Flow Field, Temperature Field, and Inclusion Removal in a New Induction Heating Tundish with Bent Channels

Abstract

In order to study the flow field, temperature field, and inclusion removal in a new induction heating tundish with bent channels, a three-dimensional (3D) transient mathematical model is established. The effects of both the channel radius and heating power on the multi-physical field and inclusion removal in the bent channels’ induction heating tundish are investigated. The results show that the tundish with the channel radius of 3 m shows better flow characteristics than those with the channel radii of 4 m and 2 m. With the increase of channel length, the heating efficiency increases at first, and then decreases, while the radius of 3 m is the best one for heating efficiency. After all the inclusions are placed into the tundish, the radii of 3 m and 2 m show good efficiency regarding inclusion removal, while it is poor when the radius is 4 m. Therefore, 3 m is the optimal radius of the channel in this work. Under the optimal channel radius, the heating power of 800 kW seems better than those of 600 kW and 1000 kW on flow characteristics control in the tundish. The temperature in the receiving chamber rises gradually and distributes quite uniformly with the increasing heating power, and the removal rate of inclusions increases with the increasing heating power.

Channel-Type Induction Heating Tundish Technology for Continuous Casting: A Review

“…However, when the heating power exceeds 800 kW, the flow field of the tundish becomes chaotic and the uniformity of the temperature field is worse. Therefore, the reasonable heating power of the single flow channel IHT should be controlled at 600~800 kW [ 60 , 61 ]. Others found that when the heating power is 1000 kW for the six-strand dual-channel IHT, not only is it beneficial in compensating for the heat loss from the tundish, reducing the dead zone rate, but also for improving the consistency of the flow and the temperature, greatly improving the internal quality of the billet and the stability of the final product [ 54 ], as shown in Figure 6 b.…”

“… RTD curves in the tundish with different types of heating of power. ( a ) The single-flow dual-channel IHT [ 61 ]. ( b ) The dual-channel IHT [ 54 ] © The Minerals, Metals, & Materials Society and ASM International 2021.…”

Challenge of Residence Time Distribution Curve in Tundish for Continuous Casting of Steel

“…Thus, the proper design and the optimized operation for a tundish are crucial for final product quality. [ 1,2 ] The research scope of tundish metallurgy covers fluid flow, [ 3,4 ] heat transfer, [ 5,6 ] particle behavior, [ 7–9 ] etc. There is no doubt that the molten metal flow behavior is the basis of all the tundish performance.…”

Magnetic‐Flow‐Thermal Characteristics of An Innovative Four‐Channel Induction Heating Tundish

“…As can be realized, the channel is undoubtedly the most critical component of the IH tundish. [ 16,17 ] Xing [ 18,19 ] et al investigated the single‐strand channel IH tundish and proposed a curved bending channel, which is also expected to improve the heating efficiency and inclusions removal ratio. As we know, Lorentz force and Joule heat are most concentrated in the channel, and it is essential to use Lorentz force and Joule heat of the IH technology to control the fluid flow, temperature, and the inclusion removal behavior in the tundish.…”