The use of particle image velocimetry in the physical modeling of flow in electromagnetic or direct-chill casting of aluminum : Part I. Development of the physical model

This article describes the development of a physical (water) model for examining flows in the liquid metal pool, at the head of an electromagnetic (EM) or direct-chill (DC) caster for aluminum, that are driven by the inflow of liquid metal. Also described is a particle image velocimetry (PIV) system developed for measuring the flows; the system dispenses with the laser usually required for PIV. Flows in the model were found to be unsteady, but ensemble averaging yielded flow patterns that conformed to expectations and velocities that can be compared to the time-averaged velocities (TAVs) of mathematical models. Some representative results are presented (with more extensive results to be included in a subsequent Part II of this article) showing that the design of the metal delivery system has a great effect on the flows.