A method and system for realizing automatic switching of an online cooling device ACC and a DQ mode

Abstract

The application discloses a method and system for realizing automatic switching of an online cooling device ACC and a DQ mode, and the method comprises the following steps: determining a target production process; determining a target online cooling mode to be used according to the target production process; acquiring a currently used online cooling mode; and if the currently used online cooling mode is not the target online cooling mode, automatically executing a mode switching action. The application selects an online cooling mode according to an actual production process, and can automatically execute mode switching through program control, thereby solving the problem that ACC mode and DQ mode switching is inconvenient and affects production efficiency.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention belongs to the field of heavy plate rolling, and particularly relates to the process operation method of the online cooling device in the medium and heavy plate production line when switching between ACC mode and DQ mode. Specifically, it relates to a method and system for automatically switching between ACC (accelerated controlled cooling) and DQ (direct cooling) modes of the online cooling device. Background Technology

[0002] Heavy plates, as an important material in the steel industry, are widely used in military, shipbuilding, bridge construction, chemical, automotive, and boiler / container industries. The use of online cooling devices can play a crucial role in the development and production of high-value-added steel plates.

[0003] In online cooling systems, the ACC+DQ mode has become a major technological approach for improving product performance in recent years. Heavy plate production lines are generally characterized by complex processes, diverse techniques, and order-based production. Depending on process requirements, online cooling systems need to frequently switch between ACC and DQ modes. In ACC mode, the cooling water flow typically runs from the storage tank to the elevated water tank, and then from the elevated water tank to the cooling valves of the rapid cooling unit. In DQ mode, however, a high-pressure water pump directly draws water from the storage tank to the on-site cooling valves. The piping and valves between the elevated water tank and the rapid cooling valves are interchangeable in both ACC and DQ modes. Therefore, switching between ACC and DQ modes requires switching the water path via valves.

[0004] In the past, this water circuit switching required operators to be on-site, and the distance between the operator's position and the valve location was more than 1 kilometer. Each time such a switching operation was performed, on the one hand, on-site operations were required, and on the other hand, the production line had to wait for a certain period of time, affecting production efficiency. The aforementioned reasons have affected the widespread use of the DQ mode in online cooling devices for heavy plate rolling. Summary of the Invention

[0005] To overcome the shortcomings of the prior art, the present invention provides a method and system for automatically switching between ACC and DQ modes of an online cooling device. The online cooling mode is selected based on the actual production process, and the mode switching can be automatically executed through program control, thus solving the problem that the inconvenience of switching between ACC and DQ modes affects production efficiency.

[0006] According to one aspect of the present invention, a method for automatically switching between ACC and DQ modes of an online cooling device is provided, comprising:

[0007] Determine the target production process;

[0008] Based on the target production process, determine the target online cooling mode to be used;

[0009] Get the currently used online cooling mode. If the currently used online cooling mode is not the target online cooling mode, automatically perform the mode switching action.

[0010] As a further technical solution, the method also includes: dividing the production line into several zones, setting at least one of the zones to DQ mode and setting the other zones to ACC mode according to the production line requirements.

[0011] As a further technical solution, the method also includes: selecting the zones that need to be turned on for online cooling according to the size rules of the product to be cooled, and setting the water volume of each zone's single manifold.

[0012] As a further technical solution, when the selected partition includes an ACC+DQ dual-mode partition, the conduction information of each valve connected to the ACC+DQ dual-mode partition is obtained to determine the currently used online cooling mode.

[0013] As a further technical solution, after performing the mode switching action, the method also includes: obtaining the flow information at the field valve and determining whether the mode switching has been completed based on the flow information.

[0014] As a further technical solution, the method also includes: using a PLC control system to realize the acquisition and transmission of field information, as well as the acquisition and execution of control information from the operator console.

[0015] According to one aspect of the present invention, a system for automatically switching between ACC and DQ modes of an online cooling device is provided, comprising: an online cooling device for providing online cooling to a product; a water storage tank connected to a high-level water tank and the online cooling device, for providing cooling water to the high-level water tank in ACC mode and to the online cooling device in DQ mode, and for receiving return water after use by the online cooling device; a high-level water tank for providing cooling water to the online cooling device in ACC mode; and a control device connected to the online cooling device and a switching valve, for performing valve switching actions according to the selected mode, and acquiring monitoring information of the online cooling device and flow information at the valve.

[0016] As a further technical solution, the online cooling device is equipped with a monitoring device to monitor whether the product has reached the cooling area, and to send information to the control device when the product has reached the cooling area.

[0017] As a further technical solution, the elevated water tank is connected to the cooling pipe through a first valve, and the water storage tank is connected to the cooling pipe through a second valve. Both the first valve and the second valve are equipped with flow monitoring modules.

[0018] Compared with the prior art, the beneficial effects of the present invention are as follows:

[0019] This invention selects the online cooling mode to be used based on the actual production process and uses PLC control to realize online mode switching. Compared with the prior art, it solves the problem that the inconvenience of switching between ACC mode and DQ mode affects production efficiency, which is conducive to the extensive use of DQ mode in online cooling devices for wide and thick plate rolling.

[0020] This invention divides the online cooling area into zones, which can be selected according to the actual production process requirements. Different product specifications can correspond to different cooling zone combinations, that is, different online cooling methods can be used for different product specifications. With the switching between ACC and DQ modes, the flexibility and efficiency of online cooling are greatly improved.

[0021] Before switching is executed, the present invention monitors the conduction status of the valve to determine whether valve switching should be performed to achieve mode switching. After switching is executed, the flow rate at the switching valve is monitored to ensure successful execution of mode switching. Attached Figure Description

[0022] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the method flow according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0023] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram illustrating the switching between ACC and DO modes of an online cooling device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0024] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the DQ mode operation screen according to an embodiment of the present invention. Detailed Implementation

[0025] Switching between ACC and DQ modes requires water circuit switching via valves. However, current water circuit switching relies on manual operation, resulting in low efficiency and impacting production. This limits the use of DQ mode in online cooling systems for heavy plate rolling. To increase the scale of DQ mode usage, the switching between the two modes needs to be simplified and made more efficient. This involves replacing the previous manual switching with remote automatic switching, reducing switching time and the workload of operators.

[0026] To address this issue, the present invention provides a method and system for automatically switching between ACC and DQ modes in an online cooling device. The online cooling mode is selected based on the actual production process, and automatic mode switching is achieved through program control, thus solving the problem of inconvenient switching between ACC and DQ modes affecting production efficiency.

[0027] The technical solutions of various embodiments of the present invention will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some embodiments of the present invention, and not all embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative effort are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0028] In the description of this invention, it should be understood that the terms "first" and "second" are used for descriptive purposes only and should not be construed as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly specifying the number of indicated technical features. Therefore, features defined as "first" and "second" may explicitly or implicitly include one or more of the stated features. In the description of this invention, "a plurality of" means two or more, unless otherwise explicitly specified.

[0029] In the description of this invention, it should be noted that, unless otherwise explicitly specified and limited, the terms "installation," "connection," and "linking" should be interpreted broadly. For example, they can refer to a fixed connection, a detachable connection, or an integral connection; they can refer to a mechanical connection, an electrical connection, or a connection that allows for communication; they can refer to a direct connection or an indirect connection through an intermediate medium; they can refer to the internal communication of two components or the interaction between two components. Those skilled in the art can understand the specific meaning of the above terms in this invention according to the specific circumstances.

[0030] This invention provides a method for automatically switching between ACC and DQ modes in an online cooling device. The method selects the actual online cooling mode to be used based on the actual production process and automatically switches between ACC and DQ modes according to program control, which is beneficial for the widespread use of DQ mode in online cooling devices for heavy plate rolling.

[0031] like Figure 1 As shown, the method includes:

[0032] Step 1: Determine the target production process.

[0033] Considering that different products and production processes have different online cooling requirements, we first determine the target production process to be applied, and then determine its online cooling mode to adapt to different product needs.

[0034] Step 2: Determine the target online cooling mode to be used based on the target production process.

[0035] DQ mode is a high-volume, ultra-fast cooling mode. Using this mode requires a greater number of valves, pipes, and flow meters; configuring all equipment in ultra-fast cooling mode would be extremely expensive. Therefore, this invention divides the production line into several zones. Based on the production line's needs, at least one zone is configured in DQ mode, while the others are configured in ACC mode. This way, the high-speed cooling capability of DQ mode can be utilized while avoiding the high costs associated with configuring all equipment in DQ mode.

[0036] In one implementation, the cooling area is divided into four zones, three of which operate in ACC mode and the other in a dual ACC+DQ mode. For different product specifications, one or more zones can be selected in combination for cooling.

[0037] When the selected partition includes an ACC+DQ dual-mode partition, obtain the conduction information of each valve connected to the ACC+DQ dual-mode partition to determine the currently used online cooling mode.

[0038] Step 3: Obtain the currently used online cooling mode. If the currently used online cooling mode is not the target online cooling mode, the mode switching action will be performed automatically.

[0039] Figure 2 This diagram illustrates the switching between ACC and DO modes in the online cooling system. When the ACC+DQ zone uses ACC mode, the water in the storage tank is pumped to the high-level water tank via the high-level water tank supply pump, and then flows to the ACC+DQ zone for the ACC process through the pipeline where valve 08MV02 is located (at this time, valve 08MV01 is in the closed state). However, if the ACC+DQ zone needs to perform the DQ process according to the production process requirements, the water in the ACC+DQ zone needs to be pumped directly to the ACC+DQ zone at a higher pressure via the DQ pump through valve 08MV01 for the direct quenching process.

[0040] This invention modifies valves 08MV01 and 08MV02, transforming them from manual on-site operation to remote PLC control. To minimize operational steps, communication is established between the online cooling device PLC and the water treatment system PLC. The relevant control programs for both PLCs are modified. Ultimately, when the quenching spray system in the water treatment PLC system is in automatic mode, the control system automatically opens valve 08MV02 and closes valve 08MV01 when the operator selects ACC mode on the online cooling device operation screen. When DQ mode is selected on the operation screen, the control system automatically opens valve 08MV01 and closes valve 08MV02, thus achieving automatic control.

[0041] Taking the production of Q345qD low alloy steel in ACC mode as an example, with a rolling specification of 18×2440×12150mm, the specific water cooling process is as follows:

[0042] The rolling mill employs a controlled rolling process with a final rolling temperature of 791℃. As the rolled steel plate head approaches the cooling zone, the operator selects the ACC mode on the online cooling device's control screen. The operator sets the water flow rate for each manifold in sections A through D, and sets the water flow rate for both A1 and A2 manifolds in section A to 10 / 16 L / s. Water from the storage tank is pumped to the high-level water tank by a high-level water supply pump, and then flows through the pipeline containing valve 08MV02 (the control system automatically opens valve 08MV02 and closes valve 08MV01) to the ACC+DQ zone for the ACC process. After cooling, the steel plate's red-hot temperature is controlled within the standard range of 592℃.

[0043] like Figure 3 Taking the production of HG785D engineering machinery steel under DQ mode as an example, the rolling specification is 16×2500×L mm, and the water-cooling diagram is shown below. Figure 2 The online quenching and cooling process parameters (DQ mode) are shown in Table 1. The specific water cooling process is as follows:

[0044] The rolling mill employs a controlled rolling process with a final rolling temperature of 890–930℃. When the rolled steel plate head enters the cooling zone, the operator selects the DQ mode on the online cooling device's control screen. The operator sets the water flow rate for each manifold in sections A–D, with the water flow rates for sections A1–A6 in section A set at 100 / 150 L / s, and for sections B–D at a super-large flow rate of 300 / 450 L / s. Water from the ACC+DQ zone needs to be pumped directly to the ACC+DQ zone at a higher pressure via the DQ pump through valve 08MV01 (the control system automatically opens valve 08MV01 and closes valve 08MV02) for direct quenching. After cooling, the steel plate's red-hot temperature is controlled within the standard range of ≤200℃.

[0045] Table 9 Online quenching and cooling process parameters (DQ mode)

[0046]

[0047] Based on the same inventive concept as the aforementioned method, this invention also provides a system for automatically switching between ACC and DQ modes of an online cooling device, such as... Figure 2 As shown, it includes: an online cooling device, a water storage tank, an elevated water tank, and a control device.

[0048] The online cooling device is used to provide online cooling for the product. It can be divided into multiple zones, each employing a different cooling mode, such as... Figure 2The cooling zone division shown includes one dual-mode zone (ACC+DQ) and three ACC mode zones.

[0049] The online cooling device is connected to the water storage tank to return used water to the tank, thereby improving the utilization rate of cooling water.

[0050] The ACC mode area is connected to the elevated water tank and is used for cooling via water from the elevated tank in ACC mode. The ACC+DQ dual-mode area is directly connected to the water storage tank and is used for cooling by directly drawing water from the water storage tank in DQ mode.

[0051] Specifically, the water storage tank is connected to multiple high-level water tank supply pumps for connecting to the high-level water tanks and providing them with cooling water; it is also connected to multiple DQ pumps for connecting to DQ mode control valves and providing cooling water supply in DQ mode.

[0052] The online cooling device is equipped with a monitoring device to monitor whether the product has reached the cooling zone, and to send information to the control device when the product has reached the cooling zone. For example, when the head of the rolled steel plate is detected to be entering the cooling zone, information is sent to the control device so that the control device can perform a mode switching action or an online cooling action.

[0053] The elevated water tank is connected to the cooling pipe via a first valve, and the water storage tank is connected to the cooling pipe via a second valve. Both the first and second valves are equipped with flow monitoring modules. By using a flow meter or similar monitoring module, the flow rate near the valves can be monitored to determine whether the valves are functioning correctly (opening or closing properly).

[0054] To address the challenges of applying existing DQ mode, this invention modifies the switching valve between ACC and DQ modes, transforming the original manual operation into remote control of the valve opening and closing via the water treatment system PLC. An Ethernet communication link is established between the water treatment PLC and the online cooling system PLC to transmit the online cooling device's mode information to the water treatment PLC. The control programs for both the online cooling device and the water treatment system PLC are modified, along with related operations and displays. Ultimately, when the online cooling device is set to ACC mode, the valve automatically adjusts to allow water from the storage tank to enter the cooling valve through the elevated water tank. When the online cooling device is set to DQ mode, water from the storage tank is directly transported at high pressure to the on-site flow valve via the DQ pump.

[0055] This invention achieves automatic switching between ACC and DQ modes by switching water circuits via valves, reducing switching time and lowering the workload for operators. Simultaneously, this invention facilitates the quantification of daily DQ grade steel production, improving production speed and efficiency.

[0056] In the description of this specification, the references to terms such as "one embodiment," "some embodiments," "illustrative embodiment," "example," "specific example," or "some examples," etc., indicate that a specific feature, structure, material, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment or example is included in at least one embodiment or example of the invention. In this specification, the illustrative expressions of the above terms do not necessarily refer to the same embodiment or example. Furthermore, the specific features, structures, materials, or characteristics described may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments or examples.

[0057] Finally, it should be noted that the above embodiments are only used to illustrate the technical solutions of the present invention, and not to limit them; although the present invention has been described in detail with reference to the foregoing embodiments, those skilled in the art should understand that modifications can still be made to the technical solutions described in the foregoing embodiments, or equivalent substitutions can be made to some or all of the technical features therein; and these modifications or substitutions do not cause the essence of the corresponding technical solutions to deviate from the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present invention.

Claims

1. A method for automatically switching between ACC and DQ modes in an online cooling device, characterized in that, include: Determine the target production process; Based on the target production process, determine the target online cooling mode to be used; Get the currently used online cooling mode. If the currently used online cooling mode is not the target online cooling mode, automatically perform the mode switching action. The method further includes: dividing the production line into several zones, setting at least one of the zones to DQ mode and setting the other zones to ACC mode according to the production line requirements.

2. The method for automatically switching between ACC and DQ modes of an online cooling device according to claim 1, characterized in that, The method further includes: selecting the zones that need to be online cooled according to the size rules of the product to be cooled, and setting the water volume of each zone's single manifold.

3. The method for automatically switching between ACC and DQ modes of an online cooling device according to claim 2, characterized in that, When the selected partition includes an ACC+DQ dual-mode partition, obtain the conduction information of each valve connected to the ACC+DQ dual-mode partition to determine the currently used online cooling mode.

4. The method for automatically switching between ACC and DQ modes of an online cooling device according to claim 3, characterized in that, After performing the mode switching action, the process also includes: obtaining the flow information at the field valve and determining whether the mode switching has been completed based on the flow information.

5. The method for automatically switching between ACC and DQ modes of an online cooling device according to claim 1, characterized in that, The method also includes: using a PLC control system to collect and transmit field information, as well as to acquire and execute control information from the operator console.

6. A system for automatically switching between ACC and DQ modes of an online cooling device using the method described in any one of claims 1-5, characterized in that, include: Online cooling devices are used to provide online cooling for products; The water storage tank is connected to the high-level water tank and the online cooling device respectively. It is used to provide cooling water to the high-level water tank in ACC mode and to provide cooling water to the online cooling device in DQ mode, as well as to receive the return water after the online cooling device has been used. The elevated water tank is used to provide cooling water to the online cooling unit in ACC mode; the control device is connected to the online cooling unit and the switching valve respectively, and is used to perform valve switching actions according to the selected mode, and to obtain monitoring information of the online cooling unit and flow information at the valve.

7. The system according to claim 6, characterized in that, The online cooling device is equipped with a monitoring device to monitor whether the product has reached the cooling area, and to send information to the control device when the product has reached the cooling area.

8. The system according to claim 6, characterized in that, The elevated water tank is connected to the cooling pipe through a first valve, and the water storage tank is connected to the cooling pipe through a second valve. Both the first and second valves are equipped with flow monitoring modules.

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