This document provides information about the MECH 423 - Casting, Welding, Heat Treating and NDT course offered in the Fall 2011 term at Concordia University. The course covers casting processes, welding and brazing techniques, heat treatments, and non-destructive testing. It is aimed at mechanical engineering students to understand how components are shaped and joined, and the effects on material properties. The course involves lectures, labs, assignments, presentations and exams. The instructor is Dr. S. Narayanswamy and it meets on Tuesdays from 5:45-8:15pm in room EV-11.119.

1. CONCORDIA UNIVERSITY
DEPARTMENT OF MECHANICAL AND INDUSTRIAL ENGINEERING
MECH 423 – Casting, Welding, Heat Treating and NDT (3.5 Credits), Fall 2011
Instructor: Dr. S. Narayanswamy Lecture Time: _ T _ _ _ 17:45 - 20:15
Office: EV 004.124 Lecture Room: EV-11.119
Phone: 848-2424 (7923) Office Hours: _ _ _ J _ 10:00 – 12:00
e-mail: nrskumar@encs.concordia.ca Web site: http://users.encs.concordia.ca/~nrskumar
Lab Instructor: Mr. Ehsan Rezabeigi Teaching Assistant: Ms. Maniya Aghasibeig
Office tel: EV 14.189, ext. 7040 Office tel: EV 14.165, Ext. 7038
Other: 514-9930028 Home: 514-7557400
Recommended Text Books:
1. Materials and Processes in Manufacturing, E. Degarmo, J.T. Black and R.A. Kohser, Prentice-
Hall, 10th Edition. (Earlier editions will be fine)
2. Material Science and Engineering, W.D. Callister, 7th Edition, Wiley, 2007 (or similar).
Related Material:
• ASM Metals Handbook; Volumes 4 (Heat-Treating), 6 (Welding, Brazing and Soldering) and 15
(Casting).
• Modern welding by Andrew D. Althouse, and Carl H. Turnquist, and William A. Bowditch.
Lectures Schedule
Week Chapter Lecture Topics
th
1 6 Sep ‘11 Degarmo Chp. 11 Introduction; Fundamentals of casting processes
th
2 13 Sep ‘11 Degarmo Chp. 11 Solidification of liquid metals; Patterns, Castings Design
th
3 20 Sep ‘11 Degarmo Chp. 12 Expendable mould casting
th
4 27 Sep ‘11 Degarmo Chp. 13 Multi-Use mould casting; Casting alloys
th
5* 4 Oct ‘11 Degarmo Chp. 4 Phase Diagrams; Phase changes (Callister Chp. 9 & 10)
th
6 11 Oct ‘11 Degarmo Chp. 5, 35 Heat treatments; Surface treatment (Callister Chp. 11)
th
7 18 Oct ‘11 Degarmo Chp. 30 Fundamentals of Joining Processes
th
8 25 Oct ‘11 Degarmo Chp. 30 Fundamentals of welding/brazing/soldering processes
st
9 1 Nov ‘11 Degarmo Chp. 31 Gas welding; Arc welding
th
10* 8 Nov ‘11 Degarmo Chp. 32 Resistance welding; Other welding processes
th
11 15 Nov ‘11 Degarmo Chp. 33, 34 Brazing & soldering; Weld effects/defects, joint design
nd
12 22 Nov ‘11 Degarmo Chp. 10 Non-Destructive Testing (NDT)
th
13 29 Nov ‘11 Review
There will be 2 midterm exams during the tutorial period of Weeks 5 and 10
Assessment:
Assessment Criteria Share towards final
Presentation (topic to be discussed) 10 % 10 %
Lab (Welding & Heat treatment of steel) 10 % 10 %
Assignments (4) 15 % 15 %
Exams:
Midterm (optional) 15 % 0%
Final 50 % (with Midterm) 65% (without Midterm)
Total 100% (with Midterm) 100% (without Midterm)

2. Background
This is a course aimed at Mechanical Engineering Students who will need to know how components
(whether big or small, simple or complex) can be shaped by either casting or joining and the effect
that these processes have on the properties of the material. An engine block, a propeller, a gas turbine
blade, a steel ship, are all made from materials and must all be shaped or assembled in some way.
Casting liquid metals is often the only economical way of making some components and it is
important that this versatile technique that can produce minute, intricate jewellery and also huge
mechanical structures weighing several tonnes is understood as it is very susceptible to flaws, defects
and microstructural changes that can dramatically change the properties of the finished component.
So as well as understanding the morphological (shaping) benefits of casting it is also imperative that
one understands the limitations of this process as the mechanical properties of a cast alloy are usually
inferior to that of the wrought (worked) alloy.
Welding is a technique by which metals and plastics can be joined. There are several other similar
processes such as brazing and soldering and more recently, adhesive and diffusion bonding. In most
cases of design and manufacture, a final mechanical system is assembled from several components
thus the techniques by which smaller parts, whether it be electronic devices for a circuit board or steel
plates for a ship, can be joined together are of paramount importance in most areas of engineering.
Again these joining techniques may appear straightforward but many of them can change the
underlying structure of the material and hence affect the final mechanical properties of the assembly
so it becomes important to understand how these processes, such as welding and brazing, work and
what they are doing to the base material. In this way, the engineer can use them to his/her advantage
rather than, as is often the case with people without this understanding, weaken and degrade an
assembly by inappropriate choice, technique or positioning of joining method.
In some cases it is possible for the engineer to change some of the mechanical properties (principally
strength and hardness) of a component without changing the shape. As detailed in Mech 321, cold-
working of a metal can significantly increase these properties but requires a change in component
shape. If an alloy has been cast into near-final shape then this technique is inappropriate however in
some cases it is possible to improve properties through heat-treatment processes. These can include
quenching and tempering, carburising and nitriding. The ability to markedly change the strength,
hardness, ductility and toughness of a material by a simple heating and cooling cycle is very powerful
and if used properly is a great bonus to mechanical engineering but if it is not understood it can make
for horrendous and costly mistakes.
Any engineer who is designing or using components needs to know not just how to make things but
the effect that these processes have on the final product.
Learning Outcomes:
By the end of this course, you should have:
• an understanding of the main processes by which metals (and plastics) can be cast;
• an understanding of the properties and possible defects of cast materials.
• an understanding of the main thermal processes by which metals can be joined;
• an understanding of the principal heat-treatment processes;
This course should be seen as part of the whole process of Design and Production in that the shaping
or joining of components will influence the designs possible, the mechanics of the system, the ease of
manufacture and finally the performance of the product.
Note: This course does not cover mechanical shaping of metals as these are covered in Mech 421.

3. Midterm Exam:
During the tutorial period of week 5 (4th Oct) and week 10 (8th Nov) two midterm examinations will
be held. The midterm tests are not mandatory but are recommended. If the cumulative midterm result
is better than the one from the final exam, it will be counted for 15% towards the final grade.
Laboratory:
There is a laboratory component to this course. The aim of this lab is to illustrate the various types of
welding and the effects of heat treatment processes on the mechanical properties of bare and welded
metals and then how these effects may or may not be reversed. Mr. Peter Sakaris (Extn. 3153) will be
supervising this in the Materials Laboratory (H-1058/59). A lab manual, prepared by Mr. Peter
Sakaris is available for purchase at the COPY CENTER, and the labs commence the week of
September 12 (Week 1)
Presentation:
Each student/group will select a topic related to this course (and approved by the Instructor) and will
prepare a 15 minute PowerPoint presentation giving an overview of the subject, major advantages/
disadvantages, applications etc. Towards the end of term, time will be set aside in the tutorial
session(s) for each student/group to make their presentation to the rest of the class. Each talk will be
followed by a short question period. Each student/group will submit an hardcopy of the project report
on the last day of the classes 29th Nov 2011, prior to presentation. Marks will be awarded for:
• Presentation style (audibility, structure, clarity, quality of visual aids etc.)
• Technical content (showing understanding of subject, grasp of key points, explanation etc.)
Preliminary Assessment Schedule:
Sept 21st 5pm Assignment #1
Oct 4th 8.30pm Midterm 1
Oct 12th 5pm Assignment #2
Oct 26th 5pm Assignment #3
th
Nov 8 8.30pm Midterm 2
Nov 23rd 5pm Assignment #4
th
Nov 29 5.45pm Project Report
Deadline for submission for laboratory work is available in the Lab Manual. Work must be submitted
to the tutor directly on or before due date. NO DELAYS/EXTENSIONS. Good presentation,
including legibility, spelling and grammar, is expected for all work.
Coursework – Certificate of Originality
In keeping with the Faculty policy, all coursework submitted as part of this course must have the
Certificate of Originality form filled-in appropriately and attached as the cover page. The form is
available on the following website: http://www.encs.concordia.ca/scs/Forms/expectations.pdf
NOTE
"In the event of extraordinary circumstances beyond the University's control, the content and/or
evaluation scheme in this course is subject to change".