Solidification and thermal performance analysis of the low carbon steel during the continuous casting process

The present paper evaluates the effect of the nozzle characteristics on the heat transfer and phase change of the low carbon steel during the continuous casting process. A three-dimensional energy equation and a solidification model are used to drive the governing equation of the phase change and temperature distribution. A linear relation is obtained to predict the temperature-dependent of the solid volume fraction in the mentioned steel. An effective thermal conductivity is used to simulate the advection effects of the liquid steel. The effective heat capacity is assumed to model the phase change in the mushy zone. The predicted values of the model are compared with the experimental ones. The regression values confirm a good agreement between the modeled and experimental values. The effects of geometry of the slab and the secondary cooling characteristics are examined on the heat transfer and solidification of the steel slab. The slab thickness has a significant on the solidification and by increasing this parameter, the metallurgical length will increase.

Keywords:

Continuous casting , Heat transfer , Phase change , Effective thermal conductivity , Secondary cooling