EFFECTS OF La ON STRUCTURE AND PROPERTIES OF HEAVY RAIL STEEL

The mechanisms of La in heavy rail steel were studied by means of experimental measurements, microstructure observation and theoretical analysis in the present work. For heavy rail steel, the state and the content of La were measured, and the mechanisms and the effects of La on sulfide inclusions, microstracture and properties of steel were determined. Strip-like sulfides disappear in heavy rail steel with La/（O＋S）〉3.50, which is shown that the metallurgical function of modifying sulfide inclusions has been achieved by La. La can fine the grain size of the austenite in heavy rail steel. Under the experimental condition, the plasticity and the impacting toughness of heavy rail steel with 0.005wt% La can evidently be improved.

Reaction mechanism between Al_(2)O_(3)–MgO refractory materials and rare earth high-carbon heavy rail steel

Submerged entry nozzle(SEN)clogging is a major problem affecting the production quality of rare earth steel,and finding a suitable refractory outlet can significantly reduce production costs.To explore the relationship between refractory composition and interface interaction,unprotected coated Al_(2)O_(3)–MgO refractories and SiO2-coated Al_(2)O_(3)–MgO refractories were added to rare earth high-carbon heavy rail steel under laboratory conditions,and the Al_(2)O_(3)–MgO refractory was found to be more suitable.The results show that,from the epoxy resin side to the refractory side,the contour of the refractory interface reaction layer can be divided into two main layers:an iron-rich reaction layer and an iron-poor reaction layer.Calculations based on the spherical model suggest that the adhesion force is proportional to the size of the refractory particles and inclusions,and the same result applies to the surface tension.Controlling the inclusions at a smaller size has a specific effect on alleviating the erosion of refractories.Combined with the erosion mechanism of Al_(2)O_(3)–MgO refractories,the interface reaction mechanism between Al_(2)O_(3)–MgO refractories and molten steel was proposed,which provides ideas for solving SEN clogging.

Effects and Mechanisms of RE on Impact Toughness and Fracture Toughness of Clean Heavy Rail Steel

Clean high carbon heavy rail steel was prepared by the process of vacuum induction furnace smelting,forging and rolling.Mechanisms of RE on the impact toughness and fracture toughness for clean high carbon steel were investigated.In addition,the appropriate range of RE content for clean high carbon steel was determined.Both the austenite grain size and pearlite lamellar spacing decreased due to small amount of RE,consequently the impact toughness and fracture toughness were improved evidently.When the RE content exceeded a critical value,the pearlite lamellar spacing was increased,because RE was segregated on the austenite grain boundaries,damaged the orientation relationship of pearlite transformation,caused the disorder growth and morphology degenerating of pearlite.With the increasing of RE content,both the impact toughness and fracture toughness of clean high carbon steel were gradually increased at first and then decreased.It was found that when the RE content was between 0.0081% and 0.0088%,both the impact toughness and fracture toughness of clean high carbon heavy rail steel were the best.The maximum ballistic work was 21.2 J（20 ℃） and 12.2 J（-20 ℃）,respectively.The maximum plane-strain fracture toughness was 45.67 MPa·m1/2（20 ℃） and 37.04 MPa·m1/2（-20 ℃）,respectively.

Effects of Rare Earth on Structure and Mechanical Properties of Clean BNbRE Steel

The mechanisms of RE in clean BNbRE steel were studied by means of experimental measurement, microstructural observation and theoretical analysis. For BNbRE steel, the state and the content of RE were measured, and the effects and the mechanisms of RE on sulfide inclusions, microstructure and properties of steel were determined. On the condition of increasing the cleanliness of steel, the mechanisms of RE in steel were changed to certain degree. Small amount of RE has the effect of cleaning, modifying inclusions and alloying in clean steel, too. With increasing the cleanliness of BNbRE steel, addition of RE should be decreased properly. Under experimental conditions, the optimum addition of RE is -0.01 % （mass fraction） for clean BNbRE steel, while RE can evidently improve plasticity and impact toughness of BNbRE steel.

SMART/ASTC dynamic soft reduction technology and its application on the bloom continuous caster at Pangang

The SMART/ASTC dynamic soft reduction technology of VAI and its application on the 6-strand bloom continuous caster at Pangang, China are presented. The operation results show that soft reduction technology is effective to improve the inner quality of continuously cast blooms. At Pangang, both the central porosity and the central segregation ratings are no more than 1.0, the central shrinkage cavity rating is no more than 0.5, and the central segregation index of carbon is no more than 1.05. Rails made from the blooms have excellent quality and are used for high-speed tracks.