9th ECCC European Continuous Casting Conference – ECCC 2017

A computational fluid flow model has been developed to simulate the flow field of liquid steel within the square mold region of a billet caster. This study reports on the dramatic effect that a Submerged Entry Nozzle’s (SEN) position can have on fluid flows developed in square, curved mold, billet casters. In this study, ANSYS Fluent 14.5 software was used to model the 3-D turbulent flow of liquid steel in the mold region, and the Realizable k-ε model was used to simulate turbulence. Similarly, the Volume of Fluid (VOF) multiphase model was used to simulate the effect of fluid flow on the liquefied mold powder at the liquid steel’s upper meniscus. Predicted behavior of flows within the mold region was validated against previous experimental work. Predicted results showed that changing the SEN angle of rotation with respect to the corners of the square billet mold, plus the slight mold curvature, can significantly influence the flow patterns generated within the mold region and the stability of the upper meniscus, and thereby affect the finished quality of the square billet products.