Analysis of a Slab and Slab Heater Cover in a Compact Endless Cast and Rolling Mill Process Using Finite Element Methods

摘要

Compact Endless cast and rolling Mill (CEM) processes were developed and used to fabricate steel products such as steel slabs. However, the coiling furnace in this process was very expensive, so a new layout was suggested. As the coiling furnace was removed, the interval among the slab heaters had to be increased. This led to a temperature drop in the slab. The temperature distribution of the slab impacts quality, so new layout was developed. This paper presents a Finite Element Method (FEM) simulation of thermal behavior in the slab employing slab heater covers. All of the simulation results were verified by comparing them with experimental results. The slab moving distance at which the temperature was saturated during the process was determined to consider the steady-state and analyze the temperature distribution of the slab and slab heater. Those results revealed that the efficiency of heat conservation increased by more than 50% using the slab heater cover. Finally, a sensitivity analysis of the slab heater cover was conducted with respect to the cover design. The effects of insulator thickness, the gap distance between the slab and cover, and material parameters such as density, and specific heat were investigated to optimize the design of the slab heater cover to produce the best quality slab.