Ferrous Casting
Quasar is used to test the complete range of ferrous castings, from small investment castings such as rocker arms, to large sand castings like engine blocks and crankshafts. Other applications include
- Brake components - anchors and calipers (ductile iron)
- Suspension components - knuckles and control arms (ductile iron)
- Engine components - connecting rods, camshafts, crankshafts, rocker arms
- Other components - yokes and brackets
Quasar Detects All Structurally Significant Defects
In a single test, Quasar detects all of the structural defects that may appear in ferrous castings including:
- Cracks
- Low nodularity in ductile iron
- Shrink porosity
- Cold shuts
- Oxides
- Inclusions
- Excess carbides in ductile iron
- Incorrect heat treat (wrong thermal history, inlcudng after casting process)
- Incorrect alloying
- Significant non-fill
- Missing features
- Significant geometric or dimensional variation
Quasar Provides Better NDT
Since a part's resonance pattern contains information about the structural integrity of the whole part, a single Quasar test can replace other NDT methods that typically focus on specific defects. Quasar replaces:
- Magnetic particle (cracks, cold shuts and oxides)
- Ultrasound (low nodularity)
- Eddy current (carbides)
- Hardness testing (heat treat)
- X-Ray (internal defects)
Quasar also replaces or complements visual inspections for non-fill, missing features, and significant dimensional variations. The on-line Quasar test can also replace met lab sample testing to verify material properties.
Special Considerations
Quasar works for materials that are stiff enough to resonate. That means it is applicable to essentially all steel, malleable iron, grey iron, and ductile iron castings. The application to grey iron depends on its grade - lower grades do not resonate, while higher grades resonate almost as well as ductile iron.
Quasar is designed to detect structurally significant defects - that is, defects that are severe enough to cause a part to fail prematurely. Quasar will not detect cosmetic defects such as surface inclusions caused by individual or small clumps of sand grains. It will also not detect surface discontinuities caused by parting lines or tool marks. Quasar's ability to distinguish between good parts (with surface blemishes) and truly bad parts results in significant savings in scrap cost for manufacturers.
Benefits
Quasar delivers the following benefits for ferrous castings:
- Reliable detection of all structurally significant defects in a single test
- Results that predict road life by correlating to failure testing (e.g., tensile, bending, or fatigue tests)
- Computer based accept/reject decisions, not subject to human judgment
- Reduction in scrap since cosmetic defects are not rejected
- Dry, non-magnetic process eliminates need for post-inspection treatment