Abstract
This work aims at figuring out the influence of gas bubble size distribution on the ladle stirring process. The work is conducted through three-dimensional (3D) numerical simulation based on the finite volume method. Mesh sensitivity test and the cross-validation are performed to ensure the results are mesh independent and the numerical set-up is correct. Two distributions, uniform and Log-normal function, are investigated under different gas flow rates and number of porous plugs. The results indicate that the results, e.g., the axial velocity and the area of the slag eye, have little difference for low flow rate. The difference becomes dominant whilst the flow rate is increasing, such as 600 NL/min. The Log-normal function bubble size distribution gives a larger axial velocity and a smaller slag eye area compared to the uniform bubble size distribution. This work indicated that, at a higher flow rate, the Log-normal function is a better choice to predict the melt behavior and the slag open eye in the ladle refining process if the bubble interaction is not considered.
Highlights
Steel refining in the ladle is an important process in the secondary metallurgy
The results indicate that the results, e.g., the axial velocity and the area of the slag eye, have little difference for low flow rate
The Log-normal function bubble size distribution gives a larger axial velocity and a smaller slag eye area compared to the uniform bubble size distribution
Summary
Steel refining in the ladle is an important process in the secondary metallurgy. It usually happens before the liquid steel is poured into the tundish and it may last from half an hour to several hours [1].The gas, Argon for instance, is usually used to stir the liquid steel with the aims such as uniform bulk melt temperature and removing the non-metallic inclusions. Steel refining in the ladle is an important process in the secondary metallurgy. It usually happens before the liquid steel is poured into the tundish and it may last from half an hour to several hours [1]. The gas, Argon for instance, is usually used to stir the liquid steel with the aims such as uniform bulk melt temperature and removing the non-metallic inclusions. During the gas stirring process, the heat and mass transfer are very important [3] and a lot of factors could affect this process, the number of the porous plugs [4], the plug location [5], the gas flow rate [6], and the slag properties (e.g., slag height) [7], for instance. The extensive work has been conducted to set up the relationship between different parameters, such as the slag eye area and the mixing time with the gas flow rate [9,10,11,12,13,14]
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