1974 Volume 60 Issue 7 Pages 990-999
A billet continuous casting machine with in-line reduction was installed at the Kishiwada Steel Co. Ltd., and has been in operation since March, 1972. This paper deals with various qualities of the billets produced by this machine during the start-up period. The followings have been found:
1) Center shrinkage cavities and porosities were well cured by the in-line reduction process.
2) The non-metallic inclusions were elongated along the drawing direction throughout the billet by the in-line reduction process, though the inclusions locating at the central parts extended in a greater extent than those at outer layers.
3) Microscopic examinations showed that as-cast billets consist of normal Widmannstatten structures but the in-line reduction improves the structure to some extent.
4) The difference between the tensile properties of the central part and those of the outer layer of the billet was negligible.
It can thus be concluded that the in-line process results in excellent and sound qualities of the billets.
