Optimisation of narrow face water slot design for Siderar slab casting mould

Abstract

A study of a mould narrow plate was carried out at Instituto Argentino de Siderurgia (IAS), to assess the plate condition after its life, in this case 2227 heats. A finite element model of steady heat conduction in the mould narrow face was developed, using ANSYS software, with eight node rectangular elements. Attention was focused on the hot face temperature distribution, including the corner temperature and the difference between the maximum and minimum temperatures across the hot face. Temperature distribution in the narrow face of the Siderar slab casting mould was calculated, and alternatives to optimise the water slot design by altering the geometry to minimise both corner temperature and temperature variation across the hot face were analysed. According to the results, the existing narrow face design does not produce excessive temperatures anywhere in the mould. However, a gradient exists across the hot face. In addition, an accurate equation was developed to predict corner temperature as a function of hot face heat flux and water slot geometry. Several other water slot geometry redesigns were investigated, which further improved potential hot face temperature uniformity at the expense of increasing complexity of the water slot design. The predictions of the model are in agreement with observations made in a previous post-mortem study carried out at IAS on a narrow plate.