Enhanced fatigue life of IN713C turbine blades via centrifugal casting: A comparative study with investment casting

Turbine blades are critical hot-end engine components whose service performance relies heavily on the precision forming of their thin-walled structures. Conventional investment casting, however, often introduces defects such as shrinkage porosity and cavities, limiting mechanical properties and reliability. This study introduces a hybrid centrifugal-investment casting process. With a centrifugal force field applied at a pouring temperature of 1450 °C and mold temperature of 800 °C, successful complete filling of an ultra-thin (0.4 mm) blade was achieved. Results show that centrifugal casting markedly refines the microstructure: the blade root grain size decreased from4.1 ± 0.8 mm (gravity casting) to 0.57 ± 0.1 mm, and porosity dropped by ∼50%. The high-temperature fatigue performance improved significantly, with a 19.2% higher fatigue limit at 650 °C and nearly tenfold longer fatigue life under the same cyclic stress. This hybrid approach offers a scalable pathway toward next-generation high-performance turbine components.