Newsletter - 2002-04 Case Western Validation of Thermallife for soldering in die casting dies

IN THIS ISSUE
1. Soldering - Causes
2. Substrate Important
3. Lab setup - Test
4. Graphs
5. Summary

Case Western has developed an accelerated solder test to determine the affinity of various types of steels and surface treatments to molten aluminum

It is common knowledge, in the die casting industry, that H-13 dies and other hot work materials containing iron (Fe) will solder or bond to one another. Case Western has developed a means of testing various die materials and surface treatments using a special accelerated method. Our website has posted some very telling photos of the results of this test using control H-13 material and H-13 + Ther MaLL* ifeÔ

Ther MaLL* ifeÔ is a proprietary form of Ferritic nitrocarburizing (FNC) that is performed in a computer controlled fluidized bed. Our machine is the only one of its kind in the US. We have nine stations each with individual capabilities. Once loaded on the six station carousel in a special basket , we start with a computerized alkaline wash to remove all contaminants that could compromise the FNC. This is can be a crucial step in assuring that the diffusion is not disturbed by foreign material on the die's surface. Whether the die has a petroleum based or water based rust preventative applied before shipping to us, the alkaline wash will clean it.
After this the die material is automatically transferred to the FNC bed

Transferring heat to the material for proper application of the FNC.

Gas Composition and %
Particle Diameter
Bed Material Density
Velocity of the gas/gases

All of the above are critical to having a controlled repeatable process.

Unlike older technologies, Badger does not use screws or manual adjustments that require recalibration of the bed apertures for gas induction. The screw method, to be performed properly, requires that the entire bed be shutdown and emptied since the adjustment screws are at the bottom of the bed. It is unlikely that this is performed as often as necessary.
The newer technologies, such as Badger's, utilizes sliding ceramic screens and eclipse valves that are computer controlled. Thus, not only are the necessary parameters met, but maintenance is reduced to a minimum.