Magnesium is a type of element that is easily adapted into metal form through industrial processing. Magnesium die casting is one of the three most commonly used metals, and is revered for its strong and light properties. It is often added to aluminum, steel, iron, and titanium to help these metals achieve different properties.
Before it can be used and combined with other metals, magnesium must be processed and casted into magnesium ingots. Magnesium casting is both simple and complicated, and there are several different ways to transform the raw element into useable metal. One of these methods is with direct chill processing.
In direct chill magnesium die casting, the metal is melted and processed inside a large container. The melted metal then drains into a cool casting chamber, which uses water to cool the metal. After cooling, the metal ingot is passed through another machine that cuts off the rough edges from the metal and rolls the ingot into the desired size and shape. After the initial shaping process, the company can use rollers or other metal forming processes to transform the ingot into usable magnesium parts.
Many magnesium die casting companies choose to use direct chill casting because it is contained in one large machine, is completely automated, and creates consistent results every time. Any waste that is accrued through the process of scalping and shaping the metal ingots can be reused in the same factory to create more ingots, or shipped to another metalworking facility that uses scrap magnesium as an added alloy for other metal products.
Some companies choose to use twin rolling casting when creating magnesium, because it eliminates some of the steps necessary in the direct chill process. However, twin rolling is not suitable for every use of magnesium, and is best suited for creating thin sheets of magnesium, rather than larger parts or additives for other metals.