Non-metallic Inclusions in Steelmaking

A special issue of Metals (ISSN 2075-4701). This special issue belongs to the section "Extractive Metallurgy".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 July 2023) | Viewed by 7092

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
School of Metallurgy, Northeastern University, Shenyang 110819, China
Interests: non-metallic inclusions; secondary steelmaking; refractory

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Steel is a basic material that is widely used in numerous fields. In recent decades, the increasing demand for higher steel quality has attracted growing attention among metallurgists. It is well known that non-metallic inclusions in steel influence the performance of steel products. Therefore, the control of inclusions is one of the key tasks in the steelmaking process. Many researchers have investigated the formation, evolution, and removal behaviors of inclusions in steel according to laboratory and industrial experiments as well as numerical modeling. Moreover, some new techniques/processes have been developed to characterize and control the inclusions in steel. These studies have significantly helped us to improve our understanding of inclusions and further improved steel cleanliness.

This Special Issue aims to collect advances in the field of non-metallic inclusions in steelmaking. Experimental and numerical studies on the behaviors of inclusions in various steel grades, and characterization and control of inclusions in steel at different steelmaking stages, are within the scope of this Special Issue. Topics linked to thermodynamic fundamentals, metallurgical refractories, and alloys focusing on inclusion control in steelmaking are also covered. Both original research articles and reviews on (but not limited to) these topics are welcome. Your contribution to this Special Issue is highly appreciated.

Dr. Zhiyin Deng
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • non-metallic inclusions
  • characterization
  • evolution
  • clean steel
  • thermodynamics
  • numerical modeling
  • refractory
  • alloy

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Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

15 pages, 4461 KiB  
Article
Activation Energy of Alumina Dissolution in FeO-Bearing Slags
by Taejun Kwack, Hyungsic Um and Yongsug Chung
Metals 2023, 13(10), 1702; https://doi.org/10.3390/met13101702 - 6 Oct 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 845
Abstract
The dissolution of Al2O3 non-metallic inclusions in slag containing FeO was investigated in this study. The slag system used in the experiments was a quaternary system of CaO-SiO2-Al2O3-FeO. The composition of the slag was [...] Read more.
The dissolution of Al2O3 non-metallic inclusions in slag containing FeO was investigated in this study. The slag system used in the experiments was a quaternary system of CaO-SiO2-Al2O3-FeO. The composition of the slag was studied by fixing the basicity (CaO/SiO2 ratio) to 1 and varying the FeO content to 10 and 20 wt%. In addition, the experimental temperature was varied to 1550 °C, 1575 °C, and 1600 °C to study the effect of temperature on the Al2O3 dissolution behavior. The experimental equipment used was a single hot thermocouple apparatus. The dissolution rate of Al2O3 particles increased linearly with increasing temperature and FeO content. In addition, the mass transfer activation energy of Al2O3 dissolution in FeO 10 wt% and FeO 20 wt% was calculated through an Arrhenius-type analysis. The obtained mass transfer activation energies were 159 and 189 kJ/mole, respectively. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Non-metallic Inclusions in Steelmaking)
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20 pages, 9154 KiB  
Article
Effect of Al2O3 Inclusions or Mold Flux Particles on Their Surrounding Microstructures of Sliver Defects on the Surface of Automobile Exposed Panel
by Qing Zhang, Tingting Li and Jian Yang
Metals 2023, 13(4), 661; https://doi.org/10.3390/met13040661 - 27 Mar 2023
Viewed by 1928
Abstract
The Al2O3 inclusions and mold flux particles are the initial causes of the sliver defects on the surface of automobile exposed panels. During the rolling process, the smashed Al2O3 inclusions or mold flux particles will hinder the [...] Read more.
The Al2O3 inclusions and mold flux particles are the initial causes of the sliver defects on the surface of automobile exposed panels. During the rolling process, the smashed Al2O3 inclusions or mold flux particles will hinder the growth of recrystallized grains. Compared with mold flux particles, the smashed Al2O3 inclusions have a smaller size, a denser distribution, and a larger number density, so the smashed Al2O3 inclusions have a stronger ability to hinder grain boundary migration. Therefore, the average grain size is small in the following sequence: Al2O3 defect zone with Al2O3 inclusions (Al2O3 DZ with Al2O3), mold flux defect zone with mold flux particles (MFDZ with MFP), mold flux defect zone without mold flux particles (MFDZ without MFP), Al2O3 defect zone without Al2O3 inclusions (Al2O3 DZ without Al2O3), and non-defect zone (NDZ). The influence of particles on the grain orientation of the defect zones results in the microtexture of Al2O3 DZ without Al2O3 is {111}<313>, which is close to the {111}<101> microtextures of NDZ and MFDZ without MFP, while the {001}<114> microtexture on Al2O3 DZ with Al2O3 and the {313}<111> microtexture on MFDZ with MFP are quite different from that of NDZ. Due to differences in the inclusions, orientation, and microtexture of the defect zones and NDZ, dark-gray or bright white sliver defects on the surface of the automobile exposed panel are eventually formed. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Non-metallic Inclusions in Steelmaking)
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15 pages, 7375 KiB  
Article
Effect of TiO2 Addition on the Melting Behaviors of CaO-SiO2-30%Al2O3-5%MgO System Refining Slags
by Xiaomeng Zhang, Ziwen Yan, Zhiyin Deng and Miaoyong Zhu
Metals 2023, 13(2), 431; https://doi.org/10.3390/met13020431 - 20 Feb 2023
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2133
Abstract
To improve the yield of titanium alloy, a certain amount of TiO2 can be added to the refining slag system of Ti-bearing steel grades. With the aim of understanding the effect of TiO2 addition on the melting behaviors of CaO-SiO2 [...] Read more.
To improve the yield of titanium alloy, a certain amount of TiO2 can be added to the refining slag system of Ti-bearing steel grades. With the aim of understanding the effect of TiO2 addition on the melting behaviors of CaO-SiO2-30%Al2O3-5%MgO refining slags, the melting points of the slags and the phases in the slags are herein studied at different temperatures in the laboratory. It is found that with the increase in TiO2 content (0~10%) in slag, the melting point of the slags drops first, and then rises. The effect of slag basicity (R = w(CaO)/w(SiO2), 2~10) shows a similar tendency. The TiO2 content and slag basicity evidently affect the precipitated phases in the slags at a lower temperature (e.g., 1310 °C). With the increase in basicity, the liquid areal fraction increases first, and then decreases. Moreover, the CaO-TiOx-Al2O3 phase (CTA) and its TiOx content show a declining trend at 1310 °C. When R = 10, large amounts of solid calcium aluminates are precipitated. With TiO2 addition in the slags, the TiOx contents in both liquid and CTA phases increase. Excessive TiO2 addition (e.g., 10%) leads to the large precipitation of CTA, as well. To improve the melting properties of the slag and the yield of Ti alloys during the refinement of Ti-bearing steel grades, a small TiO2 addition (e.g., 5%) may be considered. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Non-metallic Inclusions in Steelmaking)
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18 pages, 19153 KiB  
Article
Influence of Ladle Exchange on Inclusions in Transition Slabs of Continuous Casting for Automotive Exposed Panel Steel
by Miaomiao Ren, Jianjun Zhi, Zhengjie Fan, Ruizhi Wang, Yanli Chen and Jian Yang
Metals 2023, 13(2), 404; https://doi.org/10.3390/met13020404 - 15 Feb 2023
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1513
Abstract
In the present work, inclusion analyses were carried out for inclusions in the tundish samples and in the 28 m transition slabs produced during the ladle exchange of heats A and B. At the beginning of heat B steel casting, the 12th meter [...] Read more.
In the present work, inclusion analyses were carried out for inclusions in the tundish samples and in the 28 m transition slabs produced during the ladle exchange of heats A and B. At the beginning of heat B steel casting, the 12th meter of the casting slabs was in the position of the mold meniscus. The number of densities of the inclusions containing TiN and the inclusions containing Al2O3+TiN increased significantly from the 12th meter to the 22nd meter, while the number densities of the inclusions containing Al2O3 markedly increased from the 13th meter to the 20th meter. Therefore, the length of the transition slabs whose cleanliness was seriously reduced was about 10 m starting from the beginning of heat B steel casting. It was deduced that the contamination of the transition slabs could be caused by the liquid steel exposure in the tundish, the inflow of ladle filling sand of the next heat, or the entrainment of the tundish flux due to the fluctuation of the tundish liquid level at the beginning of heat B steel casting. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Non-metallic Inclusions in Steelmaking)
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