To get accurate results in casting simulations, prediction of interfacial heat transfer coefficient (IHTC) is imperative. In this paper an attempt has been made for estimating IHTC during solidification process of a rectangular aluminium alloy casting in a sand mould. The cast temperature and mould temperature are measured during the experimental process at different time intervals during the process of solidification. Two different inverse methods, namely control volume and Beck's approach are used to estimate the heat flux and temperature at the mould surface by using the experimentally measured temperatures. In the case of control volume technique, the partial derivative of one dimensional transient heat conduction equation for the rectangular geometry is modified into an ordinary differential derivative with respect to time. These equations are solved sequentially to get the heat flux and temperature at the mould surface. The same partial derivatives are solved using the function specification method in Beck's approach. The IHTC values obtained by these two approaches are in good agreement with the results cited in literature.

This chapter deals with the heat transfer characteristics between the cast and the mold. Generally the heat transfer behavior between the cast and the sand mold is used and all the three modes of heat transfer are studied. The heat transfer characteristics from the cast is at a faster rate for a die mold than for the sand mold. Since the sand mold is used for most of the industrial applications for the complex shapes of metal the heat transfer and the shrinkage behavior in solidification has to be understood perfectly. In this chapter, since the heat transfer mechanism and the shrinkage behavior of the metal in the sand mold is interrelated, hence were predominantly discussed.

Solidification of casting is a complex phenomenon which requires accurate input to simulate for real time applications. Interfacial heat transfer coefficient (IHTC) is an important input parameter for the simulation process. The IHTC is varying with respect to time during solidification and the exact value is to be given as input for the accurate simulation of the casting process. In this work an attempt is made to estimate the IHTC during solidification of spherical shaped aluminum alloy component with sand mould. The mould surface heat flux and mould surface temperatures are estimated by inverse control volume technique using the temperature measured at different locations in the mould. The IHTC is calculated using these values. The estimated value of mould surface temperature is validated with the available measured mould temperature at specified location using direct heat conduction problem.