effect of mould material on aluminum alloy ingot quality under low frequency electromagnetic casting

With the aid of ANSYS software, the effect of different mould external part materials on magnetic flux density and electromagnetic body force in the liquid aluminum was investigated. Calculated results showed that magnetic flux density and electromagnetic body force in the aluminum melt are greatly increased when the external part of mould is made from A3 steel. A low-frequency electromagnetic casting 6063 aluminum alloy experiment was conducted in the laboratory with the current value of 120 A and frequency value of 15 Hz. The experiment showed that the microstructure and surface quality of ingots with mould outer part made from A3 steel under low-frequency electromagnetic field are better than that of ingots with mould outer part made from austenitic stainless steel. The surface of the ingots with mould outer part made from A3 steel is smooth and free from exudations and cold shut defects. The as-cast microstructure consists of fine, uniformly distributed equiaxed grains.