Possibilities of Repairing Functional Surfaces of Molds for Injecting Al Alloys Using Manual GTAW Cladding

The paper presents the results of research that is focused on the renovation of molds for high-pressure aluminum casting. An analysis of the worn molds was carried out after they were removed from the operator. The extent and mechanism of the wear were determined. GTAW (Gas tungsten arc welding) technology was chosen for the renovation of the shaped parts of the molds. The renovation layers were realized with four types of additional materials Cronitex RC 44, UTP A 73 G 3, UTP A 673 and Dievar® TIG. The quality of the coatings was assessed by destructive as well as non-destructive tests. The mixing of the build-up layers with the base material was determined on the basis of structural analyses. The hardness of the cladding was determined by a metallographic analysis of the cross crowns with the Vickers method. The resistance of the cladding was tested by a complete immersion in a melt of AlSi8Cu3 aluminum alloy which was maintained at a temperature of 680 ± 20 °C in a laboratory resistance furnace for 120 and 300 min. The tribological properties of the produced deposits were determined using the ball-on-disc dry method. Based on the experiments that were carried out, it is possible to recommend the additive material UTP A 73 G 3 for the restoration of the functional surfaces of molds for the injection of Al alloys as the patterns that were created by it have shown the best results in terms of their resistance to Al melt, which is the dominant degradation factor limiting the life of the molds.