The foundry industry has a civilization history of more than 6000 years in China, and now it is facing the major challenge of the new technological revolution. As we all know, casting is an important part of machinery manufacturing industry and the mother of industry, which plays an important role in the development of national economy. At present, the annual output of steel castings and iron castings in China has exceeded 24 million tons, ranking first in the world. It is a large foundry production country in the world. As the product quality of the casting industry is not easy to guarantee and the scrap rate is high, under the conditions of the continuous deepening of China’s reform and opening up and economic construction and the more fierce and strict competition in the international market, we should realize scientific control over the production of steel castings and iron castings, ensure the quality of steel castings and iron castings, shorten the trial production cycle, reduce the cost of steel castings and iron castings, increase competitiveness, improve economic benefits, and accelerate the renewal of products and technology, It is of great practical significance to promote the technological transformation of China’s traditional industries and the healthy development of the national economy to quality and efficiency.
Since the solidification simulation technology was first used to study the temperature field in the early 1960s, after decades of efforts, the development of computer simulation technology of mold filling and solidification process of steel castings and iron castings has entered the stage of engineering practicality, and the design and implementation of casting process are also moving from experience to science step by step. In recent years, with the further development of computer technology, many technologies such as computer-aided design of casting process and numerical simulation of solidification process of steel castings and iron castings have been more and more widely used in casting production. The numerical simulation technology of casting process has played an irreplaceable role in transforming and improving the traditional casting technology, reducing product cost and improving the competitiveness of casting enterprises. Its wide application will bring huge economic and social benefits to the casting industry.
The numerical simulation system of mold filling and solidification of steel castings and iron castings mainly includes several main modules: pre-treatment, mold filling calculation, solidification calculation and post-treatment. The simulation of solidification process of steel castings and iron castings includes the calculation of temperature field, the prediction of shrinkage cavity and porosity, the formation of microstructure and the simulation calculation of other fields. Among them, the calculation of temperature field and the prediction of shrinkage cavity and porosity are called the macro simulation of solidification process of steel castings and iron castings by scholars. At present, the general temperature field simulation has been basically mature, and the prediction of shrinkage porosity, shrinkage cavity and other defects has also been deeply studied. For the numerical simulation software, the prediction of shrinkage porosity and shrinkage cavity is one of the main purposes of solidification calculation and one of the main functions of most solidification simulation software, but the popularization and application of the software are not perfect at present.