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Pabitra Palai
Flat Product Technology Group (FPTG)
Tata Steel Ltd. Jamshedpur
Power Point Presentation : Employee Training Centre, Dt: 25/05/2011 (11.00 AM-1230 PM
Copyright 2011 Tata Steel Ltd., India. All rights reserved.
Outlines
Continuous casting and Definitions
Casting Defects : An overview
Solidification of Steel; Numerical Equations
Role of Constituents on casting characteristics
Defects in Products
Surface and Sub Surface Defects
Segregation
Cracks
Key Definitions
Continuous Casting ; is the process whereby liq. metal is solidified into a "semifinished" billet, bloom, or slab for subsequent rolling in the finishing mills. [Sir
Henry Bessmer-1958]
Casting Defect ; Any unwanted deviation from the customers requirements in
a cast slab during continuous casting results in a defect. Some defects in the
cast products are tolerable while others can be rectified by additional
processes like scarfing etc. The following are the 2 major defects which are
likely to occur in continuous castings:
1. Defects during Process
2. Defect in products/ Metallurgical defects
Slab Casting; The Huge slab casters solidify sections up to 250 mm thick and
2,600 mm wide at production rates of up to three million tons per year.
Sliver; The elongated line type surface defects, termed FeO sliver and found
on rolled coil/sheet. Sliver causes both cosmetic surface imperfection and
forming problem .
Slide 3
Sticker
Thin Shell
Crack
Air entrainment
MLF
Hook Formation
Classification
Process Defects
Defects in Slab
Slab Defects
Internal Defects
Surface defect
Shape Defect
Oscillation Mark
Segregations
Long Bow
Internal Cracks
Camber
Taper
Out of shape
Rhomboidity
NMI
CLS
Trapezoid
Concavity
Bulging
Depressions
Fin
Slide 4
Longitudinal Crack
Blow, Pin hole
Slag spot
Transverse Crack
Bleed
Lap
CASTING DEFECTS
Shell Growth
Steel shell growth can be predicted using Ficks law
Slab Length (L) = V x (D/K)2
Where L, slab length in m,
V is the casting speed, m/min
D is shell thickness, m
K is solidification constant depends on steel grade and M/c design
Fig.: The shell thickness vs length from meniscus for Al7wt % Si at different conditions of casting speed, (Q= 4
m3/hr, d = 5 cm) [Y. Rihan etal, OJMSW10-0025].
Slide 8
Sticker
Thin Shell
Crack
Air entrainment
MLF
Hook Formation
Fig-1
Fig.: Ripple mark s on slab surface due to sticker B/O, Steel making conference proceedings, 1993
Inadequate/Insufficient Lubrication
Slag rim Formation
Mold level fluctuation
Biased Flow
Metal Chemistry
Slag Basicity & Fluidity
Fig.: Sticker formation stages, Steel making conference proceedings, 1993
Impact of Sticker
Loss of Productivity
Drastic speed reduction to 0.15m/min
Associated damage to machinery due abrupt speed change
In case of break out
Poor quality Casting
Down grading of slab due to speed change
Ripple mark appearance in S/C requires rework
Metallurgical changes in casting
Cost : (531 Lakhs/Annum)
To reduce the rejection (Last 6 months) from 1.02 % to 0.20 %
Cost incurred on a/c of DG, BO, B/D time
Failure to supply compliance to customers etc.
Precaution to avoid sticker B/O
Casting speed reduced to 0.15 m/min) to heel the slab surface then gradually
revert back to original speed
shell doesnt solidify to the required thickness. When shell thinning is limited to a
small area of the strand, it is referred to as Local Thin Shell.
Possible reasons :
1.
2.
3.
*
Liquid shrinkage,
Liquid-to-solid shrinkage or Solidification Shrinkage
Solid shrinkage-Thermal contraction
Shrinkage is decided by composition and Liquidus temperature of steel.
Fig. : Solidification shrinkage curves in the round billets along the height of mould
Slide 19
Mould Taper
Mould taper
12CrMoV, X42)
Mould taper in
(B72LX, ER70S6)
SC 104 grade (Ultra Low Carbon ) reported without any LTS in 23 heats cast with 1.2% taper.
In SA413, % of LTS increased with 1.2% taper.
Temperatures in bottom region of the mould are higher for IF steel grades
because of high liquidus temp. around 1537C which is around 10C higher
than peritectic grades. Temperatures of bottom layer T.C.s are around 132C
at higher speeds.
Temperatures of some T.Cs increased more than others because they are
located at the place where hot metal from SEN impinges on the shell.
Fig.: Liquidus Temp Difference in IF & Peritectic grade 15 oC approx.
Thermal Cracks
Look line white lines and in extreme cases looks like sliver . Under SEM it looks as
bas-relief, Presence S on EDAX.
In SA413, % of LTS increased with 1.2% taper.
Fig.: Steel chemistry and surface crack in slab [C.Genzano etal. ISS conference2002]
Slide 22
Fig. Temperature variation across the Cu mold during continuous casting of Steel
Slide 23
Air Entrainment
1. Inclusions, bubbles, slag and other particles during solidification of steel products is a
critical quality concern leading to rework or rejection of slab
2. Open-stream pouring produces the worst air entrainment problems
3. Leaks, cracks, inadequate sealing between the nozzle joints /porous nozzle material
4. The internal pressure in the nozzle below atmospheric pressure tends to aspirate outside
air and can be identified by nitrogen pickup and dendritic inclusions from reaction in a
high-oxygen environment
Fig.: Events during a severe level drop (20 mm for 0.6 second)
that lead to a transverse surface depression.BG Thomas96
Slide 25
Hook Formation
Hook forms when meniscus freezes and overflow
Associated with oscillation mark and plagues ultra low
C steel grades
Subsurface hook formation leads to slab surface
defect due to entrapment of mold flux and inclusion
laden gas bubbles up to 3 mm from slab s/c.
Hook is of 3 types and shape is affected by thermal
distortion and other mechanisms.
Hook formation is greatly affected by steel grade,
super heat, MLF and oscillation conditions
Slide 26
SURFACE DEFECTS
Slide 28
Remedies of Cracks
The usually adopted strategy is reduction of the stresses by keeping the thickness
of the shell to a minimum. This is achieved by reducing the horizontal heat transfer.
Reduction in heat transfer is achieved by:
Proper Mould Powder selection: -increase thickness of the solid layer of slagcrystallinity of the solid slag layer. Crystalline powder reduces conductivity of
heat-high basicity of powder increases crystallinity and increases softening
point.
Mould Oscillation:-Increase of oscillation frequency of mould results in better
larger infiltrated slag thickness, thus less cracks.
Proper Mould Design: -Multi taper mould to accommodate solidification
shrinkage thus reducing air gaps-Grooved mould surface: results in reduction of
heat transfer at meniscus.-high basicity of powder increases crystallinity and
increases softening point.
Proper SEN Design:-to reduce mold level fluctuations
Slide 30
Effect of LFC
LFC visible on slab surface appears as
Light single line and sometimes multiple line type sliver on product
Needs inspection of slabs and repairing, sometime may lead to downgrading
Effect of LFC
Repair of LFC and Sliver Analysis
Transverse Crack
Mechanism
Generated by longitudinal tensile strains at the surface in the mould due to
high friction or in the sub mould during straitening or bending.
Cause
Stress generation in the depressed portion of oscillation mark. Often
found along deep oscillation mark.
Uneven variation of heat flux in the longitudinal direction due to
improper mould powder
Excessive mold taper.
Mold level fluctuation
Steel composition
Remedy
Proper choice of flux and higher flux consumption.
Proper mold taper.
Control of mold level fluctuation
Proper uniform cooling to avoid the low ductility temperature range.
Slide 33
Star Crack
Star cracks appear in star pattern on the slab surface. It can be single or in
cluster (spider web type). These are visible only after light scarfing i.e., after
removal of 2-3mm of surface.
Mechanism
Preferential concentration of elements such as Cu on the surface of the
strand due to pick up from the mould.
Embrittlement of the austenite grain boundary due to liquid copper in
conjunction with tensile stresses.
Cause
High Cu levels (>0.15%)
Remedies
Coating of mould walls
Adjust mould alignment
Slide 35
Slide 36
Internal Cracks
Segregation
Steel Composition
Improper Cooling
Super heat
Internal Cracks
Triple -Point Cracks
Causes
Bulging of Wide Portion of the slabs
Decreasing Mn< 0.9%
Decreasing Mn/S < 30
Remedies
Re-gap rolls
Centre-Line Cracks
Causes
Bulging of Wide Face
Spray Water Intensity
Low roll alignment in the strand
Remedies
Re-gap Rolls
Reduce Casting Speed
Increase Spray Cooling
Slide 38
Internal Cracks
Diagonal Cracks
Causes
Asymmetric cooling in mould and sprays
High Superheat
Predominant in billets
Remedies
Install Corner rolls at the bottom of the mould
Check alignment between mould and roller apron
Look for plugged nozzles
Slide 39
SHAPE DEFECTS
Bulging
Definition
It is the distortion of the slab giving rise to concave surface/surfaces. This
occurs usually due to inadequate support of the skin against the effects of
Ferro static pressure.
Causes
High casting speed
High casting superheat and high mold temperature
Improper mold taper leading to poor cooling
Inadequate roll pressure
High teeming rate and biased flow
Inadequate mold design
Distortion or wear of mold
Fast or uneven cooling in the mold as well as secondary cooling
Bending or straightening of slab at too high or too low temperature
Taper
Definition
A convex shape that narrows toward another end of the slab. It is generally
observed in slab due to online width change and some times due to improper
mold design or cooling pattern. Optimum taper in mold is provided in order to
compensate the ingot shrinkage.
Causes
Online width changes made by the continuous caster
Remedies
Selection of optimum width change technology
Proper width measurement
'W1-W2 15mm
Rhomboidity
Definition
Rhomboidity is a shape defect mainly appears in slabs and billets when one diagonal of
the rectangular section is longer than other one. This is formed due to asymmetrical
cooling of the strand. Reduction in shell thickness at meniscus level may reduce
rhomboidity due to equal stress development at all 4 sides, It can be reduced, by
reduction in intermittent heating at any face inside the mold . Flushing can improve the
even cooling all the 4 sides
Cause
Mold deformation
Different water gap between Cu tube and water jacket for opposite or adjacent faces
Mold water quality
Too high casting temperature
Susceptibility to a rhomboidal shape is enhanced in the case of high carbon content,
peritectic grades and high level of tramp elements ( S,P,Cu,Sn)
Bad centering of casting stream in the mold
Inadequate mold taper
Misalignment in mold / foot rolls area
Remedies of Rhomboidity
The reason behind the above point a) and b) are to reduce the shell thickness at
meniscus level so, the stress developed at all 4 sides become even, which is the
main reason for rhomboidity, can be reduced. Also , by doing this we can reduce
the intermittent heating at any face inside the mold . Flushing can improve the
even cooling all the 4 sides.
Long Bow
Long Bow
LB 0.01L
LB
Definition
The long bow is a one piece design and occurs when the split roll bearing are
offset from roll to roll they are inline down the whole of the casting bow. The
reduced heat extraction at the bearing position resulted the heat variation in
stripped pattern.
Causes
Uneven temperature distribution across the slab width
Slab surface temperature variation 100 oC approx. which is visible as stripes on the
strand surface.
Peaks in temp coincided with the split roll bearing positions
Reduced water density in the non optimal spray overlap area
Remedies
Ray Boyle2004
Monitoring the Slab surface temp variation on the casting bow before entry into
straightener
Ideal nozzle positions and spray heights
Adequate heat removal from roll bearing area and intensify the strand surface
temp. deviation.
Support at Centre , Both ends and Three points of the slab
Out of shape
S 0.01W
Definition
Kokubo et al
When the axes of both edging rolls are perpendicular to the advancing direction of
the slab, the slab tends to ascend on one side becoming tilted. slab geometry
resulted is called as out of shape or out of square cross section which is shown in fig.
1. Also shown a typical out of shape defect in Fig.-2.
Causes
The main cause of an out-of-square slab cross-section is the ascension of one side
of the slab. slab Distortion takes place either due to temperature gradients,
loading or a combination thereof.
cause the slab to curl. Since slab weight and contact with the base restrict its
movement, stresses are created.
Load stress. Loads on a slab will create both compressive and tensile stresses
within the slab.
Shrinkage and expansion. In addition to curling, environmental temperatures
will cause PCC slabs to expand (when hot) and contract (when cool), which
causes change of slab shape
Remedies
This is generally prevented by using either grooved rolls or tapered rolls with a
bottom collar.
To prevent this ascension, the edging roll at this side is tilted at the angle q
toward the same direction as the advancing direction of the slab. For a
reversing pass, the edging roll is tilted at the angel q0. This action creates a
component of the roll tangential force that pushes the slab down against the
table rolls.
Trapezoid Shape
Definition
TRAPEZOID
'2ED 20mm
ED
Trapezoid shape defect mainly appears in slabs when width at one surface is larger
than other one. This is takes place due to slab withdrawal through curved path by
curvature and straightening of slab with the liquid core. This results difference in
guiding the curved and subsequent straightened slab between the two wide side of
the same slab. As a result the end surface of the slab were inclined relative to each
other rather being parallel which is called as the trapezoid shape. This is also formed
due to asymmetrical cooling of the strand.
Causes
Remedies
Fins
Causes
Gap between the copper plate in mold
High casting superheat
Loosened/untight bolt during mold assembly
Prolong use of mold
Inadequate mold vibration
Remedies
Flame cutting.
Roll edging.
Pressing
Concavity
It is the distortion of the slab which appears as a concave surface. This
defect is usually attributed due to improper spray cooling pattern.
Causes
Depressions
Definition
Longitudinal depression
Uneven lubrication
Very rapid cooling
Low casting superheat
Mold level fluctuation
Remedy
Transverse depression
Thank You
DISCUSSIONS
Slide 55