Numerical modelling of rapid solidification

A mathematical model of the melt spinning process has been developed based on the control-volume finite-difference method. The model avoids some of the limitations of the previous models, for example including the effect of the wheel in the heat how calculations and the temperature dependence of the thermophysical parameters of the material. The nucleation temperature was calculated based on the heterogeneous nucleation theory.

The effect of various parameters, such as the heat transfer coefficient, the nucleation temperature and the heating and type of the wheel on the rapid solidification behaviour, for example the recalescence characteristic, was investigated. The results of the model showed that the effect of heating of the wheel is difficult to prevent even for a wheel material of high conductivity. The recalescence effect was found to be influenced by the wheel surface temperature and to decrease with increasing thermal conductivity of the wheel.

The observed increase in the wheel surface temperature suggests the importance of including the wheel in the numerical calculations, especially for a wheel made of a low-conductive material