Adaption of the Vertical Continuous Casting Technology for Magnesium

摘要

The paper shows the feasibility of vertical continuous DC casting of magnesium alloys. To cast billets or slabs of magnesium, the conventional continuous casting technology, which is well-established for aluminum alloys, had to be adapted with respect to the difficult melt handling and the different magnesium alloys pattern. The main emphasis was put on process safety and easy casting operation control. First successfully cast billets and slabs of AZ31 and prove the feasibility of the chosen process variant. The as-cast structure was examined with a newly developed macro-etching method that revealed the typical fine microstructure of continuous cast products. First results of extrusions trials made with these billets are shown as well. For a better understanding of the solidification and extrusion process, finite element simulations were carried out to provide optimization of factors such as manufacturability, final shape and grain sizes.