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Mathematical Modeling of Heat Transfer for Steel Continuous Casting Process

Article · January 2006

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International Journal of ISSI, Vol.3 (2006), No. 2 , pp. 7-16

Mathematical Modeling of Heat Transfer

for Steel Continuous Casting Process

M. Alizadeh1*, H. Edris2 and A. Shafyei3

1, 2, 3- Department of Materials Engineering, Isfahan University of Technology, Isfahan,8415683111, Iran

Abstract
Heat transfer mechanisms and the solidification process are simulated for a continuous casting machine and the
geometric shape of the liquid pool is predicted considering different conditions. A heat transfer and solidification
model is described for the continuous casting of steel slabs. The model has been established on the basis of the
technical conditions of the slab caster in the continuous casting unit of Mobarakeh Steel Company. This model
involves a two-dimensional (2-D) transient energy equation. The governing equation was solved using the finite-
volume procedure. The boundary conditions of the mold, water spray cooling, and air cooling regions have been
defined. The mathematical model is able to predict the shell thickness, temperature distribution in the mold and
shell, and the interfacial gap between shell and mold. The modeling results were verified by the measured slab
surface temperatures and a reasonable agreement was achieved.

Keywords: Heat transfer, Solidification, Continuous casting, Mathematical modeling.

Introduction In the copper mold heat is transported to the

cooling water. Below the mold, in the so-called
A continuous casting process setup is shown in secondary cooling zone, cooling is performed by
Figure 1. Different regions of cooling in the water sprays, by contact with water cooled support
continuous casting machine are shown in this figure. rolls, and in the lower part of the machine, by
Since heat transfer plays an important role in radiation.
continuous casting, it is desirable to have a The mold must be able to extract sufficient heat
quantitative understanding of the heat flow processes from the incoming molten steel to solidify a shell
which will permit the prediction of the shell profile which can support the liquid pool at the mold’s exit,
and temperature distribution as a function of the and thereby minimize breakouts. It is also important
casting variables. for the mold to be able to remove the heat uniformly
to avoid the formation of thin regions in the shell
which could rupture and lead to breakouts or surface
cracks. Therefore, the mold provides support for the
newly solidified steel shell at a time when the shell is
weak and sensitive to bulging due to ferrostatic
pressure 1).
Heat transfer in the mold region is controlled by:
the convection of liquid superheat to the shell
surface, latent heat evolution in the mushy zone, heat
conduction through the solid shell, the thickness and
other properties of the interface between the shell and
the mold, heat conduction through the copper mold,
and heat convection to the mold-cooling water 2).
The mechanism of heat transfer from the surface
of the strand to the cooling water is complex. It
involves resistances in the layer of flux or
resolidified mold powder, in the air gap, the mold
wall, and in the mold/cooling water interface.
Fig. 1. Schematic of continuous casting process.
1. Ph.D. Sstudent, Department of Materials Engineering,
∗ Isfahan University of Technology
Corresponding author:
Tel: +98- 311- 3912750-1 Fax: +98- 311- 3912752 2. Associate Professor, Department of Materials
E-mail: [email protected] Engineering, Isfahan University of Technology
Address: Dept. of Materials Engineering, Isfahan 3. Assistant Professor, Department of Materials
University of Technology, Isfahan, 8415683111, Iran Engineering, Isfahan University of Technology
 International Journal of ISSI, Vol.3 (2006), No. 2

Table 1: Comparison of thermal conductivities of materials present in the continuous casting mold [3].
Temperature Thermal conductivity
Materials
(oC) (W m-1 K-1)
Steel St 37 1200 29
Copper 30-130 385
Casting flux 1000-1300 0.5 to 1.2
Water 25 0.62
Radiation conductivity of gas gap 1000 0.043

Fig. 2. Different regions and simulation domain in continuous casting process.

The thermal conductivities of different layers are In this study, the mathematical model has been
compared in Table 1. As shown in this table, the air established on the basis of the technical conditions of
gap has the largest resistance to heat flow, while the the slab caster in the continuous casting unit of
other parts have a comparatively small resistance. Mobarakeh Steel Company. In this model, steel heat
Therefore, the pattern of heat removal in the mold is capacity and steel thermal conductivity were
dependent largely upon the dynamics of gap considered as functions of steel temperature and
formation. The air gap or contact resistances can be chemical composition. Considering these functions,
generated by the shrinkage of the steel shell away the governing equation is a non-linear equation. In
from the mold walls, especially after the flux is this study the equation is solved in non-linear state.
completely solid and unable to flow into the gaps. This model is also capable of predicting the
More researches were performed to show that the air temperature distribution, including the solidus and
gap was usually created in the lowest one-third of the liquidus isotherm which defines the solid shell and
mold length 3). mushy zone, respectively, as a function of section
In the upper part of the secondary cooling zone, size, pouring temperature, steel composition, casting
the strand is usually sprayed by water emerging from speed, mold length and spray conditions.
nozzles arranged in the spaces between the rolls. The
rate at which heat is extracted from the strand surface Mathematical modeling
by water sprays has been measured by many
researchers. These researchers have shown that under Figure 2 shows the different regions of the
normal continuous casting conditions, in which shell continuous casting machine and the model
surface temperatures range between 700 and 1200 oC, considered for physical simulation of the caster. A
surface temperature has a little effect on the heat typical method of modeling the strand thermal
transfer coefficient. All studies agree that, in the condition is shown in this figure. The mathematical
stated temperature range, the spray water flux has the model is applied to slices of strand that start at the
most effect on the heat transfer coefficient. meniscus and travel through the machine at the
Moreover, the temperature of sprayed water does not casting speed. New slices are generated periodically.
have a large influence on the heat transfer coefficient 4). A sufficient number of slices exist in each cooling
In the lower part of the secondary cooling zone, zone to give an accurate representation of the thermal
heat transfer is preferred mainly by radiation and by condition in each zone. In this model, only a quarter
roll contact. Therefore, it should be considered that of the strand is considered due to the symmetry of the
the oxide scales generated on the surface of the heat flow conditions (Figure 3).
strand could cause a thermal resistance in this zone 5).

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International Journal of ISSI, Vol.3 (2006), No. 2

Fig. 3. A symmetric quarter of strand width section with physical coordinate.

Assumptions ⎧1 when T ≥ Tliq . ⎫

⎪ ⎪
⎪ T − Tsol . ⎪
The following assumptions are made to simplify fl = ⎨ when Tliq . ≥ T ≥ Tsol . ⎬ (6)
the mathematical model 6): ⎪Tliq . − Tsol . ⎪
⎪0 when T ≤ Tsol . ⎪
-Conduction can take place only in the transverse ⎩ ⎭
directions. A typical 2D cartesian control volume is shown
-Forced convective heat flow in the liquid pool is in Figure 4. This C.V contains a central node (P) with
considered by defining an effective liquid thermal four neighborhood points (E, W, N, and S). The
conductivity as: integral form of equation (4) is obtained on the
K eff = 7 ⋅ K l (1) control volume by the finite volume method 9,10):
-The density of steel is constant, but specific heat aP HsP = aE HsE + aW HsW + aN HsN + aS HsS + b (7)
capacity and heat conductivity of steel are functions aP = aW + aE + aS + aN + aPo
α e Δη ξ x ⎛ ⎞ α w Δη ⎛⎜ ξ x ⎞
⎟
of temperature and chemical composition and aE = Δξ ⎜⎜ η ⎟⎟ aW = Δξ ⎜⎝ η y ⎟
therefore not constant. ⎝ y ⎠e ⎠w
α n Δξ ⎛ η y ⎞ α s Δξ ⎛ η y ⎞
aN = ⎜ ⎟⎟ aS = ⎜ ⎟⎟
Model formulation Δη ⎜⎝ ξ x ⎠n Δη ⎜⎝ ξ x ⎠s
aPo = Δξ ⋅ Δη
The energy conservation equation can be written as7):
Δt ⋅ J P
(2)
∂ ⎛ ⎞
(ρH ) + ∂ (ρuH ) + ∂ (ρvH ) + ∂ (ρwH ) = ∂ ⎛⎜ keff ∂T ⎞⎟ + ∂ ⎜⎜ keff ∂T ⎟⎟ + ∂ ⎛⎜ keff ∂T ⎞⎟ b = aPo(HsPo + HlPo - HlP) + Δξ ⋅ Δη q o (8)
∂t ∂x ∂y ∂ ∂x ⎝ ∂x ⎠ ∂y ⎝ ∂y ⎠ ∂z ⎝ ∂z ⎠ ρ JP
To simplify the equation, a transformation as
ζ = z − wt is used. Therefore this is: (3)
∂H s ∂ ⎛ ∂ H s ⎞ ∂ ⎛ ∂ H s ⎞ ∂H l q 0
= ⎜α ⎟+ ⎜α ⎟− + ; H = H (x , y , ζ , t ); H = Hs + Hl
∂t ∂x ⎝ ∂x ⎠ ∂y ⎜⎝ ∂y ⎟⎠ ∂t ρ

In order to solve the governing equation, it is

necessary to transform the physical domain into a
computational domain. In general, this sort of
transformation is used, and leads to a uniformly
spaced grid in the computational domain but the
points in physical domain may be unequally spaced.
The original partial differential equation is
transformed from physical coordinates (x, y) to
computational coordinates (ξ,η) by applying the
chain rule of partial derivatives.
∂ ⎛ Hs ⎞ ∂ ⎛⎜ ∂H s ξ x ⎞⎟ ∂ ⎛ ∂H s η y ⎞ S
⎜ ⎟= α + ⎜⎜ α ⎟⎟ + ; (4)
∂t ⎝ J ⎠ ∂ξ ⎜⎝ ∂ξ η y ⎟⎠ ∂η ⎝ ∂η ξ x ⎠ J
∂Hl J = ξ η
S =− ; x y
∂t
Fig. 4. A typical control volume and the notation
In the above equations "S" is a term for heat used for a Cartesian 2D grid [9].
source due to the metal phase transformation (liquid
to solid). In order to establish the region of phase
change, the latent heat contribution is specified as a To approximate the variable values on the
function of temperature i.e. 8): surface of the control volume, the Quadratic Upwind
H l = fl ⋅ L f (5) Interpolation (QUICK) algorithm is used 9). In the
Where Lf is the latent heat of the phase change QUICK scheme, the variable profile between two
and the liquid fraction (fl) is computed by: points approximated by a parabola instead of a

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 International Journal of ISSI, Vol.3 (2006), No. 2

straight line (Figure 5), on a uniform Cartesian grid Therefore, as seen in equation (10), finding the
leads to 9): heat transfer coefficient for different regions such as:
6 3 1 mold, water spray, and air cooling is necessary.
φ e = φ P + φ E − φW (9)
8 8 8

Fig. 5. Approximation of gradients at cell faces [9].

Fig. 6. Secondary cooling of the slab caster.

Boundary conditions
In the mold, several thermal resistance layers
To solve the above equation, the boundary exist between the steel shell surface and the
conditions are needed for different regions include recirculation water. All the thermal resistances in the
the mold, water spray cooling, and air cooling. mold are shown in Figure 7. The effective thermal
Figure 6 shows some machine cooling layouts while resistance of the water channel is estimated from the
the technical information belonging to each zone is water channel heat transfer coefficient, thermal
shown in Table 2. A general form of the boundary conductivity and the thickness of scale deposits on
condition can be expressed through an equation (10), the surface of the cooling-water channel 11):
in which the heat transfer coefficient, h, is estimated ⎛d 1⎞
for different cooling zones. rwater = ⎜⎜ scale + ⎟⎟ (12)
∂T ⎝ kscale hw ⎠
−k | b = h (Tb − Twater ) (10)
∂n
To determine the temperature of the boundaries,
the discretion of the ∂T | on boundary points is
∂n
b

required. According to the QUICK scheme ∂T |b

∂n
could be calculated by the following correlation [10]:
Fig. 7. Thermal resistances existing between the
∂T 8Tb − 9TP + TW
b= (11) shell surface and water channel in the mold.
∂n 3Δn

Table 2. Secondary cooling zones variables.

No. Length zone Number of spray Water flow rate Number roll
Segment Roll radius (m)
Zone (m) nozzles (m3/sec) in zone
1 0.439 - -
2 0.220 - -
3 0.303 - 30 0.003975 - -
4 0.925 0 38 0.004967 5 0.140
5 1.470 0 38 0.004842 6 0.200
6 1.475 1 10 0.004858 5 0.250
7 1.725 2 10 0.003975 5 0.300
8 1.725 3 10 0.003733 5 0.300
9 3.950 4,5 20 0.005667 10 0.350
10 5.200 Roll 37-47 22 0.006483 11 0.380,0.440
11 9.400 Roll 48-63 - Air cooling 16 0.440

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International Journal of ISSI, Vol.3 (2006), No. 2

The heat transfer coefficient between the water important role in the heat transfer control. Therefore,
and the side walls of the water channel (hw) is the effective heat transfer coefficient should be
calculated assuming a turbulent flow through an considered as 12):
equivalent-diameter pipe (D) using the empirical heff =
1
correlation of Sleicher and Reusse 11): δ sc 1 (19)
+
hw = water (5 + 0.015 Re c1 Pr c2 )
k k sc hspray
(13)
D It has already been mentioned that the cooling of
c1 = 0.88 − 0.24 (4 + Pr ); c 2 = 0.333 + 0.5e −0.6 Pr the strand in the lower part of the secondary cooling
Other thermal resistances shown in Fig 7 can be zone is mainly done by radiation 12). Therefore, the
calculated by the following correlations [11]: equation for the heat transfer coefficient is given as
follows:
hrad = εσ (Ts2 + Tam . )(Ts + Tam. )
d mold d slag d air
rmold = ; rslag = ; rair = ; (14) 2
(20)
k mold k slag k air
Besides the radiation, heat transfer is also
Which dslag can be found from the powder achieved by natural convections, but this part is
consumption per mass of product rather small and can be neglected in comparison to
(Mslag (kg/ton)): radiation cooling.
M slag × ρ steel W×N
d slag = × (15) The symmetrical boundary condition has been
ρ slag 2(W + N )
considered for midplanes as follows:
Also, dair includes a gap due to shrinkage of the ∂T
steel shell, which can be calculated by the thermal x = 0., −k =0
∂x
linear expansion relation of steel using following ∂T
(21)
correlation for each control volume: y = 0., −k =0
∂y
Δl = λ ⋅ l ⋅ ΔT (16)
Where, λ is linear thermal expansion coefficient Computation and verification
of steel and l is length of each control volume.
Moreover, the heat transfer coefficient due to The algebraic equation of the boundary
radiation is calculated by:
hrad = εσ (T12 + T22 )(T1 + T2 )
conditions has been solved with a Tridiagonal Matrix
(17) Algorithm (TDMA) solver 13). As seen in equations
Heat transfer mechanisms in the spray cooling (7) and (8), to solve the algebraic equation, it is
zones below the mold are defined in Figure 8. The necessary to know the latent enthalpy in a new time
heat extraction due to the water sprays is a function step (Hl). To update the amount of the latent enthalpy
of the water flux. The relationship between the rate an iterative solution is used for each time step:
of heat extraction by the water sprays and the spray H lPk +1 = H lPk + H sP
k k +1
− H sP (22)
variables has been established in a number of
experimental studies. One of the most widely used As seen in the above equation, by using the
relations has been presented by Nozaki's 12): sensitive enthalpy that has been obtained by solving
the energy equation (HsPk+1), latent enthalpy could be
hspray = 0.3925 × Qwater
0.55
× (1 − 0.0075 × Twater ); (18) updated in the k+1th inner iteration in each time step
to achieve a certain convergence. The calculation
mentioned has been programmed in the FORTRAN
language. The mathematic simulation starts by
setting the initial steel temperature at the pouring
temperature. Input parameters, in Table 3, in the
standard cases are verified by the measured
temperatures on the shell surface of the strand.
Equilibrium lever-rule calculations are
performed on a Fe-C phase diagram in order to
calculate steel phase fractions. By this means, phase
field lines are specified as simple linear functions of
carbon equivalent content. The carbon of the steel is
applied as the carbon equivalent content that is
calculated by the following correlation 14):
wt%CE=wt%C+0.04(wt%Mn)-0.14(wt%Si)-
Fig. 8. Heat transfer mechanisms in the secondary 0.04(wt%Cr)-0.1(wt%Mo)-
cooling zones [12]. 0.24(wt%Ti)+0.1(wt%Cu)
For a 0.16%C, 1.3%Mn, 0.5%Si, 0.05%Cr,
Due to the high temperature of the strand surface 0.03%Mo and 0.01%Ti plain carbon steel, the carbon
and the exposure of water to the surface, an oxide equivalent percentage calculated as 0.135 and also
scale is produced on the surface of the strand. the equilibrium phase diagram model calculates
Despite the low thickness, the scale can have an Tliq.=1528 oC, Tsol= 1494 oC. The solid fraction-

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 International Journal of ISSI, Vol.3 (2006), No. 2

temperature curve in the mushy zone obtained from independent of the mesh size with the reduction of
the model is shown in Figure 9. As seen in this figure grid spacing lower than a certain limit.
the relation between temperature and solid fraction of The mold zone is a complex and important area
steel in the mushy zone is non-linear. in continuous casting machine. The solid shell
Solidified shell thickness is one of the most growth in this zone is complicated and the results of
important calculated parameters in the model, and the this study are compared to those of some other
influence of the grid spacing on this parameter researchers. The comparison between the results of
should be considered. The influence of the grid the model in this study and experimental
spacing on the solidified shell thickness, in exit point measurement by some other researchers is shown in
of the mold, is shown in Table 4. The thickness Figure 10. The figure shows the variation of growth
amounts in width and narrow sides are presented in of the solid shell thickness on the ingot for low
this table. It is clear from Table 4 that when grid carbon steel (0.06% C). It is clear that the results
spacing is reduced, solidified thicknesses are changed from numerical solution in this study have a very
and they are stable in a narrow limit with reduction good compatibility with those of three 3-D model of
of grid spacing lower than a certain limit. It Thomas and experimental measurement of Alberny
can be concluded that the solidified shell thickness is and co-worker.

Table 3. Input data for standard conditions.

Carbon equivalent content, CE pct 0.132 pct
Steel density, ρ 7500 kg/m3
Steel emissivity, ε 0.8
Mold copper plates thickness 0.043×0.030 m×m
Total mold length 0.704 m
Mold copper plates width 2.220×0.215 m×m
Scale thickness on the surface of mold cold face 0.00001 m
Mold conductivity, kmold 315 W/mK
Mold powder conductivity, kslag 1.27 W/mK
Air conductivity, kair 0.083 W/mK
Mold powder density, ρslag 0.650 kg/m3
Mold powder consumption rate, Mslag 0.8 kg/ton steel
Casting speed, Vc 0.0167 m/sec
o
Pour temperature, Tin 1546 C
o
Liquidus temperature, Tliq. 1528.6 C
o
Solidus temperature, Tsol. 1494 C
Working mold length 0.659 m
Slab geometry, W×N 1.250×0.203 m×m
Scale conductivity on the surface of slab, ksc 0.5 W/mK
Scale conductivity on the surface of mold, kscale 1.0 W/mK
Water channel geometry, large & small plates 25×5×29 & 22×5×26 mm3
o
Average cooling water temperature in the mold 28 C
Water flow rate entering the mold small plate, 0.0061 m3/sec
Water flow rate entering the mold large plate, 0.0553 m3/sec
Latent heat of the steel phase change, Lf 272140 J/kg
Water conductivity, kwater 0.615 W/mK
⎧C p ( )
= 456 + 0.376 * T oC T p 500 ⎫
⎪ ⎪
⎪C p = 268 + 0.836 * T ( C )
o
500 p T p 700 ⎪
⎪ ⎪
⎪C p = 1431 700 p T p 750 ⎪
⎪C
⎪ p ( )
= 3849 − 3.766 * T oC 750 p T p 850 ⎪⎪
⎨ ⎬
Steel specific heat capacity [11], Cp ⎪C p = 648 850 ≤ T p 1100⎪ J/kgK
⎪
⎪C p ( )
= 268 + 0.334 * T oC 1100 ≤ T p Tsol ⎪
⎪
⎪C = 772 Tsol ≤ T p Tliq ⎪
⎪ p ⎪
⎩⎪C p = 787 T ≥ Tliq ⎭⎪
Steel conductivity, ksteel fl*kliq+(1-fl)*ksol W/mK
Solid steel conductivity, ksol 33.0 W/mK
Effective molten steel conductivity, kliq 7*43.0 W/mK
Scale thickness on the surface of slab, δsc 0.001 m

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International Journal of ISSI, Vol.3 (2006), No. 2

Table 4. Effect of mesh size on the shell thickness at mold exit.

Grid system # Shell thickness at Shell thickness at
nx×ny middle of wide face (m) middle of narrow face (m)
25×10 0.0145 0.0111
25×15 0.0135 0.0110
50×15 0.0136 0.0118
50×20 0.0133 0.0119
100×20 0.0136 0.0117
100×30 0.0131 0.0117

Fig. 9. Phase fraction variation with temperature Fig. 10. Comparison between model results and
in mushy zone. other references.

Results and discussion on leaving the mold. A similar situation also exists in
water spray cooling and air cooling regions on the
The calculated surface temperatures of a slab, for surface of the wide face slab.
the Table 3 conditions as a function of the distance
below the meniscus, are presented in Figure 11. This
figure shows the calculated surface temperatures at
the centers of the wide and narrow faces and at the
corners of the slab caster. The central areas of the
wide faces are cooled one-dimensionally, whereas
the slab corners are subject to 2-D cooling. The slab
corners can therefore become significantly colder
than other parts of the inner wide face. At the
beginning of straightening, the slab corner
temperature is 230 oC less than the temperature at the
center of the wide face. Control of corner cooling is
critical for much of continuously cast products. The
slab corners tend to have meniscus marks, which act
as stress risers. A combination of temperature, stress
risers and a low ductility region in the 700-900 oC Fig. 11. Predicted surface temperature of strand.
temperature range during the straightening process
often leads to cracks in the corners. One way to Figure 12 shows the solidified shell thickness
increase the corner temperature is to widen the strip profiles of both the narrow and wide faces of the
of unsprayed strand at the corner. However, as the slab. This figure shows a sudden change of slope at
non-sprayed strip is widened, a hot spot will develop the beginning of the solidified shell growth curve. It
between the colder corner and the sprayed area. is indicated that the rate of solidified shell growth is
Thus, the design must be in a way to ensure that it clearly high in the mold region. Figure 13 shows a set
does not cause other quality problems. Also, as seen of data of the local heat flux density along the length
in Figure 11, the intensity of heat transfer of mist of the mold [15]. There is a maximum of heat flux
spray cooling is less than cooling in the lower part of density somewhat below the meniscus. Downward,
the mold for all of the curves, because of this, the the heat flux density usually decreases. If the air gap
model predicts a 200 oC reheating of the slab surface

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 International Journal of ISSI, Vol.3 (2006), No. 2

between the mold and strand approximately has wide face and narrow face of the strand are shown in
uniform thickness, or it increases uniformly in the Figure 15. Since, a lower casting speed provides
downward direction, the heat flux density along the more time for the heat to be extracted from the shell,
length of the mold continuously decreases. the shell thickness increases. Moreover, the shell
thickness in the initial solidification stage decreases
at the high casting speed, as shown in Figure 15,
which often easily causes the breakout of strand.
Therefore, to prevent this unfavorable defect, the
casting speed is limited. It should be mentioned that
steel composition and slab width in comparison to
casting speed has no significant effect on the shell
thickness. As seen in this figure, solidified shell
thickness for wide face is higher than it is for narrow
face. This is because of the different air gap sizes
between mold powder and mold wall in both wide
and narrow faces. The air gap size along the length of
the mold is predicted by the model for both faces in
Fig. 12. Predicted solidified shell thickness. Figure 16. As seen in this figure, total shrinkage
value in narrow face is more than wide face as
expected because width size of slab is much larger
than thickness size in cross section of strand.
Furthermore, this phenomenon could change
interfacial gap temperature for different layers.
35
Shell thickness at mold exit (mm)

30

25 wide face
Narrow face
20

15

Fig. 13. Heat flux density distribution along the 10

length of the mold.
5

0
0.2 0.7 1.2 1.7
Casting speed (m/min)

Fig. 15. Effect of casting speed on shell thickness.

Fig. 14. Effect of casting speed on the pool depth.

The casting speed is the most effective

parameter in changing the position of the solidified
shell thickness profiles. The relation of the
"metallurgical length" (maximum length of the liquid
pool) with the casting speed is shown in Figure 14.
Increase in casting speed decreases the holding time Fig. 16. air gap size along the mold.
of the slab in the secondary cooling zones and
increases the length of the liquid core. Therefore, Heat transfer in the mold is governed by these
casting speed is the most important factor in three resistances: the casting-mold interface, the
controlling mold heat extraction. The solidified shell mold wall, and the mold-cooling water interface.
thickness as a function of the casting speed of both Although, thermal resistance due to the air gap

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International Journal of ISSI, Vol.3 (2006), No. 2

should also be considered while the amount of air The effect of the amount of superheat
gap thermal resistance is usually quite large temperature of the molten steel, entering the mold, on
compared to the other resistances especially for the the solidified shell thickness is shown in Figure 18.
lower portion of the mold. Temperatures of three At first, with increasing the superheat temperature,
points: slag layer/mold wall interface (T1), mold wall the superheat flux will increase and therefore, the
(T2), and water channel wall (T3) as shown in Figure solidification rate decreases. This, in turn, reduces
7 are predicted by the model. Since, the heat flux for the thickness of the steel shell. On the other hand, by
steady state conditions will be constant and increasing the superheat temperature, the driving
independent of distance: (23) force for the heat transfer will increase. Therefore, as
Ts − Twater Ts − T1 Ts − T2 Ts − T3 seen in Figure 18, the influence of the superheat
q′ = = = =
rtotal rslag ⎛ r ⋅r ⎞ ⎛ rair ⋅ rrad ⎞ temperature is insignificant to shell growth,
rslag + ⎜⎜ air rad ⎟
⎟ rslag + ⎜⎜ ⎟ + rmold
⎟
⎝ rair + rrad ⎠ ⎝ rair + rrad ⎠ especially in the wide face of the strand. Low
The above relation represents three equations for superheat, near liquidus temperature, is beneficial to
the three unknowns, T1, T2, and T3. The results of the continuous casting. Internal quality is improved as
model predictions are shown in Figure 17(a) and the equated zone is made significantly larger.
Figure 17(b). As seen in these figures, the existence Therefore, a more desirable structure with greater
of the air gap between the shell surface and mold resistance to halfway cracks is produced. Centerline
wall causes the T1 to increase both in wide and segregation and porosity are also reduced or
narrow faces of strand. Since the air gap thickness in eliminated.
the narrow face is larger than the wide face, T1 in the
narrow face is much higher than in the wide face.
Therefore, the pattern of heat removal in the mold is
dependent largely upon the dynamics of gap
formation. It causes temperature difference to exist in
solidified shell and has a strong influence on
transverse cracks generation in the mold region.

Fig. 18. Effect of steel superheat temperature on the

shell thickness at mold exit.

Conclusions

1- A finite volume heat transfer and solidification

model has been formulated to predict the temperature
field and liquid pool position in the continuous
casting process under different conditions. This has
been verified with the temperature measurement of
slab surface.
2- Casting speed is the most effective parameter on
mold heat removal. Therefore, it is the most
important factor in controlling solidified shell
thickness and slab temperature.
3- Since, the air gap size in narrow face of mold is
higher than the wide face, the breakout of strand
often occurs in the narrow face.
4- Air gap existing in the casting-mold interface
causes a large thermal resistance for heat transfer
Fig. 17. Predicted temperatures for T1, T2 and T3 from the solidified shell to the mold. Therefore, it has
points in Fig 7 -(a) wide face and (b) narrow face a strong influence on product quality and casting
(T1=slag layer/mold wall interface temperature, problems, especially for the narrow face of strand.
T2=mold wall temperature, and T3=water channel 5- High superheat temperature may cause breakouts
wall temperature). at the mold exit, especially for the narrow face, so it
should be exactly kept at a low level.

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 International Journal of ISSI, Vol.3 (2006), No. 2

List of symbols

dair: Air gap thickness (m) ρ: Steel density (kg/m3)

dmold: Copper mold thickness (m) σ: Stefan Boltzman constant =5.67×10-8
dslag: Slag layer thickness (m) (W/m2.K4)
fs: Solid steel fraction
hrad: Heat transfer coefficient due to radiation References
(W/m2K)
hspray: Heat transfer coefficient due to water spray [1] C. A. Santos, J. A. Spim, and A. Garcia, Eng.
(kW/m2oC) Appl. Artif. Intel., 16 (2003), 511.
hw: Heat transfer coefficient due to water [2] J. Cho, H. Shibata, and T. Emi, ISIJ Int., 38
circulation in the mold (W/m2K) (1998), 440.
H: Total enthalpy (j/kg) [3] A. W. Cramb, The Making, Shaping and
Hl: Steel Latent enthalpy (j/kg) Treating of Steel, 11th Edition Casting Volume, The
Hs: Steel sensitive enthalpy (j/kg) AISE Steel Foundation, Pittsburgh Pa.,Chapter 4,
k: Steel thermal conductivity (W/mK) (2003), 3.
kair: Air thermal conductivity(W/mK) [4] B. G. Thomas and L. Zhang, ISIJ Int., 41
kmold: Copper mold thermal conductivity (W/mK) (2001), 1181.
ksc: Oxide scale thermal conductivity created on [5] S. H. Seyedein and M. Hasan, Can. Metall.
the surface of strand(W/mK) Quart., 37 (1998), 213.
kscale: Oxide scale thermal conductivity in the [6] H. Wang, G. Li, and J. Wang, Journal of
water channel (W/mK) University of Science and Technology Beijing, 11
kslag: Mold powder thermal conductivity (W/mK) (2004), 18.
kwater: Water thermal conductivity (W/mK) [7] A. Bejan, Convection Heat Transfer, John Wiley
Lf: Latent heat of steel (j/kg) & Sons, Durham, North Carolina, (1984), 18.
N: Slab thickness (m) [8] X. K. Lan, and J. M. Khodadadi, Int. J. Heat
Qwater: Water flow rate in spray zone (lit/m2sec) Mass Trans., 44 (2001), 953.
rrad: Thermal resistance due to radiation (Ω) [9] J. H. Ferziger and M. Peric, Computational
rair: Thermal resistance due to air gap(Ω) Methods for Fluid Dynamics, Springer, (1997), 74.
rmold: Thermal resistance due to cupper mold (Ω) [10] W. J. Minkowycz, E.M. Sparrow, and G. E.
rslag: Thermal resistance due to slag layer (Ω) Schnrider, Handbook of Numerical Heat Transfer,
rwater: Thermal resistance due to water circulation John Wiley & Sons, Inc., USA, (1988), 117.
channel (Ω) [11] Y. Meng and B.G. Thomas, Metall. Mater.
T: Steel temperature (oK) Trans. B, 34 (2003), 685.
Tb: Steel temperature on the domain boundary's [12] J. K. Brimacombe, I. V. Samarasekera and J.
(oK) E. Lait, Continuous Casting Vol. 2, BookCrafters
Twater: Mean water temperature in the mold Inc., USA, (1993), 140.
channel (oK) [13] D. A. Anderson, J.C. Tannehill and R.H.
W: Slab width (m) Pletcher, Computational Fluid Mechanics and Heat
vc: Casting speed (m/sec) Transfer, Hemisphere, USA, (1984), 98.
α: Steel thermal diffusivity (m2/sec) [14] A. Yamauchi, T. Emi, and S. Seetharaman,
δsc: Oxide scale thickness (m) ISIJ Int., 42 (2002), 1084.
ε: Mean surface emissivities=0.8 [15] R. Alberny, A. Leclerdq, D. Amaury and M.
Lahousse, Rev. Metall., 73 (1976), 545.

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