Molten Aluminum Filter Intalco uses polyurethane foam as a carrier and immerses it in a slurry made of ceramic powder, binder, sintering aid, suspending agent, etc. Then squeeze out the excess slurry so that the ceramic slurry is evenly coated on the carrier frame to form a green body, and then the green body is dried and sintered at a high temperature.
Molten Aluminum Filter is used to filter and purify molten aluminum impurities.
Molten Aluminum Filter is classified according to different apertures, such as 10PPi, 15PPi, 20PPi, 30PPi, etc. The mesh classification of sponge is not the same as the classification of product mesh. Generally speaking, the larger the PPi value, the smaller the corresponding pore size and the smaller the filtered inclusions.
Function of ceramic foam filter
Removal of impurities and slag
Purify the aluminum alloy liquid, the viscosity of the aluminum alloy liquid will decrease after filtration, and the fluidity of the aluminum alloy liquid will increase by 10%-15%. Therefore, the filtration improves the filling capacity of the aluminum alloy liquid.
The flow of the aluminum alloy liquid before filtration is turbulent, and after filtration, it becomes laminar (the flow channel of the foam ceramic filter is twisted and turned), which reduces air entrainment and secondary slagging.
With the progress of filtration, the filtration mechanism changes from sieving, filter cake to deep bed filtration, and the purity of the aluminum alloy after filtration is getting higher and higher (in the case of not exceeding the maximum filtration capacity of Alumina Ceramic Foam Filter).
For example, the aluminum alloy liquid in the combustion chamber at the bottom of the cylinder head is the purest.
Reduced scrap rate of parts
Improved part cutting performance
The mechanical properties of materials are significantly improved, especially the elongation.
Adtech, the supplier of Molten Aluminum Filter Intalco, provides the following information
Intalco layoffs, production cuts and closures
In 2020, Alcoa, headquartered in Pittsburgh, announced plans for production cuts and layoffs in April on the grounds of declining market conditions. At that time, according to the WARN notice issued by the company to the Washington State Department of Employment Security, the company estimated that starting in June, the Intalco factory would lay off 700 workers. According to a September 9 press release from the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, 621 people were eventually fired.
At that time, industry experts said that given the current low demand and unknown future demand, and many customer factories were closed in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the economic environment was very uncertain.
On the second day after the announcement of the production limit, a rally was held in Ferndale outside Pioneer Park to support the Intalco Works factory and workers. Many speakers were critical of Chinese aluminum product manufacturers. The speaker said that China’s aluminum production subsidies are the cause of the decline in aluminum prices.
In 2020, after 54 years of operation, the Intalco smelter near Ferndale stopped producing aluminum this summer, leaving hundreds of people unemployed and causing shocks in the community. The pain is deep, but it may point to a path to cleaner and more competitive heavy industry.