RAW MATERIAL PREHEATING BY A NOVEL ENERGY

RECYCLING METHOD IN METAL CASTING, WITH THE

APPLICATION OF DOE AND REGRESSION ANALYSIS
J.Selvaraja,Prakash Marimuthua, Sriram Devanathanb, K.I.Ramachandrana
a

Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham, Department of Mechanical Engineeering, India

Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham, Department of Chemical Engineering and Material Science,

India
ABSTRACT
Modern economic development programs critically depend on reliable supply of
energy. Since current energy resources are depleting fast, and as there is a mounting problem
of pollution associated with most of the energy resources, energy recycling (which means
recovering the waste and using it in some meaningful ways) has indeed become the need of the
hour. This paper presents a novel method of energy recycling in the sand casting process, which
readily translates into substantial energy conservation in foundries. The heat that is being
wasted into sand during the solidification process is used to preheat the raw material that is
melted, for the subsequent pouring. The influence of the casting parameters such as, offset
distance, moisture content in the molding sand, and the insulator thickness on the temperature
gain by the raw material, have been analyzed. A central composite design was adopted for the
design of the associated experiments. A mathematical model was developed via statistical
analysis of the experimental data, to predict the amount of heat recovered from the solidifying
molten metal, for any specific combination of values for the experimental parameters. The
model developed shows a statistically significant influence of offset distance and insulator
thickness on the heat recovered, and hence these two factors are indicated as the best for making
predictions of the heat recovery. The predicted values from the developed model were
compared with the actual experimental values, and a close agreement of the two was observed,
thus proving this models ability to predict heat recovery from molds in sand casting.
KEYWORDS: Energy recycling; Conservation; Waste heat recovery; Mathematical
model.

Page 1 of 23

1 Introduction
1.1 Metal Casting and its Energy Profile
Metal casting industry is among the most energy-intensive manufacturing sectors, as
agreed upon by many studies (Energy, 2012; EPA, 2004; Jiliang and Junting, 2011; Reep,
2012; WTEC, 2012), and is one of the largest spenders on energy in the U.S. manufacturing
sector. The industry spent $1.2 billion in fuels and electricity purchases alone in 1998. Error!
eference source not found.Fig. 1, and Fig. 2 show typical metal casting Tacit Energy use from
different angles (Kwon, 2005).

Fig. 1 Metal casting tacit energy resources

Fig. 2 Metal casting Tacit Energy Profile by Process

Studies have shown that by implementing best practice technologies, iron and aluminum
melting can save approximately 1265 Mega Joules and 3165 Mega Joules per ton respectively
Page 2 of 23

(Kwon, 2005). Considering that iron and aluminum casting tonnages comprise more than 85
% of the total casting tonnage, potential savings in melting these metals are substantial. In
summary, striving to reduce energy consumption in melting ferrous and non-ferrous metals
shows a promising path to lowering operating costs in foundries, and in turn, cutting down the
production costs for the entire manufacturing sector.
Although its increasing energy costs cause significant concern for metal casters, the industry
continues to use melting technologies with poor energy efficiency, and efforts are still slow
towards exploring the possibilities of innovative ways of energy conservation as the author has
seen in his experience in various foundries in India. This is in contrast to the importance of
innovation for sustainability - a well acknowledged fact shown by many studies. For example,
the results of a study in Netherlands (Cefis and Marsili, 2006) show that innovation has a
positive and significant effect on the probability of firms survival. The study also reveals that
this relationship increases over time and that the small and young firms are the most vulnerable
to the risk of exit, and hence benefit proportionately by innovation to survive in the market in
the longer run. In such a scenario, considering the acute and urgent need for energy
conservation, this work hopes to make some fresh contributions in the right direction.
1.2 Energy Conservation Potentials in Casting
The amount of energy consumed varies depending on the materials melted and it is observed
that 50 % to 90 % of the whole energy for the production of iron castings is consumed in the
melting process (UNIDO, 1998). Fig. 3 gives an approximate account of it. Hence, any attempt
to reduce energy consumption in melting will readily translate to substantial overall energy
conservation in the casting process. This reduction in melting energy is achievable through
various means: increasing the casting yield, reducing the energy losses from furnace,
minimizing the energy loss in handling the molten metal from furnace to the point of pouring,
waste heat recovery and utilization of recovered heat...etc. Many developments have taken
place in the past in these fields, evolving to a current scenario which is presented briefly in the
following literature review section, by citing only the latest work in each of the abovementioned fields.

Page 3 of 23

2 Literature Review
A recent research (Milford et al., 2011) involving various case studies, demonstrates how the
embodied energy in final products may be up to 15 times greater than the energy required to
make liquid metal, due to yield losses. A top-down evaluation of the global flows of steel and
aluminium showed that 26 % of liquid steel and 41 % of liquid aluminium produced does not
make it into final products, but is diverted as process scrap and recycled.
Studies into the energy losses in furnace have showed the extent of losses and solutions to
minimize them by methods such as waste heat recovery and optimization of wall thickness
(Tully, 1979). In an interesting study (Borghi et al., 1978), a quantitative analysis on the heat
loss by a study of the temperature profile of the flue gas and usage of this heat for preheating
of scrap has been achieved with an assessment on the energy economy. In the studies dealing
with ladle operations in steel making, higher heat losses in the tapping were detected, urging
for conservation by regeneration approaches (Zimmer et al., 2008)
Apart from waste heat recovery from flue gas there are other potentials for waste heat recovery:
a) waste heat recovery from slag and b) waste heat recovery from molten metal. Studies for
waste heat recovery from slag have indicated the feasibility of heat extraction from slag to the
tune of 64% and utilizing it for producing steam and hot air (Bisio, 1997). In the fields of waste
heat recovery from molten metal and utilization of the heat for preheating the scrap, two
significant studies have been made: Wang et al (Wang et al., 2004) analyzed waste heat
recovery during continuous casting to preheat steel scrap in an enclosure vessel. Coupled
natural convection-radiation heat transfer was solved by three-dimensional FEM. Preheating
was achieved to the degree of 625 K which supersedes the previous achievements of 473 K in
this field. This is in the regime of continuous casting. Such heat recovery from molten metal
during its solidification and utilization for preheating of scrap has not been carried out so
extensively in any other previous studies-particularly in discrete castings using sand molds.
Feeling the need of such Waste Heat Recovery from solidifying molten metal, the author
conducted experiments in sand casting of Aluminium and reported the technological
possibilities of exploiting the waste heat in discrete castings (Selvaraj and Ramachandran,
2012). In continuation of that research, several experiments were conducted to further
consolidate the technology and understand the behavior of waste heat recovery in different

Page 4 of 23

circumstances by changing various parameters that influence the heat recovery. The
methodology of the same is presented in the following section.

3 Methodology for Energy Recycling in Sand Molds

The methodology is to embed the charge material in the mold, closely around the cavity in such
a way that all the three - a) the superheat of the molten metal, b) the latent heat of solidification
of the molten metal, and c) the sensible heat of the hot solidified casting- pass through the sand
and reach the raw materials (scraps and billets) that are embedded into the sand and preheat
them. Since the preheated material is going to act as a next charge for the furnace, this preheat
achieved through the embedment of scrap in the mold reduces the energy consumption in the
furnace.
In Fig. 3, the various steps involved are depicted in a sequential way. The shaded blocks
represent the steps in the preheating sequence, results of which are reported in this paper. Other
blocks are applicable to any conventional casting. A brief explanation of this flow diagram that
depicts the proposed methodology is as follows: Block-1: Raw material scrap or virgin pig iron
that can be embedded directly is separated from the scrap yard. This is the first stage, where it
is transported within factory for processing in the subsequent stage to make it easy to embed
in the mold. Block-2: Here, raw material scrap is prepared to be placed into the sand mold,
close to the mold cavity. This preparation involves steps such as sizing the scrap to easily and
compactly accommodate around the cavity.

Page 5 of 23

Fig. 3 Process flow diagram for raw material preheating

Block-3: This represents the processed raw material scrap routed for embedment into the sand
mold. Block-4: Here, the raw material is carefully packed around the cavity. Sufficient care
should be taken to ensure that there is no direct contact of raw material with the mold cavity
and there exists some offset distance. Block-5: Here, mold is ready with raw materials
embedded around the cavity. In such a mold cavity, pouring of molten metal is done. Block-6:
By this time, the molten metal in the sand mold cools by giving away its heat content to the
raw materials that surround the cavity and thus the raw material temperature increases. Now
the preheated raw materials are separated from sand. Block-7: The preheated raw materials
might have sand particles stuck to them. To remove them, they are passed through a vibratory
platform. It is an optional step and should be avoided as much as possible, since it will waste
the heat content of the raw material. (In the many experiments conducted, it was clearly
observed that this is not a problem, since the amount of sand that sticks is very negligible).
Block-8: Here, the raw material flow path is maintained at high temperatures so that the heat
content remains undisturbed; otherwise, the raw materials can lose their heat in transit between
the knock-out zone and furnace. The high temperature is maintained by transferring the heat of
knocked out casting to the path of travel of the preheated raw materials using fluid medium
(air). This paper does not discuss the details of this step.

Page 6 of 23

Experimental Setup

The experimental set up consists of a flask with sand mold embedded with raw materials around
the mold cavity; the raw materials are surrounded by insulators to prevent the leakage of heat
from the raw materials into the sand. Fig. 4 illustrates the set up. K-type thermocouple leads
are provided in appropriate positions in this flask to measure the temperature of the casting,
raw material and sand at various locations, as is common in such analyses (Yunsheng et al.,
1996). This method was implemented in the actual flask as shown in Fig. 5.

Fig. 4 Geometric model of the experimental set up for raw material embedment.

Page 7 of 23

Fig. 5 Experimental set up, showing the drag portion of the flask with embedded Aluminium
raw material, insulator and thermocouple wires taken from the mold at different distances
from the mold cavity.
The offset distance between the cavity and the raw material is denoted by do. This is an
important variable which decides the extent of heat recovery and final product quality in terms
of hardness, strength, etc. The minimal value of do was set as 1 cm for convenience in
making the sand mold and retaining the shape of the cavity. Fig. 5 shows the sand in the offset
distance.

Page 8 of 23

5 Sample experimental results and their physical significance

The results of the experiments to find out the temperature distribution is presented in Fig. 6.
Factors: Moisture: 5%, Offset distance: 10mm, Insulator thickness: 160 mm
250

Temperature (C)

200
Mold temperature at
10mm from mold cavity
(in C)
Temperature of larger
scraps (in C)

150

100

Temperature of smaller
scraps (in C)
50
Mold temperature (in C)
outside the insulator
0
0

200

400

600

800 1000 1200 1400 1600 1800 2000

Time (s)

Fig. 6 Temperature distribution in the mold with scraps of different sizes.

Temperatures have been taken at 10 mm from cavity (just the starting point of the scrap), in
the middle of the scraps (around 17 mm) and after the insulations outer wall. The following
sections explain the reasons for the graphs pattern.
5.1 Governing equation for the heat transfer
The following governing equation is used for solidification of a casting which is the
conservation of energy equation written in its advection-diffusion form (Gong et al., 2007):

( ) + ( ) + ( ) + ------------ (1)

Where,
, (kgm3 )
pecific heat capacity, (Jkg K)
( )
, ()
, ()
Page 9 of 23

, ( 3 )

, ()

From this equation, we can understand that the heat transfer is primarily a function of time,
density, thermal conductivity, enthalpies, and temperature gradient. Since the thermal
conductivity of the metal and sand is temperature-dependent, the resulting temperature
distribution is non-linear.
5.2 Temperature distribution in the mold at a particular instant
At a particular instance from the time of pouring (say 400 seconds), let us examine temperature
distribution at various points in the mold. At 10 mm, temperature is high since it is close to the
cavity filled with molten metal. As distance progresses, temperature reduces since the points
are going away from the heat source. Across the insulator, temperature drop is considerable,
since the insulator (glass wool) prevents the heat flow.
5.3 Temperature history at fixed points in the mold
The temperature history at a particular point in the mold, with respect to time, was recorded at
by taking the thermocouple readings at that point. When the distance of that point from the
mold cavity is less, the temperature at that point reaches peak quickly, as it has happened to
the point at 10, which reached the peak temperature at around 500 seconds. After reaching the
peak, the point gives away its heat to the successive points in the mold and hence its
temperature starts declining. The same phenomenon happens to the successive points: when
distance grows further, the time it takes for reaching the peak temperature increases and its
peak temperature value falls. The reason is the thermal resistance offered by the media (sand
and raw material).

6 Statistical tools for data analysis

6.1 Need and tools used
Even though intuition suggests that there are many factors that influence the heat gain (and
hence preheat temperature) of the scrap, what those factors are, and how they influence, are
not clear. The knowledge of both is essential to get the maximum possible heat recovery from
Page 10 of 23

the molten metal by proper manipulation of these factors. To determine the optimal factorial
settings that would ensure maximum heat recovery, the following general approach was used:
(1) statistical design of experiments based on the selected factors (deemed to be important for
the study, as per prior knowledge), (2) conduct of the experiments, with collection of the data,
and (3) data analysis using statistical methods (graphical methods, Analysis of Variance or
ANOVA, and multiple linear regression) followed by drawing inferences from the results of
the analysis.
6.2 Methodology for Mathematical model
Fig. 7 shows the systematic steps that constitute the methodology followed for the design,
conduct, and analysis of the experiments leading to building the mathematical model. The steps
in this methodology are fairly standard and well known in the research circles. The problem
identified is one of energy conservation as explained already. In the brainstorming session,
various factors that influence the heat recovery are identified. These factors are used for
designing the experiments; based on the design, experiments are conducted and analysis is
done.

Problem Identification

Brain Storming Session

(Identify: Factors, Factor
levels, possible
interactions)
DoE

Conduct of Experiments

Regression analysis

Fig. 7 Steps for building the Mathematical Model

Page 11 of 23

Initializing Steps

The following sections elaborate the steps followed in the selection of factors, conduct of DoE,
experimental runs, their results and regression analysis.
6.3 Selection of Factors & Type of Design
While conducting the experiments, it was observed that a number of factors influence the heat
gained by the raw material embedded into the sand mould. Typical important factors were:
moisture content of the sand by weight (ms), offset distance (do) - which is the distance of raw
material from the cavity wall, and the thickness of the insulator that surrounds the raw material
to arrest heat leakage (ti). There are other factors such as size of the casting, temperature of
molten metal, etc., but they were not considered for the experiments, for the following reasons:

In the case of size of casting, if the casting size changes, the amount of raw
material that is embedded around the cavity also changes proportionately,
leading to a balanced absorption of heat per unit mass of raw material.

In the case of molten metal pouring temperature, for the given metal/alloy, it is
fixed based on the metallurgical considerations.

Hence we restricted our study to only three factors. Even in these three, moisture could be
ignored, since it is also fixed in many cases; but it would help to maximize the heat gain if its
relationship to heat gain is known, and hence different moisture levels were used in the
experiments.
Normally, when performing designed experiments, it is known that a sequential approach is
desirable, starting with a factorial design (which provides for modeling of linear effects only),
and following it with a response surface design (which provides for modeling of quadratic
effects in addition to the linear effects). However, in the present study, we chose to directly go
to a response surface design, since the work of prior researchers indicates that the relationship
between the chosen factors and the response is likely to be nonlinear.
The two choices available for a response surface are: (1) Central Composite Design and (2)
Box-Behnken Design. For three factors, the Box-Behnken is known to be more economical,
requiring only 15 experimental runs compared to a minimum of 20 for the central composite
design. The economy is achieved without any significant loss of modeling or inferential
capability of the design. Hence, we proceeded with the Box-Behnken Design.
Page 12 of 23

In the set of experiments conducted, three factors and three levels are considered. The design
factors and their respective levels are given in Table 1.
Table 1 Process parameters and their levels
Factors
Levels

Moisture in sand (ms)

(% by weight)

Offset Distance ( do )
(mm)

Insulator Thickness ( ti )
(cm)

3.5

10

20

10

6.5

30

16

6.4 Design of Experiments and responses from the experiments.

Using the Minitab 16.0, a set of 15 experiments was designed. The factors shown in the Table
1 were used as factors for the experiments. For each of the experiments, the heat gained by the
raw material embedded in the sand was measured by using thermocouples, as explained in
section-5. The combination of factors and their levels used for respective experiment along
with the measured pre-heat temperature corresponding to experiments 1 to 15 are given in
Table 2.
Table 2 Designed experiments and measured responses.
Factors ( as per Designed experiments)

Response (from
experiments)

Experiment.
No.
ms (%)

ti (cm)

do (mm)

Pre-heat
Temperature (T)
(0C)

3.5

20

16

10

172

10

20

106

Page 13 of 23

104

Factors ( as per Designed experiments)

Response (from
experiments)

Experiment.
No.
ms (%)

ti (cm)

do (mm)

Pre-heat
Temperature (T)
(0C)

6.5

10

30

94

3.5

16

20

114

6.5

16

20

105

10

20

106

10

20

108

6.5

10

10

147

10

6.5

20

97

11

30

93

12

3.5

10

10

156

13

16

30

96

14

3.5

10

30

96

15

10

143

6.5 A brief discussion on the responses for different input factors

Here, the aim is to gain some insights into the connection between the preheat temperature (the
response we are looking at) and the input factors, viz., moisture content (ms), insulator
thickness (ti), and offset distance (do) from the Table . Let us take any two experiments, where
do and ti are unchanged, and ms alone is varied, just to decipher a relationship:
Experiments 9 and 12 have same do (10mm) and same ti (10 mm). Only variation is in the
moisture content, which is 6.5 % in 9th experiment and 3.5 in 12th experiment. Without seeing
Page 14 of 23

the response, let us apply intuition and try to develop an insight about the relationships between
them.
If the sand moisture increases, thermal conductivity of the sand also increases, as the literatures
support (Wang and Porter, 2005). Based on this, we might tend to conclude that peak
temperature reached by raw material will increase with moisture. But on the contrary, as
moisture increases, peak temperature decreases. The reason has been explained by researches
on heat transfer in sand mold (Sun and Chao, 2009) that the heat energy required for
evaporation of water in the sand mold increases when moisture content increases and hence it
offsets the rise in thermal conductivity and thus heat recovery by the raw material decreases.
This insight is interesting and this also appeals to intuition, even though this is not the instant
intuitive insight for many. Hence, it is of high significance to conduct such experiments,
understand the results and apply mathematical tools to decipher the complex relationships that
exist between the factors.
6.6 Regression Analysis and ANOVA
6.6.1 A brief introduction to the concept and background work
Regression analysis is used to determine a mathematical model that describes the quantitative
relationship between one or more factors (inputs) and one response (output). The estimated
relationship can then be used to predict the values of the response based on the values of the
factor(s) (Johnson and Bhattacharyya, 2009).
In the context of the present papers methodology of energy recycling by waste heat recovery
from solidifying molten metal in sand casting, we were unable to find any evidence in the
literature on the specific application of DoE techniques mentioned in our study. However, it
may be noted that there are many developments in the past in the application of this DoE in
various other fields, as a tool for mathematical modeling & optimization. Some of the prior
research reported in the field of metal casting includes the following. Linear and non-linear
modeling of cement-bonded molding sand system was done using conventional statistical
regression analysis - a two-level full-factorial design was used for linear regression model,
whereas a three-level central composite design (CCD) had been used to develop non-linear
regression model(Parappagoudar et al., 2008). Orthogonal method was used to decrease the
ingot riser head and improve the utilization ratio of ingot. The casting temperature, pouring
velocity and interface heat transfer were optimized to decrease shrinkage and micro porosity
Page 15 of 23

using this method(Pei et al., 2008). In another study, optimization of injection molding process
parameters for SGF and PTFE reinforced PC composites was done using neural network and
response surface methodology(Milford et al., 2011). Forward and reverse mappings in green
sand mould system using neural networks were done by using back-propagation neural network
(BPNN) and a genetic-neural network (GA-NN). The results show that GA-NN outperforms
the BPNN and that both the NN approaches are able to carry out the reverse mapping
effectively(Surekha et al., 2011).
6.6.1

Results of the Regression analysis and ANOVA

As per standard statistical procedure, a 5 % statistical significance level (0.05) is chosen. Table
3 shows the results of regression, with pre-heat temperature as the response and the predictor

variables being the three main effects of the chosen factors (linear terms), their corresponding
square terms (quadratic terms), and the two-factor interaction terms (capturing joint effects of
two factors on the response).

Table 3 Estimated Regression Coefficients for Pre-heat temperature versus ms (%), ti (cm)
and do (mm)
Term

Coef

SE Coef

Constant

106.667

1.851

57.613

0.000

ms

-3.375

1.134

-2.977

0.031

ti

6.250

1.134

5.513

0.003

do

-29.875

1.134

-26.350

0.000

ms ms

-2.208

1.669

-1.323

0.243

ti ti

0.542

1.669

0.325

0.759

do do

18.792

1.669

11.260

0.000

ms ti

-0.500

1.603

-0.312

0.768

ms do

1.750

1.603

1.091

0.325

ti do

-6.500

1.603

-4.054

0.010

Page 16 of 23

S = 3.207 R-Sq = 99.4% R-Sq(adj) = 98.4%

Note: The analysis was done using coded units.

Thus, all the linear terms, the do quadratic term, and the tido interaction term are considered
to be significant. Consequently, the regression analysis is repeated omitting the terms that were
found not to be significant at the 0.05 level.
An improved regression analysis, the result of which is presented in Table 4 was conducted
with the statistically significant terms and was found that the R-sq is very high, at 99.1% and
is close to the highest possible value (100 %). This indicates that the mathematical model
arrived at, via regression, provides an excellent fit for the data. Consequently, any predictions
performed using this model would be expected to be accurate.
Table 4 Estimated Regression Coefficients for Pre-heat Temp versus ms(%), ti (cm), do (mm)
for statitically significant terms
Term

Constant

Coef

SE Coef

105.714

1.158

91.251

0.000

-3.375

1.084

-3.114

0.012

6.250

1.084

5.767

0.000

-29.875

1.084

-27.568

0.000

do do

18.911

1.586

11.921

0.000

ti do

-6.500

1.533

-4.241

0.002

ms
ti
do

S = 3.065 R-Sq = 99.1 % R-Sq(adj) = 98.6 %

Note: The analysis was done using coded units.

The results in the ANOVA Table, Table 5 once again confirm the inferences drawn earlier,
viz., that there is at least one significant linear effect, at least one significant quadratic effect
Page 17 of 23

(Square), and at least one significant Interaction effect in the model as evidenced by the pvalues being less than 0.05. Additionally, the p-value of 0.106 (greater than 0.05) for the Lackof-Fit indicates that the model is an adequate fit for the data.
Table 5 Analysis of Variance for Pre-heat Temp
Source

DF

Seq SS

Adj SS

Adj MS

Regression

9047.85

9047.85

1809.57

192.61

0.000

Linear

7543.75

7543.75

2514.58

267.66

0.000

Square

1335.10

1335.10

1335.10

142.11

Interaction

169.00

169.00

169.00

17.99

Residual
Error

84.55

84.55

9.39

Lack-of-Fit

81.89

81.89

11.70

Pure Error

2.67

2.67

1.33

14

9132.40

Total

8.77

0.000
0.002

0.106

The regression analysis for a DOE is typically done using coded values of the factors (typically,
the low value is designated as -1, middle value as 0 and high value as 1, for each factor). This
arrangement provides for orthogonality of the design, leading to optimal performance of the
multiple regression. However, subsequent to the regression, the regression coefficients must
be translated to values in the uncoded (original) units for practical use and ease of
interpretation. These values are given in the Table 6.

Page 18 of 23

Table 6 Estimated Regression Coefficients for Pre-heat Temp using data in uncoded units
Term

Coef

Constant

220.274

ms

-2.25000

ti

3.20833

do

-9.46845

do do

0.189107

ti do

-0.108333

Thus, the mathematical model expressed by this equation:

9.46845do +

Pre-heat Temp (C) = 220.274 - 2.25ms + 3.20833ti

0.189107 do do - 0.108333 tido -------------- (1)

The mathematical model is capable of predicting the pre heat temperature with an error
percentage of 5% which is evident form Table 7.
Table 7 Comparison of model-predicted preheat temperature with experimental ones.
Experiment
No.

Preheat temperature (C)

Difference

% Error

Experimental values

Predicted by the model

104

103

-1

-0.97

172

167

-5

-2.91

106

106

94

91

-3

-3.2

114

115

0.88

105

108

2.86

106

105

-1

-0.95

Page 19 of 23

(C)

108

105

-3

-2.78

147

151

2.73

10

97

96

-1

-1.04

11

93

95

2.16

12

156

158

1.29

13

96

95

-1

-1.05

14

96

98

2.09

15

143

141

-1

-1.4

In order to validate the assumptions typically made in a regression analysis, the

following set of four plots (Fig. 8), based on residuals, is used. The Normal Probability Plot
shows the values lying fairly along the diagonal straight line. This indicates that the errors
assumed in the response follow a normal distribution. The histogram is for the same purpose.
In an ideal case, the histogram would show a bell-shaped curve. However, as long as it doesnt
show any extreme deviations, it does not pose any serious concern for the quality of the results
or inferences. The plot of residuals versus the fitted values shows a fairly random and uniform
scatter above and below the horizontal zero line this validates the assumption that the errors
inherent in the response variable have constant variance throughout the design space. The final
plot of residuals versus the order of the data, show a random and uniform scatter above and
below the horizontal zero line, and additionally, do not show any trend this suggests that there
was no non-random trend over time. The errors in the response are assumed to be stable over
time.

Page 20 of 23

Residual Plots for Pre-heat Temp

Residuals Versus the Fitted Values
5.0

90

2.5

Residual

Percent

Normal Probability Plot of the Residuals

99

50
10
1

-5.0

-2.5

0.0
Residual

2.5

0.0
-2.5
-5.0

5.0

Histogram of the Residuals

160

5.0
2.5

Residual

Frequency

120
140
Fitted Value

Residuals Versus the Order of the Data

1
0

100

-4

-2

0
2
Residual

0.0
-2.5
-5.0

9 10 11 12 13 14 15

Observation Order

Fig. 8 Residual Plots for Preheat temperature (C)

7 Conclusions
In an age of impending energy shortage and environmental problems associated with energy
generation and usage, this work promises to conserve enormous amounts of energy and save
proportional CO2 emissions. As reported in the previous studies by the same author (Selvaraj
and Ramachandran, 2012) regarding the energy and environmental benefits, the savings
demonstrated are as high as 3.3751013 kJ of energy and 4,031,250 tons of CO2. This would
offset planting of 24,187,500 trees required to deal with these carbon emissions. Hence, the
potential for global warming mitigation and direct economic benefits from energy savings are
high, warranting deeper research into this topic to perfect it to the degree of commercial
application on a large scale.
The present work is an attempt to build a mathematical model for heat recovery in the sand
casting process using a novel method of energy recycling. A three level Box-Behnken design
was used for the Design of Experiments. Regression analysis and ANOVA has been carried
out to obtain the mathematical model.
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It is observed that the result obtained by the second order mathematical model has an error
percentage of less than 5%. It is also observed that the offset distance and the combination of
offset distance and insulator thickness have significant effect on the dependent variable,
temperature, acquired by the raw material. The developed second order mathematical model
can be used for prediction of heat recovery for any combination of input parameters such as
offset distance, sand moisture and insulator thickness. This serves as a handy tool to decide the
necessity of going for such heat recovery on a case to case basis. The prediction capability of
the mathematical model was confirmed by comparing the results of the model with
experimental results with good agreement.
Acknowledgements
This work has been registered for patent under the ownership of Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham.
The first author of this paper is the patent inventor; patent registration number:
3215/CHE/2010.
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