Improving process control in metal casting

KALAMAZOO, Mich.—Dr. Bob Tuttle’s career focus is all about finding the future of steel through the development of alloys and understanding the metal casting process. He sees improving the strength of materials while minimizing waste as what will keep the U.S. metal casting industry ahead of the competition and provide the consumer with needed material. His efforts emphasize how we use different materials, examining the quenching and partitioning process to help create stronger steel.

Increasingly, his work has turned toward the future of sensors to provide better process control. 

“The future demands of steel production will be about finding ways to make it stronger while using less material, a contradiction that is solved by investigating the behavior of the steel during the foundry process,” says Tuttle, an associate professor in WMU’s College of Engineering and Applied Sciences. With Dr. Lee J. Wells, associate professor and an expert in real-time data analytics and visualization, and Dr. Sam Ramrattan, professor and a specialist in foundry development, Tuttle is working to develop better digital measurement sensors that can find surface defects. 

“If we can measure the foundry process in real-time then we can learn how defects develop during the production process,” explains Tuttle. 

“This shifts us from reacting to defects after we have a finished item to understanding where they developed.”

Tuttle replicates the foundry in the classroom so students get the experience of the workplace. Projects often require students to manage the casting process—requiring them to think about what features to machine versus cast, how to orient the mold, design the gating system, simulate the casting process, create the pattern and then cast test articles.  

Tuttle’s hope is that this process teaches students to deeply learn a topic, move past the lecture hall, and be prepared to approach any job from a technical and business standpoint.

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