Production of molded bodies from a silicon alloy by water jet cutting of plates

Abstract

The invention relates to a method for producing molded bodies from a silicon alloy, comprising the production of plates and the water jet cutting of the plates to form a plurality of molded bodies. The thus obtained molded bodies contain in particular additional inoculant additives and are used in particular as inoculant for metal casting.

1 . A method for producing molded bodies, comprising the steps of:
 providing a plate, having a thickness in the range of 10 mm to 80 mm, comprising a silicon alloy; and   cutting the plate into molded bodies by water jet cutting, utilizing an abrasive agent;   wherein the silicon alloy is selected from the group consisting of:
 (a) a FeSi alloy, comprising from at least 10 to 50 wt % iron and from 40 to 80 wt % silicon; 
 (b) a FeSiMg alloy, comprising 35 to 55 wt % iron, 35 to 55 wt % silicon and 3 to 30 wt % magnesium; 
 (c) a FeSiTi alloy comprising Fe: 35 to 55 wt %, 35 to 55 wt % silicon and 3 to 15 wt % titanium; 
 (d) a CrSi alloy comprising 20 to 45 wt % chromium, 25 to 55 wt % silicon and 10 to 35 wt % iron; and 
 (e) a AlCaSi alloy comprising 0.1 to 7 wt % aluminum, 0.1 to 30 wt % calcium and 45 to 65 wt % silicon; 
   wherein each of the silicon alloys comprises at least one of: calcium, manganese and aluminum; and   wherein each of the silicon alloys (a) to (e) comprises a combination of metals as identified as (a) to (e) and the combination of metals makes up at least 50 wt % of each of the silicon alloys.   
     
     
         2 . The method according to  claim 1 , wherein the silicon alloy is a FeSi alloy having Fe: 15 to 40 wt % and Si: 60-75 wt %. 
     
     
         3 . The method according to  claim 1 , wherein each of the combinations of metals makes up at least 80 wt % of the plate, preferably, at least 90 wt %. 
     
     
         4 . The method according to  claim 1 , wherein the plates and, in particular, the molded bodies additionally have at least one of the following metals: barium, cerium, lanthanum, bismuth, titanium, zirconium, antimony and strontium. 
     
     
         5 . The method according to  claim 1 , wherein the molded body is a ferrosilicon (FeSi) alloy, comprising:
 silicon, at 40 to 80 wt %, in particular, at 60 to 75 wt %;   the following metals as inoculant additives:
 calcium, at 0.2 to 10 wt %, in particular, at 0.2 to 5 wt %; 
 aluminum, at 0.2 to 10 wt %, in particular, at 0.5 to 4.5 wt %; and 
 manganese, at 0.2 to 10 wt %, in particular, at 0.5 to 4.5 wt %; 
   with iron as the remaining balance; and   optionally, at least one of the following metals as additional inoculant additives:
 rare earth metals, including lanthanum, at 0.05 to 3 wt %; 
 barium, at 1 to 15 wt %; 
 zirconium, at 2 to 6 wt %; 
 bismuth, at 0.05 to 3 wt %, in particular, at 0.2 to 1.2 wt %; 
 antimony, at 0.1 to 2 wt %; and 
 magnesium, at 3 to 16 wt %, in particular, at 6 to 12 wt %. 
   
     
     
         6 . The method according to  claim 1 , wherein the plate is produced by
 casting, i.e., a melt is cast and solidified, or   pressing, i.e., dusts or powders provided with or without binder are pressed into plate-shaped forms, or   sintering, i.e., dusts or powders are baked or compacted with the aid of heat, or combinations of these methods, in particular by casting into vertical molds.   
     
     
         7 . The method according to  claim 1 , wherein the plate is produced by casting a melt and solidifying, wherein the casting is preferably effected into molds having vertically upright cavities. 
     
     
         8 . The method according to  claim 1 , wherein the molded body has a conical shape with a tapered end, in particular employing a bevel cut of 2° to 15°, in particular 6° to 12°, in order to form the conical shape, and also independently hereof the molded bodies preferably remain in the plate with the tapered end following the cutting. 
     
     
         9 . The method according to  claim 1 , wherein from 1 to 12, and in particular from 3 to 8, molded bodies are cut one after the other from the plate by the water jet cutting in a line or slightly offset from one another in a line. 
     
     
         10 . The method according to  claim 1 , wherein a water jet cutting machine that performs the water cutting is embodied in a flat-bed design and the plates are positioned on a portal surface thereof. 
     
     
         11 . The method according to  claim 1 , wherein the abrasive agent has a Mohs scale of from 6 to 7.5 and is preferably a sand, in particular garnet sand or olivine sand. 
     
     
         12 . The method according to  claim 1 , wherein at least one of the following applies:
 (A) the plates have at least two plane-parallel surfaces;   (B) the plates have a width of 10 to 40 cm and a height of 20 to 60 cm; and   (C) the plates have a thickness of 16 mm to 50 mm.   
     
     
         13 . The method according to  claim 1 , wherein the plates define a top surface and a bottom surface of the molded bodies in each case through an upper side and a bottom side of the plate and the side face(s) of the molded bodies are formed at least partially by the water jet cutting, in particular completely. 
     
     
         14 . A molded body produced according to the method of  claim 1 . 
     
     
         15 . A method of metal casting in which at least one molded body formed according to  claim 1  is an inoculant molded body for metal casting, preferably iron casting and, particularly preferably, for producing cast iron, in particular:
 lamellar graphite cast iron (gray cast iron), 
 vermicular graphite cast iron, and 
 nodular graphite cast iron, or 
 ausferritic cast iron.