Author(s)

Sunday Aribo

Department of Metallurgical and Materials Engineering Federal University of Technology, PMB 704, Akure, Nigeria.

The use of rice husk and corn cob ashes as aggregates for foundry moulding sand has been studied. 5-12.5 weight percent of rice husk and corn cob ashes were added to the sand mixture and the sand properties determined. A mixture of equal proportion of rice husk and corn cob ashes was also used. In each case, four weight percent water and clay were added to the sand mixture. Some of the properties of the sand tested are: permeability, green compression strength, dry compression strength, green shear strength, dry shear strength, moisture content and permeability. The results showed that the green compression strength, green shear strength, moisture content and permeability decrease with increase in the additives (rice husk ash, corn cob ash, and (50% rice husk and 50% corn cob ashes). While dry compression strength and dry shear strength increase with increase in weight percent of the additives.

moulding sand, rice husk, corn cob, ashes, sand properties.

S. Aribo, "Effect of Varying Corn Cob and Rice Husk Ashes on Properties of Moulding Sand," Journal of Minerals and Materials Characterization and Engineering, Vol. 10 No. 15, 2011, pp. 1449-1455. doi: 10.4236/jmmce.2011.1015112.