Abstract: A 3-D cellular automaton model of thermal transfer and solidification has been developed, aiming at a simulational study of the grain structure development in electroslag casting. The program we developed for simulation of the model allows the effects of both metallurgical factors, including solidification point, supercooling required for nucleation and its scattering, and liquid/solid interface energy, and thermophysical factors, including heat conduction coeffcients, heat transfer coefficients and latent heat, to be investigated. The effect of process control can be indirectly inspected with the simulation by varying the melting rate. A box counting algorithm was employed to estimate the local curvature of liquid/solid interface. A series of simulated experiments of electroslag casting processes have been carried out. The simulation started from the beginning of the electroslag casting and proceeds by iteration of certain rules, during which a uniform constant slag temperature and a constant melting rate were assumed. It has been observed that a pool of molten metal forms and deepens gradually under constant melting rate. The deepening of the pool slows down with the simulated electroslag casting process, and the depth and shape of the pool tends to be steady after certain height of cast is formed. A finger-like grain structure with the fingers approximately normal to the bottom of the molten metal pool was generally observed. Higher latent heat was found to enhance dendritic growth. The results agree well with general observation of the grain structures in electroslag castings and demonstrate the applicability of cellular automaton modeling to structural development in casting.

Key words: electroslay casting, grain structure, simulation