THREE-DIMENSIONAL NUMERICAL SIMULATION OF TURBULENT FLOW AND HEAT TRANSFER IN A CONTINUOUS GALVANIZING BATH

Abstract

This article presents the application of a three-dimensional finite-element solution algorithm for the prediction of velocity and temperature fields in an industrial continuous galvanizing bath. The effect of line speed, strip width, strip temperature, and inductor mixing are evaluated. Simulations were carried out using a parallel computational fluid dynamics (CFD) software developed at the Industrial Materials Institute, Natural Research Council of Canada. The incompressible Navier-Stokes equations are solved for turbulent flows using the k - k model. Both forced-convection and temperature-dependent density conditions are considered in order to assess the buoyancy effect. When considering the buoyancy, the flow induced by variations in density is especially apparent near the inductors and the melting makeup ingot, while little effect is observed in the sheet and rollers region. Thermal effects are also amplified when the inductor is at high capacity, during the ingot melting. Simulations allow visualization of regions of varying velocity fields and clearly illustrate the mixed and stagnant zones for different operating conditions.