People tend to get confused between cast aluminum and wrought iron. It’s rather common for people from outside the industry. Some people use both names at their convenience alternatively. But there is a hell-and-heaven difference between cast aluminum and wrought iron. This article is written to clarify all the myths about these two names. In this article, we will be focussing on the definition of the two things separately and then will discuss how they are different from each other in the field of both physical and chemical features.
What is cast aluminum?
Cast aluminum is a form of metal that can be melted and then it is poured into the cavity or the mold that has been formed to get the shape of the desired complex metal. The metal can be poured at different pressures, one is at high pressure and another is at low pressure. This pressure changes the quality of the metal. The metal who are poured with high pressure has less porosity and more finished product whereas, on the other hand, the metal poured with low pressure has less product finish and more porosity. Then, the liquid is allowed to settle down and solidified overnight. After it gets solidified, the newly formed replica of the actual metal is torn out of the mold.
Now there are different molds available to form casting aluminum. Out of all the other reasons, the most important reason is the availability of economic resources. Cast aluminum goes through a lot of processes before it gets in use there are different types of casting methods like die casting, sand casting, centrifugal casting, and investment casting depending on the need of the product, the use of the product at what industry, whether there is enough money to make the mold of that process and also whether the amount has been ordered to form in small quantity or bulk. Which process will be applied to casting aluminum depends on the order, convenience and the monetary fund available.
What is wrought iron?
Wrought iron is the iron that only requires to be heated and then gets ready to work with. Here, the iron is obtained by smelting, unlike the casting process. Wrought iron doesn’t have to go through a lot of processes, they are simply heated and the tools are used to work with it. The more they work with, the more they increase their tensile strength and the features improve more and more. There are not many processes to discuss about wrought iron but it is way more ductile and malleable than the material produced by casting.
Why cast aluminum is better than wrought iron?
If we compare cast aluminum with wrought iron, we have to first consider for what purpose we are going to use it and what are the points are crucial for you. For some applications, wrought iron is more popular than casting aluminum because of its higher durability and stronger in material.
Induced ductility
There are processes by which cast aluminum is transferred to a better version of the metal. It gets amalgamated with other metals like magnesium-copper alloy, cerium, and many more. This process helps to increase the tensile strength of the cast aluminum and makes it a more versatile metal. The extra heat that is induced in the metal makes it more resistant to it and thus makes it ductile and malleable than it previously was.
This is the process that inputs the cast metal in order to increase its strength as a metal and make it fit for any complex tool.
Winner – Cast aluminum
Corrosion and precautions
Wrought iron is highly exposed to corrosion when left bare in an atmosphere with moisture. They are incapable of protecting themselves. They need external help in order to stay protected. Processes like powder coating, color coating, and many other methods are taken into account to protect the material from rusting
Whereas, on the other hand, casting aluminum has an innate ability to build a first layer of oxide to its own material in order to prevent it from corrosion.
Winner – Cast aluminum
Cost
Cast aluminum is more affordable compared to wrought iron. Mainly because making casting aluminum is a lot easier and requires less manpower. Another important point that must be mentioned is the maintenance cost of wrought iron is pretty high due to its tendency for corrosion, whereas cast aluminum prevents corrosion.
Winner – Cast aluminum
Weight
Common sense says wrought iron is a lot heavier than casting aluminum and is one of the main reasons why cast aluminum is famous for automotive parts. Cast aluminum is super lightweight and the tools made from aluminum are very easy to carry and move around.
Winner – Cast aluminum
Strength and durability
One very strong point of wrought iron is its strength and durability. This is where cast aluminum can fall a bit short compared to wrought iron. Although cast aluminum is very durable and strong, wrought iron is more durable.
Winner – Wrought iron
Pros and cons of cast aluminum and wrought iron.
There are both ways for a material. If they have pros then they must have cons as well. Now, to understand the who’s who better, the readers need to look for the pros and cons of these two materials.
Pros and cons of wrought iron
Pros
- As it has a low density and high tensile strength which makes it have good mechanical properties.
- It has a smooth surface finish which helps in lowering the maintenance cost.
- The structure is more rigid than cast aluminum.
Cons
- Compare to casting aluminum, it is more prone to rusting.
- Quite expensive.
- It needs a coat of wax on a yearly basis.
- It should be cleaned regularly.
Pros and cons of cast aluminum
Pros
- It is quite affordable compared to wrought iron.
- It is available everywhere.
- It has a good thermal conductivity and thus heat gets transferred well and becomes easy to work with even in high heat.
- Lightweight which low transport cost.
Cons
- Easily damaged due to less tensile strength
- Doesn’t give a fine finish like wrought iron and which might lead to deal with manufacturing defects.
Summary
It has been seen in the article that wrought iron and cast aluminum have huge differences in both physical and chemical structures. There are still some methods like mixing the material with other alloys to make the best version of themselves. Sunrise Metal has both these materials available with authentic certification. Both of these materials have different use in different formations of machine tools.So, it s necessary to retain the originality of the materials as well.