FIREFLY MILLBOARD FF900 has been used for decades at high temperature in contact with molten metals, and steel alloys in particular. Seals produced from this material have found widespread use as end plate protection in centrifugal or spin casting machines.

The process of centrifugal casting is one where molten metal is poured directly into a rotating mould which continues to rotate at high speed until the metal has solidified. The process confers particular desirable properties on the cast component e.g. absence of porosity, which cannot be achieved by static casting processes. The liquid metal, at a temperature as high as 1600 °C, is thrown against the inner wall of the rotating mould by the centrifugal forces generated by the rotation.

FIREFLY MILLBOARD FF900 was developed in response to a particular problem experienced by moulders, which was that after casting it was difficult to remove the cast component because it had stuck to the end plates. Previously, the mould and end plates were sprayed with silica and clay but this had not proved to be totally effective and a potential health hazard.

The solution to the problem was found by using a FIREFLY FF900 ring or disc, located between the end plate and the mould / component to be spun cast. The seal has been proven to be an effective release barrier, thereby alleviating the problem, and almost entirely eliminating wear of the endplates.

FIREFLY FF900 is able to withstand the very high temperature, typically in excess of 1560 °C, in the case of stainless steels, found in this application for several minutes whilst the required thickness of the component is achieved.