TYPES OF CAST IRON PROBLEMS & WELDING PROCEDURES

MACHINE BEDS

AUTOMOTIVE ENGINE CYLINDER BLOCKS

CRANK SHAFTS

FORMING DIES
IMPELLAR BLADES

ROLLERS
PUMP, TURBINE, COMPRESSOR CASINGS

CHARACTERISTICS OF CAST IRON

CARBON RANGE - 1.7 - 4.5 % CASTINGS - INTRICATE SHAPE & SIZE DAMPING CAPACITY EXCELLENT WEAR RESISTANCE SELF LUBRICATING PROPERTIES POOR ELONGATION & LOW DUCTILITY GRAPHITE FORMATION (Si, Al, Ti, Cu)
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TYPES OF CAST IRON

WHITE CAST IRON

GRAY CAST IRON

MALLEABLE CAST IRON

DUCTILE CAST IRON (SG IRON)

Ni HARD CAST IRON

NI RESIST CAST IRON

MEHANITE CAST IRON

GRAY CAST IRON ASTM A48, A159

Carbon Manganese Phosphorus 2. 50 - 4. 00 0. 25 - 1. 00

0. 05 - 1. 00
0. 02 - 0.25 1. 00 - 3. 00

Sulphur
Silicon

GRAY CAST IRON A159 - G4000

Ultimate Tensile Strength
Hardness

276 MPa
217 - 269 HB

WHITE CAST IRON

Carbon Manganese Phosphorus 1. 80 - 3. 60 0. 25 - 0.80

0. 06 - 0.18
0. 06 - 0.20 0. 50 - 1.90

Sulphur
Silicon

Malleable Iron from White Iron

Malleable Iron : Structure - Cooling rate

MALLEABLE IRON
- HEAT TREATMENT OF WHITE CAST IRON

ASTM A602, M3210

Yield Strength
Ultimate Tensile Strength

224 MPa
345 MPa

Hardness
Elongation

156 HB
10 %

DUCTILE CAST IRON (SG CAST IRON)

- INOCULENTS : CERIUM & MAGNESIUM ARE USED TO CONTROL THE SHAPE OF GRAPHITE 3. 54 - 3. 60 Carbon 0. 40 - 4. 90 Manganese
Phosphorus 0. 01 - 0. 02 0. 02 - 0.25 2. 26 - 2. 40 0. 56 - 1. 20 0. 15 - 0. 20

Sulphur
Silicon Nickel Copper

723 C

Iron - Iron carbide phase diagram

ALLOYING ELEMENTS
MANGANESE MAGNESIUM

CERIUM
NICKEL COPPER

CHROMIUM
TITANIUM

SILICON & ALUMINIUM PROMOTE GRAPHITE FORMATION

Effects of elements on Cast iron

Phosphorous: solution harden, corrosion resistance, better machining Silicon: removes oxygen, increases oxidation resistance

Titanium: forms carbides, age hardening possible Chromium: corrosion resistance, does not promote graphite formation
Nickel : used with Cr, low temperature strength, toughness

Effects of elements on Cast iron

Manganese: along with S forms as MnS, improves machining Molybdenum: MoC provide abrasion resistance, improves corrosion resistance, improves hot strength Tungsten: Similar to Mo, delays tempering to higher temperatures

Ferrite + Pearlite

Malleable cast iron

Gray cast iron

Ni-Hard cast iron

Microstructure constituents in cast iron

Ferrite - BCC, low carbon solubility Graphite - Most stable form of carbon in iron, More carbon means more Graphite Pearlite - Mixture of ferrite and cementite More carbon means less Pearlite Austenite - FCC
Cementite - Iron carbide with good toughness Martensite - Rapidly cooled by quenching

Retained Austenite

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Heat affected zone (HAZ) - PMZ

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Top half of Casing. Cracked Regions - Ductile iron

Welding Procedures
Weldable or non weldable, Repair weld Skip weld technique Preheating Inter pass Temperature Suitable electrode selection Machineable or Non machineable Depositing short weld length

Welding Procedures
Use stringer beads

Use very low heat input Buttering on crack edges

Steel filler is not recommended for machineable repair weld deposits

Welding Precautions
Cracking tendency is very high Higher Preheat is applied for
Allowing more time for H2 escape Reduces the cooling rate Reduction of hardness in HAZ Avoid the risk of martensite formation

Welding Precautions
PWHT / Stress Relieving Furnace cooling

Reduce residual stresses - Block welding - Depositing short weld lengths

Broken Part

Crack 1

Crack 2

Carbon Equivalent
% C EQ = C + (Si/3) + (P/3 ) Used for determining the weldability Preheat is decided by the C EQ

Increasing CE lowers Tensile Strength

Carbon Equivalent vs Tensile strength

Preheat Range for welding cast iron

TYPE
GRAY IRON MALLEABLE MALLEABLE DUCTILE DUCTILE FERRITIC PEARLITIC FERRITIC PEARLITIC

MICROSTRUCTURE

PREHEAT C
20 - 300 20 - 150 20 - 300 20 -150 20 - 300

Turbine Side Crack 1 Crack 2

Bottom Half View of Casing

Selection of filler metal

Based on strength
Hardness Abrasion resistance

Special properties - ductility - impact strength - wear resistance

Weld metal / Electrode

Steel, Stainless steels Nickel base alloys, Cast iron AWS A5.15 Standard The mechanical properties of weld metal are affected by Weld metal Chemistry (C,Ni, Si) Thermal cycle experienced (CR)

Nickel Iron Electrodes

Nickel - Iron electrodes compared to Nickel

Lower cost
Stronger & More Ductile

Advantages of Nickel filler

Low risk of cracking High ductile weld Minimum contraction stresses Minimum Hardness

Enlarged view of Crack

Bend Test of BM

Lamellar Tear