Consistent, defect-free castings — iron to steel.
Through a strategic partnership with Elkem — the world leader in specialized foundry alloys — OPTES Group supplies inoculants, nodularizers, and grain refiners to foundries and melt shops across MENA and Africa.
These products control the solidification of iron and steel melts to deliver the desired microstructure, mechanical properties, and casting quality.
INOCULANTS — FOR CAST IRONFerrosilicon-based inoculants are added to iron melts before pouring to control solidification and deliver the desired microstructure and mechanical properties, preventing defects caused by insufficient nucleation. They increase the number of nucleation sites for a more uniform distribution of graphite particles, and minimize undercooling (chilling) below the metastable eutectic temperature — favouring graphite over cementite (iron carbide).
Ladle inoculation (most common), in-stream inoculation, and INSERTS — inoculant blocks added directly into the mold for specialized applications.
Elkem's flagship inoculant — most popular product of its kind for gray iron.
For ductile iron.
For ductile iron.
Nodularizers produce ductile (spheroidal graphite) iron by introducing a magnesium treatment to the molten base iron using ferrosilicon magnesium (FeSiMg) alloys. This transforms graphite from flake form to spherical nodules, giving ductile iron its characteristic mechanical properties. All three are available in chemistries and sizes to suit all types of ductile iron castings and all treatment processes: pour-over, sandwich, tundish, flow-through, and in-mold.
High-quality FeSiMg foundry alloy for optimum performance and consistency.
Available in chemistries and sizes for all ductile iron casting types.
Available in chemistries and sizes for all ductile iron casting types.
Elkem grain refiners (EGRs) are ferrosilicon-based alloys that use cerium as the active ingredient. They cause the formation of a uniform dispersion of heterogeneous nuclei (active inclusions) within the melt, giving the steel a controlled, fine grain structure throughout solidification.
Reduced shrinkage porosity, hot cracking, segregation, and columnar grain regions near the edge, resulting in reduced need for repair-welding or surface grinding.
Finer grain structure throughout the casting provides increased strength and toughness. In an Elkem trial at its own quartzite-crushing facility, grain-refined manganese steel mantles achieved a service lifetime 50% higher than average.
| Product | Target Steel | Ce (wt%) | Cr (wt%) |
|---|---|---|---|
| STAINSEED™ | Stainless steels | ~10% (nominal) | ~30% (nominal) |
| WEARSEED™ | Manganese steels | ~10% (nominal) | ~10% (nominal) |
WEARSEED™ also contains ~24% (nominal) Mn. All composition values are nominal as stated in the source (Elkem product documentation).
Product selection depends on the iron or steel type and the required metallurgical function. Inoculants are used for gray iron and ductile iron to control graphite structure, ensure adequate nucleation, and prevent chilling defects. Nodularizers are used specifically to produce ductile iron by transforming graphite to spherical nodular form — and are typically followed by inoculation to prevent nucleation fading. Grain refiners are used in steel casting operations to improve grain structure, reduce defects, and extend casting service life. Contact OPTES for application-specific grade and process selection.
Through its strategic partnership with Elkem, OPTES supplies three cast iron inoculants: SUPERSEED™ (Elkem's flagship inoculant, the most popular product of its kind for gray iron), RESEED™ (for ductile iron), and ULTRASEED™ Ce (for ductile iron). Inoculants are added to the ladle, in-stream, or directly into the mold as inoculant insert blocks (INSERTS) for specialized applications.
Inoculants control the solidification of cast iron melts to deliver the desired microstructure and mechanical properties, and to prevent metallurgical defects caused by insufficient nucleation. They work in two ways: by increasing the number of nucleation sites before solidification to provide a more uniform distribution of graphite particles, and by minimizing undercooling of the melt (chilling) below the metastable eutectic temperature, which favors graphite formation over cementite (iron carbide).
OPTES supplies three Elkem nodularizers: ELMAG™, LAMET™, and COMPACTMAG™. All three are available in chemistries and sizes to suit all types of ductile iron castings and all treatment processes, including pour-over, sandwich, tundish, flow-through, and in-mold treatment. The nodularization process introduces a magnesium treatment to the molten base iron using ferrosilicon magnesium (FeSiMg) alloys, transforming graphite from flake to spherical nodular form.
OPTES supplies two Elkem grain refiners (EGRs): STAINSEED™ (optimized for stainless steels, nominally 10 wt% Ce and 30 wt% Cr) and WEARSEED™ (optimized for manganese steels, nominally 10 wt% Ce, 24 wt% Mn, and 10 wt% Cr). Both are ferrosilicon-based alloys that use cerium as the active ingredient for heterogeneous nucleation and grain structure control.
Elkem grain refiners provide two main benefits for steel castings: they reduce defects including shrinkage porosity, hot cracking, segregation, and columnar grain regions — reducing the need for repair-welding and surface grinding; and the resulting finer grain structure increases the strength and toughness of the final product, extending service lifetime. In a trial conducted at Elkem's own quartzite-crushing facility, grain-refined manganese steel mantles achieved a service lifetime 50% higher than the average.
The choice depends on the iron type being produced. Inoculants are used for gray iron and ductile iron castings to control graphite structure, nucleation, and to prevent chilling defects — they do not change the iron class. Nodularizers are used specifically to produce ductile (spheroidal graphite) iron by introducing magnesium to transform graphite from flake to nodular form. Both can be required in the same ductile iron process: nodularization is followed by inoculation to ensure adequate nucleation and avoid fading. Contact OPTES for product selection guidance.
Let our metallurgy experts help you select the optimal inoculant, nodularizer, or grain refiner for your application.
