Original Article

Simulation study on molten steel flow behavior in BB5 super-sized beam blank mold

¹ School of Metallurgical Engineering, Xi’an University of Architecture and Technology, Xi’an 710055, Shaanxi, PR China
² Steelmaking Division, China National Heavy Machinery Research Institute Co., Ltd., Xi’an 710032, Shaanxi, PR China
³ Power Plant Construction Engineering Department, Xi’an Thermal Power Research Institute Co., Ltd., Xi’an 710061, Shaanxi, PR China

^* Corresponding author: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Received: 20 January 2026
Accepted: 10 March 2026

Abstract

To optimize the quality of super-sized beam blank continuous casting, a 1:1 physical model was constructed, and the impacts of casting speeds (0.65–0.85 m min⁻¹) and depths of submerged entry nozzle (SEN) immersion (80–160 mm) on the flow field characteristics of the mold were investigated by physical simulation. The flow field distribution and surface velocity were analyzed by the PIV technique, and multi-position verification was carried out by combining a wave height meter and a flow velocity meter. The results show that when the casting speed increases from 0.65 to 0.85 m min⁻¹, it will enhance the injection flow energy, the impact depth increases from 0.70 to 0.75 m, the narrow face shell scouring range expands, and the vortex intensity increases, resulting in the rise of the risk of slagging; the SEN immersed in the depth of too deep is prone to the formation of a flow dead zone, which reduces the uniformity of heat transfer, and the SEN immersed in too shallow provokes level fluctuation. With the optimized process parameters (120 mm immersion depth and 0.75 m min⁻¹ casting speed), the flow field has both controlled level fluctuation and reasonable surface velocity, effectively balancing the risk of slagging and solidification uniformity.