Continuous casting is an important process to transform molten metal into solid. Arrays of spray nozzles are used along the process to remove heat from the slab letting it solidify. Efficient and uniform heat removal without slab cracking is desired during steel continuous casting, and air-mist sprays could help to achieve this goal.Air-mist nozzles are one of the important keys for determining the quality of steel as well as energy consumption for pumping the water. Based on industrial data, it is estimated that a 1% reduction in scrapped production due to casting related defects can result in annual savings of 40.53 million dollars in the U.S. Computational simulations studies can minimize defects in steel such as cracks, inclusions, macro-segregations, porosity, and others, which are closely related to the heat transfer between water droplets and hot slab surface.<div><br></div><div>Conducting multiple spray experiments in order to find optimum operating conditions might be impractical and expensive in some cases. Thus, Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulation is aimed to be used for simulating the air-mist spray process. Because it is a challenging process due to strong air and water interaction, then numerical models have been developed to simulate water droplets. The first model involves air and water phases which then are transformed in single-phase water droplets. To do so, a Volume of Fraction (VOF) to the Discrete Phase Model (DPM) is used.<br></div><div><br></div><div>VOF-TO-DPM transition model involves the primary and secondary breakup which occurs in the water atomization process, starting with a single water core, followed by a smaller compact mass of water known as lumps or ligaments due to the interaction of air, and finally converted into water droplets.The second model is using the Nukiyama-Tanasawa function size distribution which injects water droplets based on defined size range and velocity profile. A validation of droplet size and velocity against experimental data has been accomplished. The models can avoid acquiring expensive equipment in order to understand nozzle spray performance, and droplets generated. Quality, water droplet velocity, size, energy, and water consumption are the core of the current study. Last but not least, the methodology for this model can be used in any other air-mist nozzle design.<br></div>
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:purdue.edu/oai:figshare.com:article/12268649 |
| Date | 08 May 2020 |
| Creators | Edwin A Mosquera Salazar (8812070) |
| Source Sets | Purdue University |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Text, Thesis |
| Rights | CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 |
| Relation | https://figshare.com/articles/AIR-MIST_SPRAY_MODEL_DEVELOPMENT_IN_STEEL_SECONDARY_COOLING_PROCESS/12268649 |
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