EFFECT OF STEEL FLOW CONTROL DEVICES ON FLOW AND TEMPERATURE FIELD IN THE TUNDISH OF CONTINUOUS CASTING MACHINE

The mathematical model and numerical simulations of the liquid steel flow in a tundish are presented in this paper. The problem was treated as a complex and solved by the finite element method. One takes into consideration in the mathematical model the changes of thermophysical parameters depending on the temperature. The single-strand tundish is used to casting slabs. The internal work space of the tundish was modified by flow control devices. The first device was a pour pad situated in the pouring tundish zone. The second device was a dam. The third device was a baffle with three holes. The dam and baffle were placed in the tundish at different positions depending on the variant. The main purpose of using these was to put barriers in the steel flow path as well as give directional metal flow upwards which facilitated inclusion floatation. The interaction of flow control devices on hydrodynamic conditions was received from numerical simulations. As a result of the computations carried out, the liquid steel flow and steel temperature fields were obtained. The influences of the tundish modifications on the velocity fields in liquid phase of the steel were estimated, because these have essential an influence on high-quality of a continuous steel cast slab.