Liquid-Cooled Permanent Mold Cooling Ribs
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Solution Overview
Problem
Liquid-cooled molds for continuous metal casting face high thermal loads due to the casting process, leading to potential thermal overloads and reduced service life.
Innovation Solution
The mold features copper or copper alloy mold plates with cooling ribs that extend into a coolant gap between the mold plates and adapter plates, increasing the cooling surface area and flow speed of the coolant, while maintaining the same flow cross-section width, thereby enhancing heat transfer and reducing thermal stress.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Duration of action of stationary object
If the mold plate thickness is reduced to manage thermal loads, then the service life and cooling performance improve, but the structural strength and thermal overload resistance deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces cooling ribs that extend into the coolant gap, adding a vertical dimension to the cooling structure. This allows heat dissipation enhancement without increasing the horizontal footprint or compromising the plate's structural integrity, effectively decoupling thickness reduction from strength loss.
Solution Approach 2:
The cooling ribs are strategically positioned between plateau pedestals in high thermal load areas, creating localized enhanced cooling zones. This selective reinforcement allows the mold plate to maintain overall structural strength while providing targeted thermal management where most needed.
2Temperature
If cooling ribs are added to increase cooling surface area, then heat transfer performance improves, but pressure losses in the coolant flow increase
Solution Approach 1:
Cooling ribs are positioned only between plateau pedestals in specific high-thermal-load regions rather than across the entire mold plate. This localized approach increases cooling effectiveness where most needed while minimizing disruption to the overall coolant flow path and reducing total pressure losses.
Solution Approach 2:
The cooling ribs extend partially into the coolant gap rather than spanning the entire gap height. This partial extension provides sufficient cooling surface area increase to improve heat transfer while maintaining adequate flow cross-section to limit pressure loss increases.
3Speed
If the coolant flow cross-section is reduced to increase flow speed, then cooling performance improves, but the coolant flow rate and heat removal capacity deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The cooling ribs extend vertically into the coolant gap, utilizing the vertical dimension to increase cooling surface area. This allows flow speed enhancement through localized constrictions while maintaining sufficient overall flow cross-section to preserve coolant flow rate and heat removal capacity.
Solution Approach 2:
Flow acceleration is achieved locally at specific cooling rib positions rather than through a uniform cross-section reduction. This creates localized high-velocity zones for improved convective heat transfer while maintaining adequate flow rate through the overall coolant passage.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This design improves cooling performance, extends the service life of the mold by reducing thermal overloads and allowing for thinner mold plates, while minimizing pressure losses and maintaining consistent coolant flow, thus effectively managing thermal loads.
Implementation Method 1
the coolant side (2) has cooling ribs (4, 5, 6, 6a-d, 7, 7a, 11) that extend into the coolant gap... locally improved heat transfer from the mold plate to the coolant
Implementation Method 2
the coolant flow is favourably influenced by the streamlined form of the plateau pedestals (3)... without reducing the flow cross section... pressure losses within the coolant gap do not become too great
Data Source
AI summary
A liquid-cooled permanent mold for the continuous casting of metals, comprising mold plates (1) made of copper or a copper alloy, which are connected respectively to an adapter plate or a water-cooling tank by clamping bolts, the clamping bolts being fastened to plateau pedestals (3) that protrude in an insular fashion from the coolant side (2), which at least partially extend into a coolant gap formed between the mold plate (1) and the adapter plate or the cooling-water tank, and have a streamlined form adjusted to the flow direction of the coolant. The coolant side (2) has cooling ribs (4, 5, 6, 7) that extend into the coolant gap and are situated from place to place between two adjacent plateau pedestals (3).