Ductile Iron Castings

Ductile iron cast parts have been used in many industries throughout the last several decades, which has significantly contributed to the advancement of modern day machines. When creating near-net shaped ductile iron investment castings, product design engineers can provide a tremendous amount of versatility without sacrificing performance.

Aero Metals has been providing near net-shaped ductile iron investment castings for nearly 60 years. Our world class 175,000 square foot facility features the industry’s most technologically advanced equipment to service your high volume ductile iron investment casting project needs.

Contact Aero Metals for more information regarding our ductile iron investment casting options, or call us at 219-326-1976 and we will gladly answer any questions that you may have. Aero Metals is your trusted resource for high quality near net shape ductile iron investment casting metal parts.

Ductile Iron Investment Casting Advantages

Near net shape ductile iron investment castings provide the design engineer with the best combination of part design, surface hardening ability, elasticity modulus, corrosion resistance, and strength versus weight ratio. This is all accomplished while maintaining a favorable cost of manufacturing. Additionally, net shape ductile iron gives the design engineer more design freedom and provides the best overall combination of cast and post-cast characteristics. Additional advantages include:

• Design freedom
• Cost effective
• Consistent finalized product
• Non-existent shrink rate
• Prevent the formation of external shrinkage

Ductile Iron Investment Casting Applications

Ductile iron offers design flexibility and reduced manufacturing costs versus welded fabrications and forgings. Ductile iron castings have many “best in class” characteristics, while also benefiting from being a cost-effective alternative to other ferrous alloys. Additionally, ductile irons are widely used in numerous industries including:

• Aerospace
• Manufacturing
• Agriculture
• Automotive
• Security, Door and Lock Hardware

Ductile Iron Investment Casting Grades

Aero Metals provides many different near net shape ductile iron investment casting grades for your project requirement needs, some of which include:

• ASTM A536 Grade 80-55-06 (SAE D5506)
  • Tensile strength of 80 ksi
  • Yield Strength of 55 ksi
  • Ductility (elongation) is 6%
  • Brinell Hardness of 187-255

• ASTM A536 Grade 60-40-18 (SAE D4018)
  • Tensile strength of 60 ksi
  • Yield Strength of 40 ksi
  • Ductility (elongation) is 18%
  • Brinell Hardness of 187 maximum
  • Nominal machining speed of 100 m/mm with carbide tools

• ASTM A536 Grade 65-45-12 (SAE D4512)
  • Tensile strength of 65 ksi
  • Yield Strength of 45 ksi
  • Ductility (elongation) is 12%
  • Brinell Hardness of 156-217

• ASTM A536 Grade 100-70-03 (SAE D7003)
  • High strength alloy with 100 ksi ultimate
  • Yeild Strength of 70 ksi
  • Ductility (elongation) is limited to 3%
  • Brinell Hardness of 214-302
  • Nominal machining speed of 66 m/mm with carbide tools
  • 10% lighter than carbon steel

Austempered Ductile Iron Investment Casting

Austempering is a heat treat process developed to improve the strength and toughness of ferrous alloys like ductile iron. As-cast ductile iron can be austempered to achieve greater tensile and yield strengths as a secondary service.

Austempering is produced in five (5) different ASTM A897 grades with Grade 1 producing a tensile strength of 130 ksi and a yield of 90 ksi, up to a Grade 5 resulting in a tensile strength of 230 ksi and a yield of 185 ksi. For Grades 1 -3, secondary machining operations can be performed prior to austempering in most cases. For Grade 4 and 5, it is recommended the austempering process for ductile iron castings be performed prior to any secondary straightening or machining.

Contact Aero Metals for a Ductile Iron Investment Casting Quote Today

To learn more about our near net-shaped ductile iron investment casting processes for metal parts contact Aero Metals, or send us your project requirements today. We would be happy to consult with you and provide direct design assistance on your next ductile iron investment casting project.