Shape of slab solidification end under non-uniform cooling and its influence on the central segregation with mechanical soft reduction

In order to study the effect of continuous casting process parameters on the shape of slab solidification end under non-uniform cooling,a solidification model of a continuous-cast slab with non-uniform cooling condition was established with ProCAST software.The model was verified by the results of nail shooting tests and the infrared temperature measurement equipment.Four characteristic parameters were defined to evaluate the uniformity of the shape of slab solidification end.The results showed that the nonuniformity at the beginning and end of solidification,the solidification end length,and the solidification unevenness increased with the rise of casting speed.For each 10°C increase of superheat,the solidification unevenness increased by about 0.022.However,the effect of superheat on the solidification end length can be ignored.The secondary cooling strength showed minimal effect on the nonuniformity at the beginning and end of solidification.With the increase in secondary cooling intensity,the solidification end length decreased,but the solidification unevenness increased.In addition,the central segregation of the slab produced with and without the mechanical soft reduction(MSR)process was investigated.The transverse flow of molten steel with low solid fraction influenced the central segregation morphology under MSR.

Heat Transfer and Central Segregation of Continuously Cast High Carbon Steel Billet

A numerical model of heat transfer was developed to investigate the heat transfer of continuously cast billet with the aid of surface temperature tests by ThermaCAMTM researcher and nail shooting experiments. The effects of secondary cooling practice and casting speed on the solidification process and central segregation of carbon were investigated as well with the actual central segregation tests. The results show that the surface center and billet center temperatures exhibit a different pattern during solidification, and the solidified shell thickness is presented as an ＂S＂ type. With the increase of secondary cooling intensity and the decrease of casting speed, the end points of the solidus line and the liquidus line move forward, and the central segregation level of carbon decreases. The optimal casting condition is suggested for continuously cast high carbon billet with F-EMS （final electromagnetic stirring）.

Solute redistribution and macrosegregation in continuous casting slab of carbon steel during solidification process

Based on the modified Scheil model of solute redistribution,the effects of solidification rate,molten steel flow,and alloy composition on solute macrosegregation during the solidification of carbon steel continuous casting billet are calculated and analyzed. The formation mechanism of "white band "segregation under the condition of electromagnetic stirring is also involved,and some practical countermeasures to restrain the central segregation are suggested. The results show that the modified Scheil model can be applied to predict and analyze the macrosegregation of casting slab effectively. The ratio vx/R of the flow velocity of molten steel to solidification rate has decisive formations of segregation such as linear,V,and "white band"types. It is an effective way to select sufficient terminal cooling and reasonable electromagnetic stirring in order to decrease macrosegregation in the slab. The concept of the characteristic distance of solute enrichment layer can drastically simplify the calculation of solute redistribution at the solid/liquid interface of various elements in carbon steel.

Comparison and integration of final electromagnetic stirring and thermal soft reduction on continuous casting billet

Final electromagnetic stirring(F-EMS)and thermal soft reduction(TSR)are techniques that improve the inner quality of continuous casting billets,but they have rarely been applied simultaneously.The application effects of F-EMS and TSR were compared,and a process integrating F-EMS and TSR was adopted for a billet continuous caster.A heat transfer model was established to calculate the thermal behavior of 82A tire cord steel billet.The locations of F-EMS and TSR were determined,followed by conducting a series of plant trials,involving F-EMS alone,TSR alone,and the integrated process of F-EMS and TSR.The results showed that F-EMS or TSR could effectively improve the inner quality of the billet under their respective suitable working conditions.Moreover,F-EMS was found to be more helpful in terms of improving central segregation,while TSR tended to improve V-segregation,central porosity,and pipe.The integration of F-EMS and TSR allowed the advantages of each technique to be utilized,thereby better improving the inner quality.Among all the working conditions,82A steel billet showed optimum inner quality when the current of F-EMS was 240 A and the cooling intensity of TSR was 2.2 m^(3) h^(−1).These findings demonstrate that the integration of F-EMS and TSR is promising for application on continuous casting billets.

Control Model of Bloom Dynamic Soft Reduction

There are significant effects of process parameters on internal qualities of bloom, and these process parameters are as follows. position and reduction amount, reduction distribution, reduction rate, and so on. Developing a control model is the key to apply soft reduction technology successfully. As the research object, 360 mm ×450 mm bloom caster in PISCO （Panzhihua Iron and Steel Co. ） has been studied, and the research method for control model of dynamic soft reduction has been proposed. On the basis of solidification and heat transfer model, the position of soft reduction and reduction distribution of each frame are determined according to the bloom temperature distribution and solid fraction in bloom center calculated. Production practice shows that the ratio of center porosity which is less than or equal to 1.0, increased to 97.27%, ratio of central segregation which is less than or equal to 0.5, increased to 80.91%, and ratio of central carbon segregation index which is more than or equal to 1.10, decreased to 4% with the applying model of dynamic soft reduction.