Calculation of heat transfer coefficients at the ingot surface during DC casting.

Surface heat transfer coefficients representing the various regimes of water cooling during the Direct Chill (DC) casting of aluminum 3004 alloy ingots have been calculated using the inverse heat transfer technique. ProCAST, a commercial casting simulation package, which includes heat transfer, fluid flow, solidification, and inverse heat transfer, was used for this effort. Thermocouple data from an experimental casting run, and temperature-dependent thermophysical properties of the alloy were used in the calculation. The use of a structured vs. unstructured mesh was evaluated. The calculated effective heat transfer coefficient, which is a function of temperature and time, covers three water cooling regimes, i.e., convection, nucleate boiling, and film boiling, and the change of water flow rate with time.