Inductive Steel Strip Heating Layout for Wide Thickness Ranges
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing inductive heating devices for flat steel strips in hot rolling mills lack flexibility to efficiently heat steel strips across a wide thickness range, resulting in poor efficiency and temperature profiles for both thin and thick strips.
Innovation Solution
A heating device comprising multiple transverse-field and longitudinal-field modules, each powered by a separate power supply with adjustable frequency and voltage settings, allowing for efficient heating of steel strips across a wide thickness range by optimizing the magnetic field configuration and power distribution.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If the heating device is adapted for heating thin steel strips (6-15 mm thickness), then thin strips can be heated efficiently with appropriate temperature profiles, but thick steel strips (>18 mm) cannot be heated appropriately
Solution Approach 1:
The heating device is divided into multiple independent heating zones along the transporting direction, with each zone containing coils that can be independently controlled. This segmentation allows different sections of the steel strip to receive customized heating parameters, enabling the device to handle both thin and thick strips effectively by adjusting which zones are active and their respective power levels.
Solution Approach 2:
The heating device incorporates dynamic control of coil activation and power adjustment based on the detected thickness of the steel strip. The system can dynamically switch between different heating configurations and modify operating parameters in real-time, providing adaptability across a wide thickness range from 6 mm to over 65 mm while maintaining reliable heating quality.
2Adaptability or versatility
If the heating device is adapted for heating thick steel strips (>15 mm thickness), then thick strips can be heated appropriately, but thin steel strips (6-15 mm) cannot be heated efficiently
Solution Approach 1:
The system applies partial heating action by activating only the necessary heating zones corresponding to the actual thickness requirements. For thinner strips, only specific coils in certain zones are activated at reduced power levels, avoiding excessive energy consumption while still achieving the required heating效果. This selective activation optimizes energy efficiency across the full thickness range.
3Adaptability or versatility
If the working frequency of the inductive heating device is changed to suit different thickness ranges, then heating quality improves, but the device requires lengthy conversion to change frequency
Solution Approach 1:
The heating device is designed with universal multi-functionality, incorporating a fixed frequency that can effectively heat steel strips across the entire thickness range from 6 mm to over 65 mm. The system achieves this through its multi-zone coil configuration and power control capabilities rather than frequency changes, eliminating the need for lengthy conversions and enabling immediate adaptation to different strip thicknesses.
4Device complexity
If a single heating concept is used for all thickness ranges, then device complexity is reduced, but heating homogeneity and efficiency deteriorate across different thicknesses
Solution Approach 1:
The heating device implements local quality by providing different heating characteristics to different sections of the steel strip. Each heating zone has independently controllable coils that can be activated or deactivated based on the local thickness requirements, ensuring homogeneous temperature profiles across the entire strip width and thickness while maintaining a relatively simple overall device structure.
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
Enables homogeneous temperature profiles across the width and thickness of steel strips, improving heating efficiency and extending the product range of rolling plants with potential energy savings of up to 50%.
Implementation Method 1
the heating device generates in the steel strip a magnetic field with a specific working frequency transversely or longitudinally in relation to the transporting direction of the steel strip
Implementation Method 2
the flat steel strip is heated by a heating device, in particular an inductive heating device
Data Source
AI summary
A heating device and a method for the inductive heating of a flat steel strip in a hot rolling mill. The heating device is between two rolling trains of the hot rolling mill and the flat steel strip runs at a speed through the heating device in a transporting direction. The heating device includes: transverse-field modules arranged one after the other along the transporting direction of the flat steel strip; longitudinal-field modules arranged one after the other along the transporting direction of the flat steel strip and arranged before or after the transverse-field modules along the transporting direction; a first power supply supplying at least one transverse-field module with a first alternating voltage; and a second power supply supplying at least one longitudinal-field module with a second alternating voltage. The power supplies have a converter and an electrically connected capacitor bank with multiple capacitors connected in parallel.