Understanding and Fighting Wear on Continuous Casting Rolls

Continuous casting plays a vital role in the steel industry, transforming molten steel into solid slabs, billets, or blooms. The efficiency and durability of continuous casting rolls are essential to this process, as they must withstand harsh conditions and various forms of wear during operation.

Opting for Welding Alloys cored wires to protect the rolls ensures high-quality cladding, significantly reducing maintenance costs and downtime, and leading to long-term savings. Welding Alloys offers cladding solutions for both new and refurbished rolls, guaranteeing optimal performance and cost-efficiency.

CORRESIST → Enhance performance of the upper portion of your continuous casters

CORRESIST is a cored welding wire that produces a unique iron-based, modified super austenitic stainless steel weld deposit. This material is highly resistant to oxidation and corrosion, even in high-temperature environments, making it ideal for cladding rolls in the upper portion of continuous casters, such as foot and bender rolls.

The upper zones and bender areas of casters endure the highest temperatures and the most aggressive corrosive conditions. Traditional martensitic stainless steel rolls and cladding materials often become unstable in such environments, resulting in rapid deterioration. CORRESIST, with its unique alloy composition, remains stable and delivers the necessary corrosion resistance, even when exposed to extreme temperatures.

Performance:

CORRESIST has shown remarkable improvements in roll life and performance. For instance, in foot rolls positioned directly below the mould, cladding with CORRESIST has achieved:

• 650 heats at 110 tons per heat: This performance significantly surpasses that of conventional martensitic cladding, which often suffers from severe corrosion and oxidation after similar usage.
• Three times the lifespan of forged 17-4PH rolls: After 650 heats, CORRESIST rolls exhibited less than 0.7mm of wear, making them suitable for continued use or further skimming and shimming.

CHROMECORE → The ultimate answer for bow & straightening segments

To effectively combat oxidation, corrosion, abrasion, mechanical stress & fatigue while operating at high temperatures, Welding Alloys has developed a range of martensitic stainless steels under the product family name, CHROMECORE.

Why Martensitic Stainless Steels?

Martensitic stainless steels are designed to transform from austenite to martensite upon cooling, delivering excellent hardness and wear resistance. The addition of chromium and carbon boosts their corrosion resistance and mechanical strength. Further alloying elements, such as molybdenum, vanadium, and/or nitrogen, enhance their performance at high temperatures and contribute to secondary hardening during tempering.

The CHROMECORE range includes various formulations tailored to specific needs. Below are two examples of our bestsellers:

• CHROMECORE 414N: Enhanced with nitrogen to improve mechanical properties and corrosion resistance. This grade is suitable for combating oxidation-related issues but offers slightly lower mechanical strength.
• CHROMECORE 414MM: Contains molybdenum, vanadium, and niobium, providing excellent hardness and wear resistance. This grade is ideal for the horizontal segments of a caster where mechanical strength is crucial.

Innovation:

We are passionate about innovation and strive to develop new solutions to suit complex customer requirements. Our new CHROMECORE 414NX will improve durability and performance across your entire casting process. One single versatile solution.

This nitrogen and Rare Earth Elements alloyed martensitic stainless steel provides exceptional oxidation resistance. Combined with vanadium and niobium for excellent hardening and high-temperature strength, this innovation maximises the performance of your caster rolls, ultimately maximising the performance of your caster.

While we’ve highlighted a few key products, we offer a full range of wire solutions, from cost-effective alternatives to advanced options, ensuring the right balance between durability and affordability for every need.

Expertise in Manufacturing

Welding Alloys utilises its extensive expertise to produce cored wires with carefully controlled alloying elements, ensuring the desired hardness and chemical properties are achieved. We provide flexibility in choice, allowing users to select the wire best suited to their welding process, whether it’s Submerged Arc Welding (SAW) or Flux-Cored Arc Welding – Self-Shielded (FCAW-S).

In addition to our high-performance CHROMECORE and CORRESIST consumables, Welding Alloys offer a complete solution for protecting continuous casting rolls, including our fixed installation welding machine, the Roll Cladder. This state-of-the-art, robust machine ensures optimal efficiency and quality in cladding, helping to extend roll life and reduce wear. By combining innovative technology with a focus on quality, we address the toughest challenges in continuous casting roll wear, delivering solutions that meet the highest standards in the steel industry.