Development of cast aluminium alloys for plastic moulding

ABSTRACT Manufacturing of plastic goods by rotational moulding relies on aluminium tooling to reduce energy consumption as their thermal and electrical conductivities are enhanced and their weight is reduced. Moulding is carried out at high temperatures, and a considerable amount of energy is consumed by heating up the moulds and hence the interest on the evaluation of the thermophysical properties of potential aluminium alloys. This work reports the results of studies conducted on a series of cast Al-Si-Cu alloys that may be used for producing tooling and moulds. The work contemplated the study of solidification and the way into which the microstructure changes with the chemical composition and how these characteristics affect the thermal diffusivity with respect to temperature, chemical composition and microstructure. The results show that thermal diffusivity can be enhanced by modifying their processing and the corresponding microstructural features.