Victa 2 engine block

1. Introduction
The engine block is the main part of hundreds of parts found in modern
engines. It is prepared to be light and have a strong structure to increase resistance
to wear, durability and efficient of the engine. Today, the engine block has been
manufactured using cast iron and aluminium alloys. The latter is a common alloy
very used due to its low weight but mostly within petrol engines. The new challenges
of engineering are to find new materials and alloys to manufacture light and
resistance structures that are more important for the power of the engine. This report
will explain the process of manufacturing of Victa 2 stroke engine block and identify
the critical and non-critical parts of the engine block.
2. Materials and Casting methods
The engine block requires many kinds of features to work as necessary.
These requirements include wear resistance, long lasting, maintenance, and
withstand the pressure created when the combustion take place. Moreover, it has to
withstand the high temperature, vibration when the engine is in the running
conditions. Then, it is necessary to find the right kind of material to manufacture the
engine covering these characteristics.
In order to meet the functional requirements the material used for
manufacturing the Victa 2 stroke engine block should be the aluminium alloy due its
properties as light weight, thermal conductivity, corrosion resistance, tensile strength,
density, ductility, weldability (Sanders, 2001). Analysing the high roughness of the
surface of the Victa engine can be concluded that the casting method is sand

casting, it also characterised by its low cost of production comparing with the others
methods.
In the sand casting is used a reusable pattern to create a sand mould which is
usually made from wood, resin or metal. Once that the half of the pattern is
introduced into the box which is filled with sand mixed with a bonding agent. The box
is inverted, and then the other half of the pattern is carefully put in place ensuring
alignment. The top part is added, and more sand and bonding agent compacted in
place. The two halves of the sand mould can be separated, and the pattern
removed. It is made an entry path for the molten metal. Thus, the melt is introduced
and after allowing time to cool, the sand is removed, getting the cast component.
This process is also characterised by its low cost of production comparing with the
others methods and the facility to manufacturing complex shapes.
3. Manufacturing processes
The manufacturing process of the engine block is separated into some steps
before the final product. First, it is created the pattern for the casting which can be of
different types such as solid, split, match plate and cope and drag pattern. The latter
is the most used for high production industry runs. The cope and drag pattern is
defined as two pieces pattern representing the casting. Each of the two halves are
mounted on a plate for easy alignment of the pattern and mould.
The next step in the sand casting process is to create the mould for the
casting. In an expendable mould process, this step must be performed for each
casting. A sand mould is formed by packing sand into each half of the mould. The
sand is added around the pattern, which is a copy of the external shape of the
casting. When the pattern is removed, the cavity that will form the casting remains.

Also, lubrication is often applied to the surfaces of the mould cavity in order to
facilitate removal of the casting. The use of a lubricant also improves the flow the
metal and can improve the surface finish of the casting. It that is used is chosen
based on the sand and molten metal temperature.
Once the mould has been made, the molten metal is maintained at a set
temperature in a furnace. After the mould has been clamped, the molten metal can
be ladled from its holding container in the furnace and poured into the mould. The
pouring can be performed manually or by an automated machine. Enough molten
metal must be poured to fill the entire cavity and all channels in the mould. The filling
time is very short in order to prevent early solidification of any one part of the metal.
The molten metal which is poured into the mould once it enters the cavity.
When the entire cavity is filled, and the molten metal solidifies, the final shape of the
casting is formed. The mould cannot be opened until the cooling time has finished.
Most of the possible defects are generated by the cooling such as shrinkage, cracks,
or incomplete sections.
After the solidification time has done, the sand mould can be broken, and the
casting removed. This step can be called shakeout which is typically made by a
vibrating machine that shakes the sand and casting out of the piece. The excess
material must be trimmed from the casting manually. And the scrap material that
results from trimming can be discarded or reused in the sand casting process after a
proper chemical composition before it be reused. The part may then undergo further
manufacturing processes such as heat treatment, machining, and metal forming. To
obtain the final product, it is necessary make an inspection to carry out on the

finished part to evaluate the effectiveness of its manufacture as well as measure

each thickness and compare with the desired.
After the inspection of the engine block is done it is time to do the wholes as
the screws wholes and some finishes inside it. For this is used drilling for the screws
wholes and turning for external part of the internal central whole.
4. Conclusion

References