Molten aluminum is extremely reactive, so when it comes in contact with moist air or wet tools, the water decomposes to release hydrogen in the melt. Excessive quantities of this dissolved gas have a well-documented detrimental effect on the mechanical properties of the final aluminum castings. What is also well known to anyone making castings is that dissolved gas has an overriding effect on the distribution and amount of porosity and shrinkage. Dissolved hydrogen levels must be controlled to minimize scrap. To control gas in aluminum, metalcasters must accomplish two things:

1. Prevent and minimize introduction of hydrogen in the melt.
2. Measure and remove the hydrogen prior to pouring.
This article will focus on measurement and removal.
Gas Removal

The ability to degas molten aluminum is generally accomplished by using a purge gas, typically introduced into the melt by a rotary degassing unit. This degassing process is limited by thermodynamic laws; when purge gas bubbles are introduced to the melt, they collect hydrogen as they float toward the surface. The best possible situation is these hydrogen-saturated bubbles leave the melt and reduce hydrogen levels. In this case, the process efficiency is 100% from the thermodynamic point of view. But as the gas content in the melt drops, so does the equilibrium pressure of hydrogen in the bubbles, so the amount of purge gas required to remove the remaining hydrogen must increase.

The equilibrium gas removal ratio is shown in Fig. 1 for pure aluminum above 1,400F (760C). A gas removal ratio of 200, for example, means it will take 200 liters of inert gas to remove one liter of hydrogen. This behavior limits a metalcaster’s ability to degas to a very low level of hydrogen. The solubility also increases exponentially with temperature, meaning an increase of 200F (111C) doubles the solubility. All things being equal, a higher temperature of an aluminum melt will increase the necessary degassing time.