Pcc Airfoils, Inc.

Louis H Monte

Lawrence Donald Graham

Arunachalam Jeyarajan

John E Brokloff

Paul Stanton

An improved mold for use in casting a metal airfoil has an airfoil mold cavity and a starter chamber. A lower end of the starter chamber is formed by a chill plate. A filter is disposed in the starter chamber between the airfoil mold cavity and the chill plate. When an airfoil is to be cast, molten metal is conducted into the starter chamber, into passages in the filter and into the airfoil mold cavity. The molten metal is solidified upward in the starter chamber from the chill plate and through the passages in the filter. The filter blocks migration of impurities from the starter chamber to the airfoil mold cavity as the metal solidifies in the starter chamber. As the molten metal begins to solidify in the airfoil mold cavity, the molten metal is solidified as a large number of columnar grain crystals which extend from the passages in the filter into the airfoil mold cavity. If a single crystal airfoil is desired, a single crystal selector may be provided between the starter chamber and the airfoil mold cavity.

Method and apparatus for casting an airfoil

A mold structure includes an article mold having a mold cavity with a configuration corresponding to the configuration of the article to be cast. A starter section contains a starter cavity in which a plurality of crystals form. A crystal selector has a passage which extends between an upper end of the starter cavity and a lower end of the article mold cavity. To promote the growth in the crystal selector passage of a crystal having primary and secondary orientations corresponding to selected primary and secondary orientations of the article, the crystal selector passage has a portion which slopes downwardly in the direction of solidification of metal along the crystal selector passage. Without the use of a seed crystal, the cast article will have a secondary orientation axis which is almost always within plus or minus 30 degrees of a selected secondary orientation axis. Through the use of a seed crystal, the secondary orientation axis of the cast article will correspond to the selected secondary orientation axis.

Mold and method for casting a single crystal metal article

A mold is used to cast an article as a single crystal having selected primary and secondary orientations. The mold includes an article mold having a configuration corresponding to the configuration of the article to be cast. A starter section contains a starter cavity in which one or more crystals form. A seed crystal is disposed in the starter cavity. A crystal selector has a passage which extends between an upper end of the starter and a lower end of the article mold. To promote the growth in the crystal selector passage of a crystal having primary and secondary orientations corresponding to the selected primary and secondary orientations of the article, the longitudinal central axis of the crystal selector passage is disposed in a single plane which is parallel to a plane containing the selected primary orientation axis of the single crystal article and the selected secondary orientation axis of the single crystal article.

A single crystal selector has a passage into which a plurality of crystals grow from a starter cavity and from which a single crystal emerges into an article mold cavity. The single crystal selector passage includes a linear lower vertical portion which extends upwardly away from an end portion on the starter cavity. A linear vertical upper portion of the selector passage extends downwardly from a lower end portion of the article mold cavity. A single bend portion of the selector passage extends between the upper and lower portions of the selector passage. A support element extends upwardly from a lower section of the selector to an upper section of the selector to at least partially support a single bend section of the selector. The single bend portion of the selector passage has a generally circular cross sectional configuration with a diameter which is less than 0.25 inches. The single bend portion of the selector passage extends sidewardly for a distance which is at least 1.5 times the diameter of the selector passage.

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Minerva, OH, United States of America

Louis H Monte