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Casting

In metalworking, casting involves pouring a liquid metal into a mold, which contains a hollow cavity of the desired shape, and then is allowed to solidify. The solidified part is also known as a casting, which is ejected or broken out of the mold to complete the process. Casting is most often used for making complex shapes that would be difficult or uneconomical to make by other methods.

The casting process is subdivided into two main categories: expendable and non-expendable casting. It is further broken down by the mold material, such as sand or metal, and pouring method, such as gravity, vacuum, or low pressure.

Terminology
The casting process uses the following specialized terminology:

Pattern: An approximate duplicate of the final casting used to form the mold cavity.
Molding material: The material that is packed around the pattern and then the pattern is removed to leave the cavity where the casting material will be poured.
Flask: The rigid wood or metal frame that holds the molding material.
Cope: The top half of the pattern, flask, mold, or core.
Drag: The bottom half of the pattern, flask, mold, or core.
Core: An insert in the mold that produces internal features in the casting, such as holes.
Core print: The region added to the pattern, core, or mold used to locate and support the core.
Mold cavity: The combined open area of the molding material and core, there the metal is poured to produce the casting.
Riser: An extra void in the mold that fills with molten material to compensate for shrinkage during solidification.
Gating system: The network of connected channels that deliver the molten material to the mold cavities.
Pouring cup or pouring basin: The part of the gating system that receives the molten material from the pouring vessel.
Sprue: The pouring cup attaches to the sprue, which is the vertical part of the gating system. The other end of the sprue attaches to the runners.
Runners: The horizontal portion of the gating system that connects the sprues to the gates.
Gates: The controlled entrances from the runners into the mold cavities.
Vents: Additional channels that provide an escape for gases generated during the pour.
Parting line or parting surface: The interface between the cope and drag halves of the mold, flask, or pattern.

Theory
Casting is a solidification process, which means the solidification phenomenon controls most of the properties of the casting. Moreover, most of the casting defects occur during solidification, such as gas porosity and solidification shrinkage.

Solidification occurs in two steps: nucleation and crystal growth. In the nucleation stage solid particles form within the liquid. When these particles form their internal energy is lower than the surrounded liquid, which creates an energy interface between the two. The formation of the surface at this interface requires energy, so as nucleation occurs the material actually undercools, that is it cools below its freezing temperature, because of the extra energy required to form the interface surfaces. It then recalescences, or heats back up to its freezing temperature, for the crystal growth stage. Note that nucleation occurs on a pre-existing solid surface, because not as much energy is required for a partial interface surface, as is for a complete spherical interface surface. This can be advantageous because fine-grained castings possess better properties than coarse-grained castings. A fine grain structure can be induced by grain refinement or inoculation, which is the process of adding impurities to induce nucleation.

All of the nucleations represent a crystal, which grows as the heat of fusion is extracted from the liquid until there is no liquid left. The direction, rate, and type of growth can be controlled to maximize the properties of the casting. Directional solidification is when the material solidifies at one end and proceeds to solidify to the other end; this is the most ideal type of grain growth because it allows liquid material to compensate for shrinkage.

铸造

铸造是指将某些金属（例如铜、铁、铝、锡与铅等）以高温加热，使其温度高于本身熔点而熔化后，倒入特定形状的铸模，待其冷却后凝固成形，为金属主要的加工方式。

而铸模的材料可以是沙、金属甚至陶瓷。因应不同要求，使用的方法也会有所不同。

铸造种类
砂模铸造法（Sand Casting）
利用砂作为铸模材料，依不同成份的砂可再细分为湿砂模铸造法（Green Sand Mold）、表面干砂模铸造法（Dry Sand Mold）等等，但并非所有砂均可用以铸造。
好处是成本较低，因为铸模所使用的沙可重复使用；缺点是铸模制作耗时，铸模本身不能被重复使用，须破坏后才能取得成品。
金属模铸造法（Die Casting）
利用熔点较原料高的金属制作铸模。其中细分为重力铸造法、低压铸造法和高压铸造法。
受制于铸模的熔点，可被铸造的金属也有所限制。
脱蜡铸造法（Investment Casting）
这方法可以为外膜铸造法和固体铸造法。
先以蜡复制所需要铸造的物件，然后浸入含陶瓷的池中并待干，使以蜡制的复制品覆上一层陶瓷外膜，一直重复步骤直到外膜足以支持铸造过程（约1/4寸到1/8寸），然后熔解模中的蜡，并抽离铸模。其后铸模需要多次加以高温，增强硬度后方可用以铸造。
此方法具有良好的准确性，更可用作高熔点金属（如钛）的铸造。但由于陶瓷价格颇高，而且制作需要多次加热和复杂，故成本颇为昂贵。