Melt Quality Evaluation of Ductile Iron by Pattern Recognition of Thermal Analysis Cooling Curves

The melt quality of ductile iron can be related to the melt’s thermal analysis cooling curve. The freezing zone of the thermal analysis cooling curve was found to indicate the melt quality of the ductile iron. A comprehensive difference parameter, Ω, of the thermal analysis cooling curves was found to be related to the properties of ductile iron melts such as composition, temperature, and graphite morphology. As Ω approached 0, the thermal analysis cooling curves were found to come together with all the properties indicating melt quality about the same. A database of thermal analysis cooling curves related to the properties of the ductile iron melts was set up as a basis for a method to accurately evaluate the melt quality of ductile iron by pattern recognition of thermal analysis cooling curves. The quality of a ductile iron melt can then be immediately determined by comparing its thermal analysis cooling curve freezing zone shape to those in the database.