining passageways each have a square cross-section that is about one inch by about one inch and the short transverse passageway has a rectangular cross-section about 1 5/16 inches by about ⅞

inch.

15. The method of claim 12, wherein the long confining passageways are each about eight inches long.

16. The method of claim 12, wherein a flowability number is determined by weighing the total quantity of core-forming material that has been received within the first and second long confining passageways and the short transverse passageway, weighing the quantity of the core-forming material that has entered only the second long confining passageway, and dividing the weight of the quantity of cured core-forming material that has entered only the second long confining passageway by the weight of the total quantity of cured core-forming material that has entered the first and second long confining passageways and the short transverse passageway.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein different core-forming materials are used and the flowability numbers of the different core-forming materials are recorded for comparison and future use and for comparison with the actual performance of the different core-forming materials in production.