Descripción del proyecto
Desafiar los límites e innovar para forjar una nueva era de la fundición
Es hora de prepararse para un cambio abrupto en los sectores del metal fundido y la fabricación. Los investigadores están abordando los retos a los que se enfrenta desde hace tiempo el proceso de fundición. El equipo del proyecto SkyLight, financiado con fondos europeos, lidera su empeño por superar las limitaciones e impulsar la industria hacia territorios inexplorados. En concreto, se espera que en el proyecto se dé rienda suelta a una complejidad geométrica sin precedentes, se reduzcan los defectos en un notable 50 %, se optimice la rigidez y se consiga un ahorro de peso de entre el 15 % y el 30 %. AMRC Castings, el departamento de la prestigiosa Universidad de Sheffield que coordina el proyecto, va a instalar un colosal horno para la fundición de componentes aeroespaciales de titanio, consolidando aún más su posición de liderazgo en este campo.
Objetivo
Project SkyLight is proposed by AMRC Castings (which evolved out of Castings Technology International). AMRC Castings, a department of the University of Sheffield (USFD), is part of the UK’s High Value Manufacturing Catapult. AMRC Castings’ mission is to develop and disseminate casting technology to the benefit of the cast metal and manufacturing sectors.
Based on the Topic Description, and on AMRC Castings’ long experience of similar projects, we believe that project SkyLight would enable the investment casting process to deliver greater geometrical complexity, reduce defects by 50%, optimise stiffness, and deliver weight saving of 15% to 30% and cost saving of 30% compared to conventionally fabricated multi-piece assemblies, along with significant environmental benefits for both the manufacturing and the use phase of the component.
AMRC Castings helped Sulzer to achieve an improvement in pump absorbed efficiency - saving 10% on the power demand. AMRC Castings’ Patternless® process helped Rolls-Royce reduce the time from CAD model to prototypes from 6 months to 6 weeks, and developed more accurate naval propellers for the VT Group that are seen as setting a new standard for others to follow. AMRC Castings’ MEGAshell® process enables ceramic moulds with dimensions of up to 2m3 to be manufactured so that heavy section valve castings weighing several tonnes can be manufactured 34% lighter than the sand cast equivalent and reducing machining costs by over 50%.
This year, AMRC Castings is installing what is believed to be the largest furnace for casting titanium aerospace components in Western Europe - a 1000kg titanium melter - to complement its existing state-of-the-art casting facilities.
AMRC Castings has participated in 21 EU-funded collaborative research projects including 8 projects as coordinator - including research projects such as FASTCAST and events to achieve the greater participation of the castings sector in EU-funded research programmes.
Ámbito científico
Programa(s)
Régimen de financiación
CS2-RIA - Research and Innovation actionCoordinador
S10 2TN Sheffield
Reino Unido