Molten Steel Flow in a Slab Continuous-casting Tundish

Abstract

Fields of fluid flow and temperature, and residence time distribution (RTD) curves were investigated by mathematical simulation in a one-strand tundish for continuous casting. It was known from the investigation that a big “spring uprush” formed on surface around the long shroud when molten steel flowed into a turbulence inhibitor (TI) with extending lips and rushed up reversely out of the TI, while four small “spring uprushes” existed on surface when a TI without extending lips because the liquid steel flowed mainly out of the 4 corners of the TI. The flow of liquid steel in the former tundish configuration was not reasonable and the height of an area where temperature was less than 1819 K was about half of liquid surface height on the right side of the stopper, which meant that big dead zone existed in the former tundish configuration. In the optimal one, the height of such area was only seventh of the liquid surface height. The RTD curves obtained from the mathematical simulation basically agreed with those from the physical modeling and the flow characteristics obtained from these two methods agreed with each other.