Abstract

Gum Arabic is a plant gum exuded from bark of some species of trees called acacia species. Nigeria produces four different grades of material. Nigeria, the second largest producer in the world has no registered commercial uses for it. This research investigated the viability of casting steel in sand moulds bonded with grade 4 Nigerian gum Arabic. Sand specimens bonded with the material were subjected to standard foundry property analyses that included green and dry compressive strength, hardness and permeability, shatter index and moisture content tests. The result when compared to standard showed that 4.5 - 8.0% binder content in powdered form is suitable for casting non-ferrous alloys, malleable and grey iron while 8 - 13% is suitable for light steel. In solution form it is suitable for non-ferrous alloy.

Key words: Steel casting, foundry properties, gum arabic exudates.