Artificial heat source method in modelling of continuous casting process

In the paper the numerical model of continuous casting process is presented. The basic energy equation corresponding to the fixed domain approach is assumed in the form containing the term called artificial heat source. It should be pointed out that a mathematical description of the continuous casting essentially differs from the model of typical foundry technologies, because in the energy equation the additional component being the product of pulling rate vector and temperature gradient appears. It results from the fact that the cast strand shifts through the continuous casting plant. As an example we will consider a rectangular cast slab produced by a vertical plant. The casting shifts in axis z direction and its pulling rate is equal to u (more precisely, the velocity field in domain considered: u = [0, 0, u]). In the paper we present the algorithm in which the product u grad T is treated as the artificial heat source. In the final part of the paper the example of computations is shown.