EVALUATING THE COMPRESSIVE STRENGTH OF AM RISERS FOR GREEN SAND METALCASTING

While many metalcasting foundries have experimented with using additive manufacturing (AM) for patternmaking, the compressive strength of the tapered AM risers for green sand metalcasting has not yet been explored. This study investigates the effects of infill pattern type, infill density, and shell thickness on the compressive strength of a standard 3-inch diameter by 5-inch tall by 3-degree taper cylindrical riser manufactured with PLA using a material extrusion process. The findings for these AM risers include plots and mathematical models of compressive strengths at three different scales of the standard geometry (full, three-quarters, and half), predicted build times and masses using other common infill patterns, potential failure mechanisms during use of AM and conventionally manufactured riser patterns, and considerations on design for both additive manufacturing and green sand metalcasting. It is concluded that AM risers can be incorporated into and perform well as part of conventional green sand metalcasting patterns.