Billet defects: transverse cracking

formation, prevention and evolution

Jorge Madias and Cristian Genzano

Consultants

metallon, San Nicolas, Argentina

Content
 Introduction
 Characterization
 Evolution
 Formation
 Prevention
 Conclusions
About metallon
 A consulting & training company for the steel
& foundry industry, based in San Nicolas,
Argentina
 Technical assistance
 Open and in company short courses
 Met Lab services
 Library services
 Some references
 ArcelorMittal
 Gerdau
 Ternium
Introduction
 Drivers behing the preparation of the review
 Series of papers on billet defects at AISTech
 Pinholes and blowholes
 Rhomboidity
 End splitting
 Defects in beam blanks
 Transverse cracks-related jobs for several steel
companies
 Aceros Arequipa, Peru
 Acindar (ArcelorMittal Group), Argentina
 Gerdau Aza, Chile
 Gerdau USIBA, Brazil
Introduction
 Surface quality problem that may not be
seen in the billet but gives place to
defects in the rolled product
 Attributed to
 Tensile stresses during casting
 Friction in the mold
 Straightening in low ductility
temperature range
Characterization
 Usually, transverse cracks are small
 Naked view observation requires
sandblasting or shotblasting, at times

Gerdau Aza (Chile), rebar

steel, 130 x 130 mm,
sandblasted
Introduction
 Usually, transverse craks are small
 Well, not in this case…

SIMEC Guadalajara (Mexico),

steel for shapes, 130 x 130
mm, as cast
Characterization
 Usually in the
billet corners or
close
 In an oscillation
mark or close
 Randomly in the Gerdau USIBA (Brasil), low

four corners, or…

carbon boron steel, 120 x 120
mm, nital etching

 Preference for
inner radius
 Intergranular
Acindar,
ArcelorMittal Group
(Argentina), free
cutting steel, 120 x
120 mm, as
Formation mechanism
 Related to tensile stress
 Friction in the mold
 Straightening
 Favored by
 Deep oscillation marks
 More common in submerged casting
 Oscillation parameters
 Mold powder behavior
 Blown grains (large austenitic grains in and
around oscillation marks)
 Network cracks
 Star cracks
 Early precipitation of nitrides
 Low ductility of the steel
Formation mechanism
 Related to tensile stress
 Friction in the mold
 Submerged casting with mold poder
 Recognition through crack surface observation
with SEN and EDS analysis after breakage in
liquid nitrogen

US Steel
Kosice (Czech
Republic), low
carbon steel,
220 x 1295
mm
Formation mechanism
 Earlier precipitation
of nitrides /
carbonitrides
 In general, the higher
the concentration of
C, N and carbonitride
formers, the higher
the precipitation
start temperature
 Kinetics is slow
 Ti (C, N)
 Nb (C, N)
 BN
Calculation of precipitation start
 AlN temperature based in
concentration of C / N and
Formation mechanism
 Intrisic low ductility
 Leaded free cutting steels
Evolution during rolling
 A transverse defect becoming a longitudinal
one

Acindar, ArcelorMittal Group (Argentina), free cutting steel, 60

mm bar, rolled from 120 x 120 mm billet
Evolution during rolling
 A transverse defect becoming a longitudinal
one
 Making transverse cracks in a billet
Evolution during rolling
 A transverse defect becoming a longitudinal
one
 Rolling artificial transverse cracks

 Comparing with real transverse cracks-related

defects
Evolution during rolling
 Bar / wire rod met lab samples
 Scale development inside the crack
 Decarburization
 For medium and high carbon steel
 At times, globular oxides around the
defect
Evolution during rolling
 Recognizing former corner transverse
cracks in the rolled product (low
reduction)
 Reagents revealing former solidification
structure
 Oberhoffer, Béchet Beaujard, Stead, “ingot
pattern”

Acindar, ArcelorMittal Group (Argentina), free

cutting steel, 60 mm bar, rolled from 120 x 120
mm billet
Evolution during rolling
 Recognizing former corner transverse
cracks in the rolled product (high
reduction)
 Reagents revealing former solidification
structure
 Oberhoffer, Béchet Beaujard, Stead, “ingot
pattern”

ArcelorMittal Ruhrort (Germany), free cutting

steel, wire rod rolled from a bloom
Prevention
 Modeling to predict temperature in the
billet corners
T e m p e ra tu ra [ºC ] 2 Z O N A S D E E N F R IA M IE N T O S E C U N D A R IO
1570
P5

P1 P2 P3 P4
1370

I d e n t if ic a c ió n d e
p u n to s g r a f ic a d o s 1170 P1

P5 P2
1 0 5 0 ºC

970
P 1 ( 0 , 60 )
P 2 (2 0 , 60 )
P4 P 3 (4 0 , 60 )
P 4 (6 0 , 60 )
770 P 5 ( 0 , 0 )

700 2500 4500 6500 8500 10500

A v a n c e [m m ]
Prevention
 Rounded corners
 Formerly not possible due to longitudinal
corner cracking

6 mm radius 16 mm radius
Prevention
 Some reported cases
Plant, Casting Billet Strands Radii Steel type Problem features Measures taken
Country mode size (m) Metallurgy Operation Mold Sec.
(mm) cooling

Gerdau Usiba, Open, oil 120 x 5 6,7 10B04 In deep oscillation Decrease N2 Higher Shorter softer
Brazil 120 marks; random casting stroke
location; intergranular speed and NST
penetration
Gerdau Aza, Open, oil 130 x 3   1541 Only visible after     Improve  
Chile 130 sandblasting, random oil lubric.
location
Acindar, Submerged, 120 x 6 7 12L14 Y defects in large bars       softer
Argentina mold powder 120 for machining test
CSC, Taiwan   Bloom     50BV30 Inner radius corners; in Decrease Al,     flow
oscillation marks; N2<80ppm, rate<
network cracks, Ti/N> 3.42 0.3 l/kg
intergranular  
penetration
Gerdau Submerged, 240 x 3 9  20MnCrS5 Inner radius corners;   Higher   softer
Charqueadas, mold powder 240 (LCAK – network cracks (just casting
Brazil Nb) visible after etching) speed
Lech Submerged, 145 x     B-Ti steel Outer radius*       Dry
Stahlwerke, Mold powder 145 casting
Germany
Conclusions
 Transverse cracks in billets are not always easy
to be observed on as cast billet surface
 By further rolling they deform forming a scab in
one end and a crack (Y defect)
 With high reduction the scab may be minimized or
even disappear
 Tensile stress on the billet is the main cause
 Factors facilitating transverse crack development
 Friction in the mold
 Blown grain
 Deep oscillation marks
 Network cracks
 Straightening within low ductility range
 Steel with inherent low ductility
 Early precipitation of carbonitrides / nitrides
Conclusions
 Prevention
 Metallurgical measures
 Decrease precipitation start temperature
 Improve hot ductility
 Decrease oscillation mark depth
 Control residuals (network cracks)
 Operating measures
 Increase casting speed
 Mold –related measures
 Improve lubrication (oil/mold powder)
 Decrease oscillation mark depth
 Secondary cooling
 Decrease specific water flowrate
Jorge Madias, Cristian Genzano

metallon, San Nicolas, Argentina

jorge.madias@metallon.com.ar