A scaling analysis of alloy solidification in presence of electromagnetic stirring

Abstract

Application of electromagnetic stirring (EMS) during continuous casting shears off the dendrites from the solidification front to produce billets with a non-dendritic microstructure. In the present study, a systematic approach to the scaling analysis of momentum, energy and species conservation equations pertaining to the case of the solidification of a binary alloy in the presence of EMS is outlined. With suitable choices of non-dimensionalizing parameters, the governing equations coupled with appropriate boundary conditions are first scaled, and then the relative significance of various terms appearing in them are analysed. In the physical domain two regions are identified, one where the electromagnetic forces play a dominant role in the momentum equations, and the other where the inertia and viscous effects play major roles. Using the scaling predictions, the influence of various processing parameters on the system variables can be utilized for the selection of appropriate electromagnetic forces to shear off the dendrites from the solidification area. For the sake of assessment of the scaling analysis, the predictions are validated against corresponding computational results.