MOLD EXPERTAN “INSIDE LOOK“ INTOCONTINUOUS CASTER MOLDS

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MOLD MONITORING
MORE THAN JUST A BREAKOUT PREDETECTIONSYSTEM

YOUR CHALLENGEOUR SOLUTION

Sticker-related breakouts are a major
reason for high repair costs andproduction losses. Product defects
can primarily be traced back toprocesses in the mold ‒ but no directly
accessible information is available withconventional detection tools.

Mold Expert increases plant availability
and decreases maintenance timeby prompt alarming. Thanks to its
superior performance the Mold Expert
system has become the world’s
leading system for mold monitoring,with close to 200 installations
worldwide.

As a result, on many occasions only
“post-mortem analysis”, i.e. inspectionof the end product, provides enoughinformation for quality production.
Disturbances in the solidification
process, e.g. poor casting powder
performance, tilted SENs, improper
taper settings or bad steel flow
patterns, are frequently overlooked
due to the lack of reliable informationfrom the mold.

In addition to breakout prevention,
Mold Expert provides an everincreasing number of expert packages
that are used to detect possible
surface defects and inform operators
about challenging casting conditions.
Quality production under safe casting
conditions is placed at your disposal
with the installation of an appropriate
combination of Mold Expert packages.

Mold Expert overview
screen2

When it comes to maximum moldmonitoring performance, there is only
one choice: Mold Expert – the moldmonitoring system which allows plant
operators to look further, even down
the strand. This is what makes Mold
Expert so unique. And this is why it
has become the world’s leading moldmonitoring system.

ADVANTAGES OF
MOLD EXPERT:•• Safe casting conditions
reduction of sticker breakouts
to an absolute minimum•• No manual input necessary
Auto-adaptive algorithms
independent of absolutetemperatures, copper plate
thickness, steel grades andcasting powder•• More than just breakout
prediction
warnings in the event ofabnormal casting conditions
and evaluation of mold powder
behavior and distribution•• More reliable information
automatic detection
and assessment of badthermocouple readings•• Offline analyzing
storage and custom analysisof all mold-related data in one
dedicated system•• Easy integration and upgrades
due to modular design andongoing improvements

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INTRODUCING MOLD EXPERTEXPERT INFORMATION FACILITATES AN “INSIDELOOK”••Temperature••Oscillation data

Mold Expert clients••Primary cooling••Mold level••Casting speed••Alarms and warnings••Friction••Heat flux••Temperature maps••Metallurgical expertise
Mold Expert
server••Operator instructions

Schematic layout of Mold Expert package

MOLD EXPERT COLLECTS AND INTERPRETS RELEVANT
MOLD DATA
Based on the experience gained from nearly 200
installations worldwide with a wide range of castingmachine setups and steel grades, we have upgraded theMold Expert package to a new level of performance.
Mold Expert combines state-of-the-art sticker detection
algorithms with friction and heat-flux derived analysis tools.
Sticker detection algorithms are continuously improved inorder to reduce sticker breakouts and false alarms to anabsolute minimum.
The ease of Mold Expert’s integration into existing
environments has been demonstrated on several occasions.
Thanks to its modular design, the Mold Expert system
can be installed and future extensions and upgrades
implemented without disrupting the production process.
Mold Expert gives production managers and metallurgists
additional expertise in the processes that influencesolidification in the mold.

4MOLD EXPERT FOR BLOOM AND BILLET CASTERS
In order to complete the field of application for the Mold
Expert we additionally offer a solution for billet and bloom
casters.
The main differences to the conventional solution area trimmed hardware concept and adapted softwarearchitecture. Only one server-system for all strands is used
and the experts for all strands are visualized within one
HMI. This helps the operator to compare the strands andeasily identify the one that is not working properly.
The new thermocouple design enables reliable temperature
measurement in tube molds of bloom casters whichguarantees the highest level of sticker detection.
For billet molds the installation of thermocouples istypically too expensive, but with green (set-point) bands
for friction and heat flux and a comprehensive storage of allother caster data, the operator gets a closer look into themold and the metallurgist knows enough data for tuning
the caster.

THERMOCOUPLE CHECKER
FULL FUNCTION CHECK PRIOR TO PUTTING
MOLD INTO OPERATION

Thermocouple Checker for improved safety

In order to guarantee constantly excellent results with thebreakout prediction system, all thermocouples have towork properly. For this reason a full function check prior
to operation is indispensable. Based on an accurate test
report and derived measures, plant operators can minimize
downtimes and the quality management is supported byrelevant data. The Thermocouple Checker was developed
to meet these requirements exactly.

DETECTS A NUMBER OF POTENTIAL SOURCES OFERRORThe Thermocouple Checker ensures that only molds withperfectly working thermocouples are used for casting.

MAIN BENEFITS

It is used to test complete molds as well as single copper
plates, preferably in the maintenance shop. The advanced
software ensures the highest possible degree of safety.
EASY OPERATION WITH MENU-GUIDED TEST ROUTINEThe Thermocouple Checker can be operated very easily
by the plant personnel. Thanks to the menu-guided test
routine, no specific expertise is required from the testing
personnel. Visual and acoustic measurement results assist
staff in performing their tasks. Two different testing modes(manual/automatic) give more flexibility in operation.

The thermocouples are checked for open thermocouples,wrong wiring, inverted polarity and bad contact tocopper plate. This way, several potential sources of error
can be detected before the mold is put in operation.
Thermocouple Checker automatically creates a test reportfor handover from the workshop to the factory.

•• Measurement of both, single thermocouples andcomplete molds•• Quick measurement and error location•• Simple operation•• Only one operator necessary•• No manipulation of measurement results•• Operator-configurable HMI5

MOLD EXPERT PACKAGESINDIVIDUAL EXPERTS CAN BE INSTALLEDINDEPENDENTLY OR AS A CONFIGURABLE
PACKAGEBREAKOUT EXPERTBreakout prediction starting at the first heat thanks to auto-adaptivealgorithms based on the Connect & Cast® principle
Auto-adaptive sticker detection and thermal monitoring for optimal
breakout prevention•• Successful sticker detection for the very critical corner areas•• Operator warnings in the event of abnormal temperature distribution such as hot spots and hot areas

FRICTION EXPERT
Online measurement of friction between strand shell and copper platesof the mold•• Evaluation of casting powder behavior•• Calculation of friction coefficient, stress and hot-work•• Online monitoring of oscillator behaviour

HEAT FLUX EXPERT
Online calculation of heat removal for all copper plates and coatings•• Shows important information relating to the solidification processinside the mold•• Immediately indicates cooling problems•• Compares heat fluxes between different mold faces

LEVEL EXPERT
Detailed mathematical analysis of the mold level•• Continuous analysis of mold level frequency spectrum allowing earlier
detection and localization of bulging and roller deformation effects(mold level hunting / unsteady bulging) and free surface waves•• Avoids interruption of a caster sequence through prompt recognitionof clogging or erosion phenomena•• Monitoring of mold level deviation from setpoint (basic statistics)

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OSCILLATION EXPERT
Online monitoring and diagnosis for the oscillator with acceleration
sensors•• Prevents loss of productivity through online recognition of oscillator
malfunction based on 3D acceleration sensor readings•• Supports condition-oriented maintenance based on 3D momentanalysis•• Reproduceable status of oscillator quality when analyzing slab quality

SURFACE EXPERT
Temperature monitoring of casting powder surface•• Provides information to ensure uniform feeding of casting powder•• Designed for combination with automatic powder feeders•• Detects problems with too hot or too cold SEN•• Helps detecting the optimum casting powder thickness•• Improves start-up practice

PROCESS EXPERTGives the operator a green band for optimum values of important casting
parameters such as heat fluxes or mold friction•• Simple operator guidance for abnormal casting conditions•• Database for setpoint values is generated automatically•• Knowledge about current casting condition•• Better technical capabilities during troubleshooting

ANALYSIS TOOLS
Replay Tool for detailed review of automatic or on-demand stored data•• Used for investigating critical situations
Long Time Viewer for analyzing the vast dataset generated by complete
casting sequences•• Easy browsing through a sequence•• Individual setting and storage of plot configurations

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Primetals Technologies Austria GmbHA joint venture of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and partners

Turmstrasse 444031 LinzAustria
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Brochure No.: T03-4-N080-L2-P-V3-EN
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