Rapid Component Casting
The process of ‘rapid component casting’ was an investigation into the possibilities of prototyping millimetre accurate aluminium forms, combining the new technology of 3D printing and traditional aluminium casting.
Initially a complex mould was designed in a 3D drawing program, by subtracting the required component from inside a solid block. This mould was then printed, using a Z Corp plaster printer, in four sections to allow for the successful removal of surplus powder from inside the mould. The mould was then dried and assembled ready for casting. Aluminium, sourced from redundant car engines, was then melted in a furnace and poured directly into the plaster mould. Once cooled the mould was placed in the volume of water dissolving the plaster and relieving the solid aluminium component.
The casting was then measured and fitted to CNC cut armatures, sized using the original 3D modelled component, verifying the accuracy of the final form. The whole process, including the 3D modelling took 32 hours, indicating the industrial advantages of this technique. This type of casting allows complex forms with undercut surfaces to be manufactured more rapidly than the traditional method of ‘lost wax casting’.