Development of Test Method for Measuring Sintering Temperature of Mould Fluxes

Excessive sintering of mould fluxes can readily cause defects and sticker breakouts in continuously cast strands. Studying the sintering property is important to minimize problems related to sintering arising from the use of mould fluxes in continuous casting. An effective method of measuring the apparent sintering temperature has been developed in this study. The method is based on monitoring the formation of cavities caused by melting of samples. For monitoring, the differential pressure of an inert gas flow was measured through a set volume of sample (mould flux A) held in a furnace tube. The apparent sintering temperature was defined in this test to determine sintering process. The sintering properties of fluxes with various contents of carbon black were examined along with identification of mineralogical phases and the nature of the sinter for samples of mould flux A held for one hour at different temperatures. The experimental results indicated that the apparent sintering temperature (AST) was a useful parameter to assess the threat of problems related to sinter.