A three-phase mixed columnar-equiaxed solidification model is used to calculate the macrosegregation in a 2.45 ton steel ingot. The main features of mixed columnar-equiaxed solidification in such an ingot can be quantitatively modelled: growth of columnar dendrite trunks; nucleation, growth and sedimentation of equiaxed crystals; thermosolutal convection of the melt; solute transport by both convection and crystal sedimentation; and the columnar-to-equiaxed transition (CET). The predicted as-cast macrostructure and the segregation pattern are in qualitative agreement with the reported experimental results. Parameter study on the numerical grid size and the nucleation of the equiaxed crystals are performed, and some segregation mechanisms are numerically analyzed. Discontinued positive–negative segregation just below the hot top is predicted because of the formation of a local mini-ingot and the subsequent sedimentation of equiaxed grains within the mini-ingot. Quasi A-segregates in the middle radius region between the casting outer surface and the centreline are also found. The quasi A-segregates originate from the flow instability, but both the appearance of equiaxed crystals and their interaction with the growing columnar dendrite tips significantly strengthen the segregates. The appearance of equiaxed phase is not a necessary condition for the formation of quasi A-segregates. The quantitative discrepancy between the predicted and experimental results is also discussed.

Avoiding particle entrapment into the solidifying shell of a steel continuous caster is important to improve the quality of the continuous cast product. Therefore, the fluid flow dynamics in the steel melt and mushy zone, heat transfer and solidification of the steel shell, as well as the motion and entrapment of inclusion particles during the casting process were investigated using computational models. Solidification of the strand shell is modelled with an enthalpy‐formulation by assuming a columnar morphology in the mushy zone. The motion of particles is tracked with a Lagrangian approach. When the particles reach the solidification front, they can be entrapped/engulfed into the solid shell or pushed away from the solidification front, depending on the mushy zone morphology and the forces acting on them. The current paper focuses on the mould region at a steel continuous caster, including the submerged entry nozzle (SEN) and 1.2 m length of the strand. The results are validated with plant measurements and demonstrate the potential of the model to predict fluid flow, shell growth and the positions and the amount of entrapped/engulfed particles in the solidifying strand.

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