Abstract
Fluid flow, heat transfer and solidification of steel in the mold are so complex but crucial, determining the surface quality of the continuous casting slab. In the current study, a 2D numerical model was established by Fluent software to simulate the fluid flow, heat transfer and solidification of the steel in the mold. The VOF model and k-ε model were applied to simulate the flow field of the three phases (steel, slag and air), and solidification model was used to simulate the solidification process. The phenomena at the meniscus were also explored through interfacial tension between the liquid steel and slag as well as the mold oscillation. The model included a 20 mm thick mold to clarify the heat transfer and the temperature distribution of the mold. The simulation results show that the liquid steel flows as upper backflow and lower backflow in the mold, and that a small circulation forms at the meniscus. The liquid slag flows away from the corner at the meniscus or infiltrates into the gap between the mold and the shell with the mold oscillating at the negative strip stage or at the positive strip stage. The simulated pitch and the depth of oscillation marks approximate to the theoretical pitch and measured depth on the slab.
Article PDF
Similar content being viewed by others
Avoid common mistakes on your manuscript.
References
Lee P, Ramirezlopez P, Mills K, et al. Review: The “butterfly effect” in continuous casting. Ironmaking & Steelmaking, 2012, (4): 244–253.
Thomas B G. Continuous Casting of Steel. Chapter 15, 2001: 499–540.
Mizoguchi S, Ohashi T, Saeki T. Continuous casting of steel. Annual Review of Materials Science, 1981, 11 (1): 151–169.
Mills K, Ramirezlopez P, Lee P, et al. Looking into continuous casting mould. Ironmaking & Steelmaking, 2014, 41 (4): 242–249.
Mills K, Fox A, Li Z, et al. Performance and properties of mould fluxes. Ironmaking & Steelmaking, 2005, 32 (1): 26–34.
Ramirez Lopez P, Sjöström U, Lee P, et al. A Novel Approach for Coupling Slag Infiltration to Metal Flow, Solidification and Mold Oscillation on a 3D Model for Continuous Casting of Slabs. In: Proc. Iron & Steel Technology Conference and Exposition, Aistech, 2012.
Sengupta J, Thomas B G, Shin H, et al. A new mechanism of hook formation during continuous casting of ultra-low-carbon steel slabs. Metallurgical and Materials Transactions A, 2006, 37 (5): 1597–1611.
Ramirez Lopez P, Mills K, Lee P, et al. A unified mechanism for the formation of oscillation marks. Metallurgical and Materials Transactions B, 2012, 43 (1): 109–122.
Hibbeler L, Thomas B G. Mold slag entrainment mechanisms in continuous casting molds. Iron and Steel Technology, 2013, 10 (10): 121–136.
Harada S, Tanaka S, Misumi H, et al. A formation mechanism of transverse cracks on CC slab surface. ISIJ International, 1990, 30 (4): 310–316.
Jonayat A, Thomas B G. Transient thermo-fluid model of meniscus behavior and slag consumption in steel continuous casting. Metallurgical & Materials Transactions B, 2014, 45 (5): 1842–1864.
Meng Y, Thomas B G. Modeling transient slag-layer phenomena in the shell/mold gap in continuous casting of steel. Metallurgical and Materials Transactions B, 2003, 34 (5): 707–725.
Ramirez Lopez P. Modelling shell and oscillation mark formation during continuous casting via explicit incorporation of slag infiltration. Imperial College London, 2010.
Ojeda C, Thomas B G, Barco J, et al. Model of thermal-fluid flow in the meniscus region during an oscillation cycle. In: Proc. AISTech, 2007, 2: 269–283.
Zhang X, Zhang L, Wang H, et al. Subsurface hooks in continuous casting slabs of low-carbon steel. Chinese Journal of Engineering, 2017, 39 (2): 251–258.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Additional information
*Li-feng Zhang Male, born in 1972, Professor. His research interests mainly focus on numerical simulation in metallurgical process and non-metallic inclusions in steel.
This work was financially supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 51504020, and No. 51404019), Beijing Key Laboratory of Green Recycling and Extraction of Metals (GREM), the Laboratory of Green Process Metallurgy and Modeling (GPM2) and the High Quality Steel Consortium (HQSC) at the School of Metallurgical and Ecological Engineering at University of Science and Technology Beijing (USTB), China
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Zhang, Xb., Chen, W. & Zhang, Lf. A coupled model on fluid flow, heat transfer and solidification in continuous casting mold. China Foundry 14, 416–420 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s41230-017-7171-2
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s41230-017-7171-2