Numerical and physical simulation of steel ladle draining operation with different well block design.

Abstract

At the end of a ladle draining operation a structure called drain sink forms at the top surface of the liquid steel allowing slag carry over from the ladle to the tundish and causing metallic losses. On this study, the effect of different well block configuration on the critical height for drain sink formation (HC) was investigated using numerical and physical modeling. The modified well block configuration showed lower HC in most of the cases when compared with the standard design. It could represent almost 50% of metallic lost savings during the continuous casting process. Air injection was also investigated and increased significantly the HC value. The numerical model showed good agreement with the physical model and was used to help undertanding this behavior.