Thixoforming : Semi-solid Metal Processing

Figure 9.2 Processes for the semi-solid working of metal alloys.
When the material reaches the desired temperature, the mould is lightly inductively
heated, to melt the material in contact with the mould wall and thus facilitate the
extraction of the billet.
The newly developed rheo-container process (RCP) (Figure 9.3) for light metal
alloys should solve the problem of transferring the semi-solid billet from the
preparation mould to the shot sleeve of a modified HPDC machine [9]. The melt
is directly poured into a disposable container. When the metal reaches the desired
thixotropic conditions, the slurry and container are pressed in the HPDC machine.
The metal flows into the cavity of the mould while the container remains in the
biscuit. Because of this, the use of specially designed moulds for the cooling of the
melt and eventual reheating of a pre-material is not necessary.
Figure 9.3 New rheocasting process (RCP) [8].
9.2 SSM Casting Processesj313