Influences of the Transverse Static Magnetic Field on the Droplet Evolution Behaviors during the Low Frequency Electroslag Remelting Process

Abstract

To visualize the electroslag remelting (ESR) process, a transparent experimental model was adopted. The droplet evolution process at the consumable electrode tip was recorded by a high-speed camera. Different intensities of the transverse static magnetic field (TSMF) were imposed during the ESR process with a low frequency current of 5 Hz. The representative processes of formation and detachment of the droplets under different conditions were given. The results showed that when the intensities of the TSMF were equal or greater than 0.3 T, the droplet evolution processes would be influenced remarkably. When the TSMF reached 0.5 T, the liquid neck would be broken up into two arrays of smaller droplets. The mechanism of the breakup phenomenon appearing on the droplet neck was discussed. Statistical analysis of the videos captured by the high-speed camera under different conditions had been done. The results showed that the separation degree of the droplet necks and the remelting rate could be increased to a certain extent as the increase of the TSMF. The features of the collected droplets with the TSMF of 0.7 T showed a smaller average size and more tiny droplets comparing with what were obtained without the external magnetic field. The decrease of the droplet size and the generation of numerous tiny droplets enlarged the interfacial area between metal and slag tremendously.

Droplet evolution process with the TSMF of 0.7 T.