Patent ID: 6568456
Filing Date: 2003-05-27
Classification: C30B

Abstract:
A method of manufacturing a directionally solidified columnar grained article with a reduced amount of secondary misorientation of the columnar grains, said method comprising:providing a casting assembly comprising a shell mold with a main cavity defining the columnar grained article, a selector section at a lower end of the mold, said selector section having a bottom and a top in communication with the main cavity of the shell mold, a heating chamber and a cooling chamber; feeding the mold with a liquid metal; moving the mold from the heating chamber to the cooling chamber; and solidifying the liquid metal to form the columnar grained article, wherein the selector section is configured such that, during solidification at least two dendrites or grains emerge from the selector section and enter the main cavity of the shell mold and no dendrite or grain grows from the bottom of the selector section into the shell mold cavity along a continuous path of purely vertical growth.