Mold Release Control

Customer Needs

Molds for metal casting typically require a mold release agent to help keep the casting from bonding with the mold itself. The uniform and thorough application of mold release agents affects the finished part quality and the longevity of the mold.

Applying too much mold release can cause instability in the casting and irregularities in the surface texture of the casting. Applying too little of the mold release will allow the part to stick to the inside of the mold and create a costly error. The common cause of this problem is a plugged nozzle on the mold release sprayer. Due to manufacturing cycle times, these defects in the part are often not discovered for several days.

By using an Ircon Maxline 2 thermal imaging system with Image Analysis software, the foundry can look at the cooling effect of the mold release agent on the mold surface to determine if the mold release is being applied evenly.

Features/Benefits

Product

• Maxline 2 thermal imaging system with Image Analysis software
  
• Rugged industrial enclosure for tough environments such as foundries.
  
• Optional cooling enclosure for hot applications.
  
• Complete system comes configured from IRCON.

Application

• By looking at the changes in the temperature characteristics of the mold as the release agent is sprayed in, problems can be detected PRIOR to casting. This results in less scrap and less wasted release agent. Mold life should also increase as there is less chance for sticking of the molten metal.
• Independent control of spray nozzles using Image Analysis software can be accomplished by creating AOI’s to correspond to each nozzle’s spray pattern.