Release agents form a functional coating between the mold and high-temperature metal, fulfilling six synergistic roles to safeguard production:
Demolding: Enable smooth separation of castings from molds.
By physical adsorption or chemical reaction, they form a low-adhesion isolation coating on the mold surface, reducing bonding strength between castings and molds, minimizing chemical reaction-induced adhesion, and ensuring castings detach smoothly during mold opening to prevent deformation or mold damage from forced demolding.
Lubrication: Reduce interfacial friction resistance.
Under high-temperature and high-pressure conditions, the release agent film fills micro-irregularities on the mold surface, creating a lubrication layer that lowers flow resistance during metal injection and reduces friction stress on the mold surface, mitigating mechanical wear.
Isolation: Block direct contact between molds and molten metal.
Acting as a physical barrier, they prevent direct bonding between high-temperature molten metal and mold steel, avoiding "welding" phenomena, and reduce thermal shock to the mold from molten metal.
Cooling: Regulate mold temperature distribution (secondary role).
Through volatilization and heat conduction, release agents dissipate localized mold heat, slowing temperature rise rates to prevent local overheating-induced casting defects, while maintaining uniform mold temperature. In daily production, this function is primarily fulfilled by mold temperature controllers and cooling systems.
Mold Protection: Delay mold aging and failure.
Synergistic lubrication and cooling reduce initiation and propagation of thermal fatigue cracks in molds. High-temperature-resistant components minimize carbon deposition, lowering surface scratches, erosion, and other wear, extending mold service life.
Enhance Production Efficiency: Ensure continuous line operation.
By stabilizing demolding, reducing adhesion-related shutdowns, and lowering casting defect rates, they shorten non-productive time (e.g., mold cleaning, repair), maintaining overall equipment effectiveness and stabilizing production rhythm.
Misselection (e.g., oil-based/water-based, silicone/non-silicone) or uncontrolled process parameters (spray volume, distance, dilution ratio, drying time, concentration) may trigger:
Demolding Failure and Casting Scrap: Discontinuous or insufficient lubrication causes bonding between castings and molds, requiring manual intervention. Minor cases lead to scratched/damaged castings; severe cases result in mold surface "galling" needing repair.
Surface Quality Fluctuations: Excessive spray leaves oil residues causing stains or discoloration; insufficient spray causes localized bare spots, leading to scratches (common in deep cavities, ribs).
Accelerated Mold Wear: Poor-quality release agents with corrosive components or high-temperature carbon buildup intensify thermal cracking and erosion, shortening mold lifespan.
Reduced Production Efficiency: Increased downtime for adhesion cleanup, casting rework, and mold maintenance lowers equipment utilization, delaying order delivery.
Testing simulates actual or direct on-site conditions to verify if release agents achieve desired outcomes: bright, clean castings; smooth demolding; no cleaning/painting interference; and normal equipment operation. Core principles:
(1) Demolding Performance: Can it "demold easily"?
Observe demolding smoothness, casting appearance, machine noise, and friction marks (scratches, galling) on mold-casting contact surfaces to validate coating efficacy. This is the most critical indicator.
(2) Surface Quality: Can it "protect castings"?
Check for adhesion-induced marks, uneven brightness, or yellowing. High-quality release agents leave castings with a moist, bright white finish rather than a torn, bright white surface.
(3) Mold Protection: Can it "reduce wear"?
Mold wear stems from thermal fatigue (cold-hot cycles) and mechanical erosion (molten metal flow). Release agents reduce friction via lubrication and balance heat dissipation, slowing crack propagation. Long-term validation includes observing reduced carbon buildup and extended mold maintenance intervals, though this requires extended testing.
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