| A finite volume model was developed for the analysis of fluid flow and heat transfer phenomena in the round billet, that consists of a molten metal pool, a mushy zone, and a solidified region, in the continuous casting process of 6XXX series Al alloys. This developed model included the evaluation of latent heat of fusion in a fixed grid, treated whole computational domain as a single phase using an effective viscosity, and optimized heat transfer coefficients at each cooling region. The positions of mushy zone and crater end at the center and surface of billets were quantitatively analyzed to find optimum process parameters, such as casting temperature and speed. The investigation for the effects of casting conditions on the flow and solidification pattern during casting was correlated with the quality of billet, and applied to predict the mechanism on the formation of some typical casting defects, so called cooking ring and cold lap. The model could be used to optimize the set of flow and thermal parameters according to the change of alloy and size of billet, leading to the minimum formation of casting defects. |
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