Ultrasonic flow measurement in liquid metal models of continuous steel casting

Model experiments with low melting point liquid metals are an important tool to investigate the flow structure and related transport processes in melt flows relevant for metallurgical applications. One very important industrial process is the continuous casting of steel. But there exist almost no measurement data of the inner mold flow from real casting plants and there are no satisfying measurement techniques available for those harsh conditions. By this, e.g. a detailed understanding of the action of electromagnetic brakes on the complex flow is missing. Therefore we built model experiments for the continuous casting process of steel by using low melting liquid metals and investigated the mold flow under different conditions. The main value of cold metal laboratory experiments consists in the capabilities to obtain quantitative flow measurements by ultrasonic flow measurements with a reasonable spatial and temporal resolution. Standard transducers were used at the model operating at room temperature with the eutectic alloy of GaInSn. Ultrasonic transducers for high temperatures and ultrasonic waveguide sensors were used at the big model, which uses the alloy Sn60Bi40 as model liquid and is operated at temperatures of 200-350 °C. Results from the mold flow measurement will be presented, showing the effect of a static magnetic field on the flow structure. It turned out, that the magnetic field can locally accelerate the flow, contrary to the expected action as a brake. The ultrasonic velocity measurement data were further used for validation and for comparison with other measurement techniques at the model experiment.