Metal castings have been our part of life in every building, in every car or trucks, in every piece of machinery equipment we use in our daily lives. Cast iron products are everywhere from cast iron stove to cookware sets in every household’s kitchen racks. Foundry units cast these metals with utmost care into various complex shapes as per each industrial usage. Iron is the most commonly used metal as it is entitled to take multiple forms easily and a plentiful available sustainable resource. The Indian foundry industry has gloriously emerged as the global market pioneer with its sophisticated cast iron products. It has a wide range of industrial sector applications such as agriculture, automobile, railways, aerospace, mining, construction etc. The Crescent Foundry, the leading manufacture of cast iron products has earned a trustworthy name among the players through its efficient and quality products.

Cast iron

Cast iron is an iron alloy with carbon and silicon as the key alloying elements. It is one of the widely used alloys in various industries for producing robust and rust-free components. Typically, cast irons contain carbon levels up to 4.0 per centand silicon levels up to 3 per cent. Steel is an iron alloy with lower carbon content. Cast iron is highly preferred for its casting ability into complex shapes when molten and its low cost. It is the favoured choice over steel because of its compressive strength, excellent vibration dampening, corrosion resistance, wear-resistance and ease of machining capability. The corrosion resistance of cast iron is further improved by adding silicon, copper, nickel, molybdenum and chromium. In addition, cast iron properties can be altered easily by adjusting the cooling rate and composition without making any significant production methods. Because of its high fluidity nature when molten, it can be quickly filled into the intricate moulds and used to create complex shapes, both large and small.

Cast Iron Types and its applications

Different types of cast irons are produced using different process and heat treatment techniques.

Grey Iron

Grey iron is most aged and commonly used iron in the casting industry. It is characterised by the flake shape of the graphite molecules present in the metal. The graphite flakes microstructure gives grey iron excellent damping and machinability features, making them applicable to many industries. Its wear resistance and low tensile strength properties make it as the highest volume cast products. Some of the most common and everyday uses of grey iron include manhole covers, cinderblocks, pump and valve housings, automotive suspension parts, counterweights etc. Its extreme high thermal conductivity and heat capacity make them ideal for brake rotors and cookware production.

White Iron

White iron is silver in colour due to the absence of graphite. This cementite microcrystalline structure is hard and brittle. Its toughness and high compressive strength properties are widely used to fabricate intricate structural, industrial castings. It is cost-effective and has good abrasive resistance. It is used in various applications like shell liners, grinding mills, lifter bars, surfaces of pumps, rings and balls of coal pulveriser, slurry pumps, flanges, extrusion nozzles etc.

Malleable Cast Iron

Malleable cast iron is nothing but slow heat-treated white iron. Malleability is the property which helps the metal to undergo any shape without cracking or breaking. It has good corrosive resistance properties. It is heat-treated with carbon alloys and other chemical elements such as manganese, sulphur and phosphorus to increase its strength. This type of cast iron is used in industries that require superior hardness and ductile features. It is used for electrical fittings, washers, pipe fittings, farming equipment, machine parts and mining hardware.

Ductile Iron

Ductile iron or nodular iron is another type of iron alloys that are widely used in many applications as an engineering material. A small amount of magnesium is added to this molten metal to alter its graphite structure into spherical or nodule shaped graphite. Similar to malleable iron, ductile cast iron is flexible and can be cast into varied sizes and thickness. Due to their unique microstructure, it exhibits high strength, elasticity, durability, and flexibility. These exclusive properties have allowed it to be used effectively in a wide range of applications. It is used to cast automotive components, wheels, pump housings, machine frames for windmills, water and sewer lines infrastructures, gearboxes and agricultural castings.

Industrial Applications

Metal casting plays a vital role in many industries such as agriculture, construction, mining, automobile, oil and gas, healthcare, defence etc. Metal casters like Crescent Foundry develop complex shapes cast iron products in various sizes and thickness with unique property materials to serve different industrial purposes. In the agriculture industry, cast iron is used to produce parts used in farming equipment or vehicles like tractors wheels, frames, drums, gear casings, cylinders etc. Without castings, developing quality equipment and firearms would be much more time-consuming and costly in the defence industry. Automobile and automotive industries have a strong relationship with cast iron products as most parts are cast out of this metal. The construction and mining sector has heavily relied upon cast iron products for its foundational and architectural materials. Cast iron products have always acted as an excellent engineering material in constructing bridges, building frames, gates, lamp post, water pipes, sewer lines and manhole covers.

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Most applications require cast irons as an ideal material for sand casting into shapes needed. They are very hard and brittle, and castingis the most convenient technique to adhere to industrial needs. It is further aggregated with other alloys and metal for various applications. It has become a versatile engineering material with a wide range of applications. It is used in a myriad of industries such as automobile, mining, agriculture, railways, oil & gas, construction, defence etc. Crescent Foundry offers a wide variety of cast iron products to adhere to varied industrial purposes’ diverse needs.

Choose the top cast iron manufacturer in India, USA, UAE, Africa for all industrial needs which can include airport manholes, flywheels, suitcase counterweights etc.