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A Numerical Study of the Direct-Chill Co-Casting of Aluminum Ingots via Fusion™ Technology

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Abstract

For the last 70 years, direct-chill (DC) casting has been the mainstay of the aluminum industry for the production of monolithic sheet and extruded products. Traditionally, clad aluminum sheet products have been made from separate core and clad DC cast ingots by an expensive roll-bonding process; however, in 2005, Novelis unveiled an innovative variant of the DC casting process called the Fusion™ Technology process that allows the production of multialloy ingots that can be rolled directly into laminated or clad sheet products. Of paramount importance for the successful commercialization of this new technology is a scientific and quantitative understanding of the Fusion™ casting process that will facilitate process optimization and aid in the future development of casting methodology for different alloy combinations and ingot and clad dimensions. In the current study, a numerical steady-state thermofluids model of the Fusion™ Technology casting process was developed and used to simulate the casting of rectangular bimetallic ingots made from the typical brazing sheet combination of AA3003 core clad with an AA4045 aluminum alloy. The analysis is followed by a parametric study of the process. The influence of casting speed and chill-bar height on the steady-state thermal field within the ingot is investigated. According to the criteria developed with the thermofluids model, the AA3003/AA4045 combination of aluminum alloys can be cast successfully with casting speeds up to 2.4 mm s−1. The quality of the metallurgical bond between the core and the clad is decreased for low casting speeds and chill-bar heights >35 mm. These results can be used as a guideline for improving the productivity of the Fusion™ Technology process.

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Abbreviations

C f :

Nucleate boiling coefficient

C p :

Specific heat (J kg−1 K−1)

H :

Enthalpy (J kg−1)

K 0 :

Permeability factor (m2)

L 0 :

Ingot length scale (m)

S :

Source terms

S buoy :

Buoyancy term (N m−3)

S mush :

Mushy zone term (W m−3)

S sol :

Solidification term (N m−3)

T :

Temperature (K)

W :

Ingot width (m)

f s :

Fraction solid

g :

Gravitational acceleration (m s−2)

h :

Heat-transfer coefficient (W m−2 K−1)

k :

Thermal conductivity (W m−1 K−1)

p :

Pressure (N m−2)

q :

Heat flux (W m−2)

u :

Velocity (m s−1)

u s :

Casting speed (m s−1)

x :

Spatial coordinate (m)

Γ :

Volumetric water flow rate per unit of perimeter (m2 s−1)

α :

Thermal diffusivity (m2 s−1)

β :

Thermal expansion coefficient (K−1)

δ :

Air gap thickness (m)

λ sl :

Latent heat of fusion (J kg−1)

λ wv :

Latent heat of evaporation (J kg−1)

μ :

Dynamic viscosity (kg m−1 s−1)

ρ :

Density (kg m−3)

σ :

Surface tension (N m−1)

CB:

Chill bar

ONB:

Onset of nucleate boiling

PC:

Primary cooling

SC:

Secondary cooling

boil:

Nucleate boiling

coh:

Coherency

conv:

Forced convection

gap:

Air gap

inlet:

Molten metal inlet

l:

Liquid phase

liq:

Liquidus

lub:

Lubricating film

mold:

Direct-chill mold

ref:

Reference

s:

Solid phase

sat:

Water saturation

sol:

Solidus

surf:

Ingot surface

v:

Water vapor

w:

Cooling water

wall:

Mold wall

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Acknowledgments

The authors gratefully acknowledge the financial support from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC), Novelis Global Technology Centre (NGTC), Ontario Centres of Excellence (OCE), and Emerging Materials Knowledge (EMK).

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Mechanical and Mechatronics Engineering, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, ON, Canada

    Amir R. Baserinia (Postdoctoral Fellow, Senior CFD Engineer), Etienne J. F. R. Caron (Postdoctoral Fellow), Mary A. Wells (Professor) & David C. Weckman (Professor)

  2. Ennova Technologies Inc., Berkeley, CA, USA

    Amir R. Baserinia (Postdoctoral Fellow, Senior CFD Engineer)

  3. Novelis Global Research and Development Center, Kennesaw, GA, USA

    Simon Barker (Senior Researcher)

  4. Novelis Kingston Research Technology Centre, Kingston, ON, Canada

    Mark Gallerneault (Director)

Authors
  1. Amir R. Baserinia
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  2. Etienne J. F. R. Caron
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  3. Mary A. Wells
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  4. David C. Weckman
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  5. Simon Barker
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  6. Mark Gallerneault
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Etienne J. F. R. Caron.

Additional information

Manuscript submitted December 19, 2012.

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Baserinia, A.R., Caron, E.J.F.R., Wells, M.A. et al. A Numerical Study of the Direct-Chill Co-Casting of Aluminum Ingots via Fusion™ Technology. Metall Mater Trans B 44, 1017–1029 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11663-013-9859-z

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