Influence of mold length and mold heat transfer on horizontal continuous casting of nonferrous alloy rods

Abstract

The influence of mold length and mold heat transfer on the conventional hot-top D.C. continuous casting process was studied through numerical simulations and experiments with horizontally cast 20 mm diameter lead and zinc rods. The minimum casting speed was found to be a nonlinear function of the mold length. For short molds, an inverse relationship between mold length and minimum casting speed was observed. However, the minimum casting speed for zinc cast from molds longer than 12 mm was constant at 2.5 mm/s. For lead cast in molds longer than 12 mm, the minimum observed casting speed was constant at 4.0 mm/s. The observed nonlinear relationship between minimum casting speed and mold length was predicted using a numerical model of the process. For this, an analytical expression for the mold boundary conditions was derived which included the influence of gas gap formation between the rod and the mold due to thermoelastic deformations of both the rod and the mold. Correlation between observed and predicted behavior was demonstrated for both the lead and zinc rods. Maximum casting speed was observed to increase with increased mold length; however, this speed was found to be critically dependent on process attributes such as mold and pinch wheel alignment and mold lubrication.