The automobile industry is the main service object of the casting industry. From a technical point of view, the casting process can provide almost any form, structure and size of vehicle parts, some of which are classic vehicle parts (such as engines) that other methods cannot provide. Based on this, with the rapid development of China’s automobile industry, more attention should be paid to the development of vehicle parts casting technology. The book “Casting Technology of Typical Auto Parts” (Beijing University of Technology Press, 1st edition, August 2003), edited by Wang Huailin, is a volume of the “Auto Manufacturing Technology Series” of the Chinese Society of Automotive Engineering. The book is divided into seven chapters, organized around “casting technology”, and presented to readers
Now common casting alloys, molding materials, automobile engine casting, automobile chassis casting and other processes have been developed. On the whole, the book is based on the current situation of China’s automobile manufacturing, pays attention to the application of practical experience, focuses on the casting process of classic vehicle parts, and looks forward to the development trend of automobile industry technology modernization. It is an academic and practical work.
The book “Foundry Technology of Typical Auto Parts” is very practical and deeply analyzes the relationship between auto industry and foundry industry. On the one hand, the automobile industry is known as the “barometer” of the casting industry, and is also one of the main boosts to promote the development of the casting process. From the situation of the main automobile production areas in North America, Europe, Japan and South Korea, the more complete the industrial chain, the more refined the product division, the closer the relationship with the casting industry. An important sign is “the proportional relationship between the automobile production capacity and the casting consumption”. Especially in the supply of typical auto parts, the material, structure and function of castings are also complicated, which directly drives the innovation of casting technology. In recent years, taking the foundry industry supporting the Japanese automobile industry as an example, the use of iron castings and steel castings has been significantly reduced, while the use of composite materials (aluminum alloy) castings and plastic parts has been significantly increased. On the other hand, the casting industry is an important guarantee for the development of the automobile industry. The casting is not only the basic framework of the automobile products, but also the installation carrier for the automobile parts. It also affects the automobile performance, service life and price value. This is because castings are the main source of the dead weight of automobiles. The quality of castings such as body, door, wheel hub and chassis generally accounts for 20%~30% of the dead weight. Through innovative casting technology, the weight of the body can be significantly reduced and the strength of the body can be improved, so as to achieve the goal of “unity of economy and safety”, which is also an important competitive point for future automobile enterprises.
The book “Casting Technology of Typical Auto Parts” is very forward-looking. At that time, it was predicted that “the next few decades will be the key period for the great development and progress of China’s auto industry”. In combination with the current reality of China’s auto industry scale expansion, capacity explosion, technological leapfrogging, track replacement and other realities, as well as the strong innovation, penetration and influence of independent new energy brand cars at home and abroad, The predictions of this book have been translated into reality. Among them, the most forward-looking point of view in this book is “the application of computer in casting technology”. As early as the early 21st century, computer was only a means of information processing in the casting process, and now it has fully penetrated into the entire production process, such as parts design, parts model, parts simulation, etc. In the field of vehicle parts casting technology, the solidification theoretical model built by computer can effectively analyze casting materials The microscopic phenomenon of the casting surface. At the same time, with the help of finite element analysis software and simulation software, the temperature distribution, segregation, shrinkage and other data can be accurately controlled, so as to obtain the casting scheme of vehicle parts with the best quality and the highest accuracy. Based on the current situation, “Internet plus casting industry” has become a new business form, and computers have also evolved into a basic tool for auto parts casting. Taking this as a reference, China’s auto industry will further explore the potential of computers, such as using computer equipment (including software, hardware, peripherals, etc.) to control pressure curve, injection speed, etc., to achieve real-time control of casting operations.
The book “Foundry Technology of Typical Auto Parts” is very enlightening. The suggestions for the development of automobile parts casting technology put forward in the book are mainly around the layout of China’s automobile industry (from truck to light vehicle). On the basis of fully drawing on the experience of the United States overall casting technology, European gravity semi-permanent casting technology, and Japan’s low-pressure casting technology, the development direction of automobile parts casting technology in China is clarified, including:
(1) Taking new materials as the breakthrough point, optimize the casting process of automobile parts based on the principle of “energy saving, material reduction, low consumption and quality improvement”, and explore in the early stage by directional experiments and related topics. At present, spheroidizing agents are mainly used as additives in the casting process of automobile parts in China to improve the performance of casting materials. The defects are that the production environment is bad and the environment is not friendly to the environment. Under the background of the era of “mass production of automobiles” in China, the above problems can be effectively solved by replacing spheroidizing agents with internal spheroidizing methods and applying them to the production line of ductile iron castings.
(2) With the casting process as the focus, significantly improve the comprehensive performance of automobile parts casting. This move aims to solve the defects of insufficient surface finish and large dimensional accuracy error of automobile parts castings, and focuses on the improvement of casting process, including centrifugal casting and die casting.
(3) Actively carry out the research and development of surface modification process, such as high-frequency quenching, laser surface treatment, etc., which can effectively improve the wear resistance and fatigue resistance of vehicle parts, and will lead the classic auto parts to achieve a qualitative leap.
(4) To explore the application of synthetic materials in the casting and forming process, automobile parts casting is not only a “job” of the casting industry, but also involves metallurgy, processing, materials and other fields. From the perspective of development trend, more and more synthetic materials are used in the casting process of vehicle parts, which has positive significance for weight reduction and cost saving of castings.