Cast Stainless Steel Parts by Investment Casting Process with CNC Machining Services. China Stainless Steel Foundry.

Stainless steel has a minimum chromium content of 10.5%, making it more resistant to corrosive liquid environments and to oxidation. It is highly corrosion resistant and wear resistant, provides excellent machinability, and is well-known for its aesthetic appearance. Stainless steel investment castings are "corrosion-resistant" when used in liquid environments and vapors below 1200°F (650°C) and "heat-resistant" when used above this temperature.

Commonly, the stainless steel should be cast by the investment precision casting process with the silica sol as the bond. The stainless steel silica sol castings have a very high grade of precision surface and performance.

Due to its unique physical properties, stainless steel castings are popular in a wide range of applications, especially those in harsh environments. Common markets for stainless steel investment castings include oil and gas, fluid power, transportation, hydraulic systems, food industry, hardware and locks, agriculture...etc.

The most widely-used materials of stainless steel mainly include (but not limited to): Stainless Steel: AISI 304, AISI 304L, AISI 316, AISI 316L, 1.4404, 1.4301 and other stainless steel grade.

Investment (lost wax) casting is a method of precision casting complex near-net-shape details using replication of wax patterns. It is a metal forming process that typically uses a wax pattern surrounded by a ceramic shell to make a ceramic mold. When the shell dries, the wax is melted away, leaving only the mold. Then the casting component is formed by pouring molten metal into the ceramic mold. Also called precision investment casting, lost wax casting could achieve complex forms with exceptional surface qualities for both small and large casting parts in a wide range of materials such as carbon steel, alloy steel, stainless steel...etc. lost wax casting offers tighter dimensional tolerances, better surface finishes, produces near-net shape parts which therefore require less machining and other processing, and allows for the steel casting of complex-geometry parts and intricate details such as casting marks and company logos.



Brief Procedures of Investment Casting Process:

• Create a wax pattern or replica
• Sprue the wax pattern
• Invest the wax pattern
• Eliminate the wax pattern by burning it (inside the furnace or in hot water) to create a mould.
• Force molten metal pour into the mould
• Cooling and Solidification
• Remove sprue from the castings
• Finish and polish the finished investment castings

Advantages of Investment Casting Components:
• Excellent and smooth surface finish
• Tight dimensional tolerances.
• Complex and intricate shapes with design flexibility
• Capability to cast thin walls therefore a lighter casting component
• Wide selection of cast metals and alloys (ferrous and non-ferrous)
• Draft is not required in the molds design.
• Reduce the need for secondary machining.
• Low material waste.

▶ Application of Stainless Steel Castings:
• Building hardware
• Large Machinery Components
• Railway Freight Cars
• Marine Hardware
• Hydraulics Cylinders
• Heavy Duty Trucks
• Agricultural Equipment

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