To eliminate the shrinkage porosity in low pressure casting of an A356 aluminum alloy intake manifold casting, numerical simulation on fi lling and solidifi cation processes of the casting was carried out using the ProCAST software. The gating system of the casting is optimized according to the simulation results. Results show that when the gating system consists of only one sprue, the fi lling of the molten metal is not stable; and the casting does not follow the sequence solidifi cation, and many shrinkage porosities are observed through the casting. After the gating system is improved by adding one runner and two in-gates, the fi lling time is prolonged from 4.0 s to 4.5 s, the fi lling of molten metal becomes stable, but this casting does not follow the sequence solidifi cation either. Some shrinkage porosity is also observed in the hot spots of the casting. When the gating system was further improved by adding risers and chill to the hot spots of the casting, the shrinkage porosity defects were eliminated completely. Finally, by using the optimized gating system the A356 aluminum alloy intake manifold casting with integrated shape and smooth surface as well as dense microstructure was successfully produced.
