Improving strip cleanliness after cold rolling

Strip cleanliness in the industrial cold rolling mill must be controlled by optimizing the roll, strip, lubricant and process parameters. Obtained experimental evidence in this work shows which of these parameters have a significant influence on strip cleanliness. The experiments were carried out on a plate-out tester and on cold rolling pilot mills. New findings were the influence of thickness reduction on strip cleanliness: a high reduction in the first stands of a tandem mill results in poor strip cleanliness, but in the latter stands a high reduction results in a better strip cleanliness than a low reduction. Furthermore the beneficial influence of a chrome coating on the work roll was shown to be related to the better adherence of oil to this type of work roll. This article provides a concise overview of the experimental results achieved and their interpretation.