| A new lubrication and friction model of slag in the interfacial gap was combined into an existing 1-D heat transfer model, CON1D. Analytical transient models of liquid slag flow and solid slag stress have been coupled with a finite-difference model of heat transfer in the mold, gap and steel shell to predict transient shear stress, friction, slip and fracture of the slag layers.; Experimental work was conducted to measure the properties of slag powder, including the friction coefficient at elevated temperatures and viscosity near solidification temperature. Tests with wide cooling rates range were conducted to construct CCT curves and to predict critical cooling rates of two slags with different crystallization tendencies. Slag composition and microstructure were analyzed by XRD and SEM.; The CON1D model predicts shell thickness, temperature distributions in the mold and shell, slag layers thickness, heat flux profiles down the mold, cooling water temperature rise, ideal taper of the mold walls, and other related phenomena. Plants measurements from operating casters were collected to calibrate the model.; The model was then applied to study the effect of casting speed and powder viscosity properties on slag layer behavior. The study finds that liquid slag lubrication would produce negligible stresses. Lower mold slag consumption rate leads to higher solid friction and results in solid slag layer fracture and movement if it falls below a critical value. Mold friction and fracture are governed by lubrication consumption rate. The high measured friction force in operating casters could be due to three sources: an intermittent moving solid slag layer, excessive mold taper or mold misalignment.; The model was also applied to interpret the crystallization behavior of slag. A mechanism for the formation of this crystalline layer was proposed that combined the effects of a shift in the viscosity curve, a decrease in the liquid slag conductivity due to partial crystallization, and an increase in the solid slag layer. When the shear stress exceeds the slag shear strength before the axial stress accumulates to the fracture strength, the slag could shear longitudinally inside the layers. |
