Effect of the gap distance on the cooling behavior and the microstructure of indirect squeeze cast and gravity die cast 5083 wrought Al alloy

An indirect squeeze casting process applied to a wrought 5083 Al alloy (Al–4.7Mg–0.7Mn) was investigated experimentally and numerically. A two-dimensional finite element computer code for fully coupled heat transfer and deformation analysis, abaqus, was used to simulate the cooling curves obtained from the experiments. Thermal contraction of the material during solidification creates an air gap between the mold and the cooling material. The formation of this air gap is explained using the calculated results. The experimental and predicted results are discussed in conjunction with the relationships between the cooling rate, microstructure, die geometry and applied pressure. The effect of applied pressure and cooling rate on the macrosegregation is also discussed.