Effects of Chemical Surfactants on Clay-Bonded, Green Sand Foundry Sand Control Systems
A 1-1/2 year research project by several companies lends help to understanding the role of chemical surfactants to the industry
AFS Foundry Sand Additives Committee (4-H)
Searching for the most direct method to determine the effect of chemical surfactants (wetting agents) on clay-bonded systems, member companies of AFS Committee 4-H decided a series of L-8 orthogonal arrays would be the ideal technique.
Once the orthogonal array was selected, the variables and levels were determined (Table 1).
During the laboratory experimental evaluations, a series of chemical surfactants was evaluated. These surfactants were selected from products used in the foundry industry.
Prepared sand mixtures were completed in a research environment A testing laboratory muller with a 20-lb capacity was employed. The sand mixture was consistently prepared by mulling a four-screen silica sand for 10 minutes with 7% bentonite. A total of 60 L-8 designed experiments were completed during the evaluation phase.
Read More