Casting Process and Quality Control Analysis of Zr705C Zirconium Alloy

Basic research on and the industrial development of zirconium alloys in China started relatively late, with insufficient domestic production capacity for zirconium alloy castings; especially for large-sized zirconium alloy castings, there is little production experience and significant challenges in quality control. Therefore, the production and research and development of zirconium alloy castings have received widespread attention from academia and industrial production sectors. This article analyzes the production status of domestic zirconium alloy castings, examines the casting process characteristics of valve body castings, and optimizes the casting process based on ProCAST simulation analysis results, using a lost foam precision casting process to cast a large-sized, high-pressure zirconium alloy casting for chemical use. The phase composition and microstructure were tested and analyzed, and the results showed the following: there is a certain thickness of the diffusion contamination layer on the surface of the castings. Finally, key points regarding zirconium alloy casting surface quality control and welding quality control were proposed, effectively improving the quality of the castings.