Application of cast iron

Application of cast iron

Important types of cast iron:

  • Grey

  • Ductile

  • Compacted graphite

  • White

  • Malleable

  • Abrasion resistant

  • Nodular or spheroidal

  • Austenitic

ductile iron casting

Now let's discuss properties of each of them briefly.


  1. White cast iron

Carbon is present here in the form of Iron carbide (Fe3C).

Its properties are

  • It has High compressive strength

  • It is difficult to machine

  • It has Good hardness

  • It has Resistance to wear

  1. Gray cast iron

Carbon here is mainly in the form of graphite. It is inexpensive.

Its properties are

  • It has Good machinability

  • It has Good resistance to galling and wear

  • It has high compressive strength

  • It is brittle

  1. Ductile cast iron

Its properties are

  • It has High ductility

  • It has High strength

  1. Malleable cast iron

They are made malleable with the help of annealing. They are used to make parts where forging is expensive like, brake supports, hubs of wagon wheels etc. They are in expensive.

Its properties are

  • They have High ductility

  • They are tougher than gray cast iron

  • They can be twisted or bent without fracture

  • They have excellent machining capabilities

5. Nodular or spheroidal cast iron

Here graphite is present in the form of spheres or nodules.

Its properties are

  • They have high tensile strength

  • They have good elongation properties

Advantages of cast iron

  • It has Good casting properties

  • It is available in large quantities, hence produced in mass scale. Tools required for casting process are relatively cheap and inexpensive. This results into low cost of its products.

  • It can be given any complex shape and size without using costly machining 

  • It has three to five times more compression strength compared to steel

  • It has Good machinability (gray cast iron)

  • It has excellent anti-vibration (or damping) properties hence it is used to make machine frames

  • It has good Sensibility

  • It has excellent resistance to wear

  • It has constant Mechanical properties between 20 to 350 degree Celsius

  • It has very low notch sensitivity

  • It has Low stress concentration

  • It bears Low cost

  • It has Durability

  • It has Resistance to deformation

Disadvantages of cast iron

  • It is Prone to rusting

  • It has poor tensile strength

  • Its parts are section sensitive, this is due to slow cooling of thick sections.

  • failure of Its parts is sudden and total, it does not exhibit yield point.

  • It has poor impact resistance

  • Compared to steel it has poor machinability

  • It has High weight to strength ratio

  • It has High brittleness

  • It is Non machinable (white cast iron)

grey iron casting


Applications of iron castings:

It is used in making following parts

  • It is used in making tractor parts, agricultural parts

  • It is used in making different machine parts

  • It is used in making automotive parts

  • It is used in making valve parts and pump parts

  • It is used in making marine parts.

  • It is used in making any kind of customized shape metal parts



Please feel free to give your inquiry in the form below. We will reply you in 24 hours.
Message