A ceramic material mold for use in molding a turbine engine blade from a molten metal, the blade including a root, an inner platform, an airfoil, and an outer platform, and the mold including a cavity having the shape of the blade, and an auxiliary grain duct including a first segment and a second segment that is an extension of the first segment, the first segment opening out at one end into a first portion of the cavity forming the root of the blade, and at another end into a second portion of the cavity forming a lip of the inner platform of the blade, the second segment opening out at one end into the second portion of the cavity, and at another end into a third portion of the cavity forming a lip of the outer platform of the blade.

A method of manufacturing a component includes additively manufacturing a crucible; directionally solidifying a metal material within the crucible; and removing the crucible to reveal the component. A component for a gas turbine engine includes a directionally solidified metal material component, the directionally solidified metal material component having been additively manufactured of a metal material concurrently with a core, the metal material having been remelted and directionally solidified.

A die casting system includes a die including at least one die component that defines a die cavity, a spar received within a portion of said die cavity, a shot tube in fluid communication with the die cavity, and a shot tube plunger moveable within the shot tube to communicate a molten metal into the die cavity to cast a hybrid component. The spar establishes an internal structure of the hybrid component, and one of the internal structures and an outer structure of said hybrid component is an equiaxed structure.

A manufacturing method includes providing a material that includes a plurality of particles and a binder that is uncured. The method also includes forming a first article from the material including curing the binder to bind a collection of the particles together into the first article. Furthermore, the method includes encasing at least a portion of the first article with an outer member. The outer member defines an internal cavity that corresponds to the first article. Additionally, the method includes heating the outer member and the first article to melt the collection of particles into a molten mass within the internal cavity of the outer member. Moreover, the method includes solidifying the molten mass within the outer member to form a second article. The second article corresponds to at least a portion of the internal cavity of the outer member.

A feed system for conveying a molten metal that is to make a casting, the system including a feed channel made of ceramic material that is configured to enable the molten metal to flow by gravity inside the feed channel, the feed channel having a first portion extending in a first direction, and at least one second portion extending in a second direction different from the first direction, the second portion being arranged downstream from the first portion and being connected to the first portion by a junction. The system further includes a damping channel having a first end opening out into the junction and a second end that is closed, the damping channel extending the first portion of the feed channel.

An installation for manufacturing a part by implementation of a Bridgman method includes in particular a mold intended to receive a melted material and a thermal screen movable with respect to the mold intended to be positioned in front of the solidification front during the directional solidification.

A counter-gravity casting method and apparatus in which the mold is held stationary and the crucible is moved generally laterally from a melt chamber to a fill chamber positioned below the mold with respect to gravity. A casting chamber is located generally above the fill chamber with respect to gravity. The method and apparatus utilize separate chambers for melting and casting in which the pressure in each chamber can be varied relative to each other in order to introduce molten metal into the mold.

A method of manufacturing a directionally solidified article of the present disclosure includes providing a collection of particulate material and additively manufacturing a first article with an outer wall from the particulate material. The outer wall defines at least part of a cavity. The cavity contains an amount of the particulate material. The method also includes encasing at least a portion of the first article with an outer member. The outer member defines an internal cavity that corresponds to the first article. The method further includes heating the outer member and the first article to melt the first article into a molten mass within the internal cavity of the outer member. Additionally, the method includes solidifying the molten mass along a predetermined solidification path within the outer member to form a second article that corresponds to at least a portion of the internal cavity of the outer member.

A mould for casting a component in a directional solidification casting process having a preferred direction of grain growth (non-axial <001>) comprises a shell defining a cavity for receiving molten material. The cavity defines a three dimensional shape made up of a finished component geometry portion (42, 43, 44) and a sacrificial geometry portion (45) wherein the sacrificial geometry portion (45) includes a notch (48) which is shaped and positioned so as to, in use, contain high angle grain boundaries between dendritic growth in the preferred direction (non-axial <001>) and dendritic growth in a competing direction to the preferred direction (axial <001>) within the sacrificial geometry portion of a casting solidifying in the mould.

A manufacturing process for blades of a turbomachine, e.g. a gas turbine engine for an aircraft. In the process: a) a ceramic core piece that comprises at least two ceramic core elements and a clamping part that connects the ceramic core elements, is positioned in a wax forming device, subsequently; b) a molten wax material is applied to the outside of the ceramic core piece in the wax forming device and the wax is allowed to solidify, and subsequently; c) at least two turbomachine blades are cast using a crystallographically-oriented metal casting process and the wax and the ceramic core piece are removed.