New Ceramic Core Material for Investment Casting Industry

Morgan Technical Ceramics Certech (MTC Certech), a leader in the investment casting industry, has introduced a new ceramic core material, P52. Developed to maintain rigidity and provide tight dimensional and geometric control, P52 ensures ceramic cores remain extremely stable during the casting of turbine blades with high temperature super alloys that are now being used in quieter and more fuel-efficient jet engines.

Ideal for airfoil casting of blades and vanes used in rotating and static engine parts the P52 material’s ability to hold thinner metal walls more accurately provides part manufacturers with higher casting yields, reduced scrap rates and lower casting costs. The stability of P52 also enables manufacturers to reduce or eliminate the use of costly platinum pins that hold the ceramic in place and support the core during the casting process.

In addition to dimensional strength P52 exhibits improved crushability during solidification. This means that it remains rigid and stable through the cooling process but is crushable when it needs to be during the metal solidification process. This is particularly useful for alloys that are prone to hot-tearing (as found in equiax castings) or re-crystallization (castings that are involved in directionally solidified or single crystal castings).