Experimental study on casting technique of an invar alloy mold with cobalt microalloying

Recently, with increasing quality requirements of resin-based composite components, the requirements for Invar alloy mold increases urgently for its extremely low thermal expansion coefficient. The high cost and difficulty in forming of Invar alloys become a major restriction in the application of Invar alloy mold. In this paper, the Invar alloy 4J36 with cobalt microalloying was melted under the atmosphere and cast into a simple mold for production test. The forming quality, thermal expansion properties, microstructure and conventional mechanical properties of the cast Invar alloy were investigated. The results indicate that cast of the Invar alloy mold used in resin-based composites manufacturing is feasible under the atmosphere.