Aluminum plays a key role in reducing vehicle weight, which in turn helps reduce fuel consumption. Aluminum is used extensively in modern vehicles, and it is important to use the material as optimally as possible. According to foreign media reports, Norway has developed a new casting technology that is expected to do just that.
 
The process, called low-pressure casting (LPC), casts aluminum bolts with high-quality surface properties, allowing the metal to be used directly in components such as automotive suspensions. Casting is used to produce aluminum automotive components, which is cheaper, more environmentally friendly, more efficient, and prevents a lot of waste of raw materials. The casting technology, developed by the Norwegian company Hydro, needs to be carried out under vacuum conditions.
 
In order to study and demonstrate the potential of this technology, Hydro invited the Norwegian Institute of Technology and Industry (SINTEF) and Raufoss Technology (Raufoss Technology) to participate in the HyForge project, which has achieved promising results. The HyForge project, funded by the Research Council of Norway (RCN), aims to demonstrate that using cast bolts is the best way to produce suspension components in the future.
 
Current automotive component production lines include several stages such as casting, heat treatment, extrusion and subsequent forging/forming to ensure the final product conforms to the intended shape. In the process of producing suspension components, extruded bolts are commonly used in industry, and the related process is costly, time-consuming, energy-intensive and generates a lot of waste.
 
Using Hydro's new casting technology, the team can cast the bolts used in the suspension components, removing the extrusion stage of the production process. Siri Marthe Arbo, a researcher at SINTEF, said: "During the extrusion process, the metal needs to be passed through the nozzle to ensure a homogeneous material free of contaminants and surface defects. It works like a tube of toothpaste, there will always be some residue. The new casting technology can reduce defects and give the raw material a high-quality surface finish. This is a turning point for the manufacture of aluminum automotive components, because there is no extrusion stage, and the related process is faster and cheaper."
 
The team worked to understand how the cast material behaved, and the properties it could achieve during the forging process. Researchers have been making comparisons to determine the best alloy composition and investigating how to change the production process.
 
In addition to the laboratory trials, the team worked with Raufoss Technology on physical experiments, including the creation of the first demonstration production line of aluminum suspension components using cast bolts.