Collaborative Research: Manipulating the Contacting and Solidification of Molten Metal in Continuous Casting

这项合作研究的目标是获得足够的科学理解，以便直接从熔融金属状态铸造商业上可接受的质量的金属板、带或箔。实验测试以及计算和数学建模将被用来达到预期的理解。从铝箔到飞机机翼，今天使用的大多数金属部件都是由平板制成的。在目前的商业实践中，机械轧制和热退火阶段具有很高的能源，环境和资金成本。目标是开发将原材料直接固化为最终产品的工艺，而不需要下游加工步骤。这是一个可以追溯到贝塞麦（1865）的愿景，它的实现将彻底改变薄板制造业。铸造方法迫使熔化的金属与旋转的冷轮接触，在那里金属凝固并被剥离。接触和凝固事件的处理是重点。与目前的做法相比，单步铸造将直接节省能源。间接的好处包括减少温室气体，特别是二氧化碳。制造业的资本成本将会降低，生产率将会提高。环境和工业都受益。随着中国和印度的工业化和对扁平产品需求的增长，这些对社会的好处将会积累起来。另一个好处是通过教育。本科生和毕业生将作为一个解决问题的团队参与这项研究，并向当地学校提供教育服务。

The objective of this collaborative research is a scientific understanding sufficient to enable casting of metallic sheets, ribbon or foil, of commercially acceptable quality, directly from the molten metal state. Experimental testing along side computational and mathematical modeling will be used to achieve the desired understanding. From aluminum foil to airplane wings, most metallic components used today are formed from flat pieces. As in current commercial practice, mechanical rolling and thermal annealing stages have high energy, environmental and capital costs. The goal is to develop processes to solidify raw material directly into final product, without downstream processing steps. This is a vision that goes back to Bessemer (1865) and its realization would revolutionize thin-sheet manufacturing. The casting method forces molten metal into contact with a spinning cold wheel where the metal solidifies and is spun off. Manipulation of the contacting and solidification events is the focus.As compared to current practice, there would be direct energy savings for single-step casting. Indirect benefits include the reduction of greenhouse gases, particularly, carbon dioxide. Capital costs for manufacturing would be reduced and productivity would be increased. Both environment and industry benefit. As China and India industrialize and the demand for flat products grows, these benefits to society will accrue. A further benefit will be through education. Undergraduates and graduates will be involved in this research as a problem-solving team, with educational outreach to local schools.