JPH01313137A - Apparatus for manufacturing semi-solidified metal slurry - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To improve temp. controllability by arranging a heating chamber apart from a cooling chamber in apparatus for forming molten metal into semi-solidified metal slurry by rotating a stirrer and arranging the stirrer and a vessel as shiftable at interval between the heating chamber and the cooling chamber. CONSTITUTION:By working hydraulic cylinders 18, 24, the vessel 2 and the stirrer 3 are shifted to the heating chamber 14 side and by rotating a vertical shape 23, the stirrer 3 is rotated and by conducting electricity to a heating element 20, the heating is executed, and heat medium in a heat medium supplying tube 16 is circulated. The stirrer 3 with the heating element 20 and the vessel 2 with the heat medium are heated. The molten metal 19 is supplied into the vessel 2 from supplying tube 9 or 10. While holding the temp. of the molten metal 19 to solid-liquid coexisting temp. range, stirred shearing force is given by rotating the stirrer 3 to make the semi-solidified metal slurry. In the case of needing cooling, the stirrer 3 and the vessel 2 are shifted to the cooling chamber 15 side and cooled and held to the prescribed semi-solidified slurry, it is discharged by opening the discharging hole 26. By this method, the excellent temp. controllability and heat efficiency can be obtd.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Industrial Field of Application] The present invention relates to a semi-solid metal slurry manufacturing apparatus.

[Prior art] In order to obtain a semi-solid metal slurry in which as many fine spherical crystal grains as possible are present in the molten metal in the solid-liquid coexistence temperature range in a metal alloy containing two or more metallic elements, it is necessary to start melting from the point of solidification. There is a method in which fine spherical crystal grains are uniformly mixed in the molten metal by applying stirring shear force to the metal while controlling the temperature to crush the growing dendrite crystal structure.

The apparatus for carrying out the above method uses a heating device and a cooling device installed around the outer periphery of the container in which the molten metal is stored, while maintaining the temperature of the molten metal within its solid-liquid coexistence temperature range. It is known that a semi-solid metal slurry is produced by stirring molten metal by rotating the slurry. Regarding such slurry manufacturing equipment, for example, the patent application filed in 1986 by the applicant
15177, which integrates a heating device and a cooling device by alternately arranging heating medium supply pipes for circulating a heat medium and cooling medium supply pipes for circulating a cooling medium. Proposed.

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] By the way, in a slurry manufacturing apparatus that integrates a heating device and a cooling device in this way, the heat generated from the heating device and the cooling device heats the cooling device and also heats the cooling device. Since it acts to cool the heating device, there is a risk that the temperature controllability or the thermal efficiency of the heating device and the cooling device will deteriorate, especially when switching between heating and cooling is performed complicatedly and continuously.

This invention was made against this background).
It is an object of the present invention to provide a semi-solid metal slurry manufacturing apparatus which has excellent temperature controllability and thermal efficiency without the heat generated from a heating device and a cooling device influencing each other.

[Means for Solving the Problems] The present invention provides a heating device and a cooling device that are separated into a heating chamber and a cooling chamber separated from each other, and a slurry for stirring the molten metal and a container in which the molten metal is stored. The above problem is solved by providing a movable between the heating chamber and the cooling chamber.

[Function] In the above configuration, the molten metal is repeatedly heated and cooled by stirring the molten metal stored in the container with the slurry and moving the container and the slurry back and forth between the heating chamber and the cooling chamber as appropriate. .

Examples] Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

In FIG. 1, reference numeral A denotes a semi-solid metal slurry manufacturing device (hereinafter abbreviated as slurry manufacturing device) according to the present invention, and this slurry manufacturing device A includes a device main body 1 having a top plate Ia, and a device main body 1 having a top plate Ia. A hollow cylindrical container 2 housed inside the main body 1, a slurry 3 disposed facing the container 2, and a slurry drive mechanism 5 housed in the upper casing 4 on the device main body 1. It is roughly composed of:

A cylindrical peripheral wall 8 made of a refractory material 7 provided inside a steel shell 6 is connected to the lower surface of the top plate 1a of the apparatus main body l, and the upper part of the peripheral wall 8 is a cylindrical peripheral wall 8 that equally divides the circumference. A supply pipe 9.10 for supplying molten metal or an additive substance from the outside of the apparatus body 1 to the inside of the container 2 is integrally provided at the location.

These supply pipes 9, 1O extend upward in the radial direction of the peripheral wall 8 at a predetermined angle of inclination from the peripheral wall 8, and their tips end at the device main body 1.
It penetrates the cylindrical outer wall 11 which forms the outermost layer of.

Further, the lower end of the peripheral wall 8 is closed by a partition wall 12, and a heat insulating wall is provided between the partition wall 12 and the supply pipes 9 and IO. 3 is provided to vertically divide the internal space of the apparatus main body l into a heating chamber 14 and a cooling chamber 15. A heat medium supply pipe (heating device) 1G for circulating a heat medium for heating molten metal is buried between the iron skin 6 and the refractory material 7 of the peripheral wall 8 on the heating chamber 14 side, and A cooling medium supply pipe (cooling device) 17 for circulating a cooling medium for cooling the molten metal is buried between the iron skin 6 and the refractory material 7 of the peripheral wall 8.

A fluid pressure cylinder 18 is fixed to the center of the lower surface of the partition wall 12, and a piston rod 18a of the fluid pressure cylinder 18 passes through a through hole 12a formed in the partition wall 12 and passes through the container 12.
The container 2 is connected to the lower surface of the heating chamber 14 and the cooling chamber 15 with the molten metal 19 stored therein.
It is possible to move up and down between.

Then, a cylindrical slurry 3 is placed inside the container 2.
It is arranged coaxially with. This slurry 3 is made of ceramics, and the molten metal stirring section 3a at the bottom thereof is formed in a tapered shape with a polygonal cross section. 20 is embedded. Further, a spline shaft 21 is integrally formed in the −L portion of the slurry 3.

The slurry drive mechanism 5 includes an 1111 bearing 22 fitted in the -F section casing 11, a vertical shaft 23 rotatably supported by the bearing 22 and rotated by a drive device (not shown), and the vertical shaft 23. and a fluid pressure cylinder 24 that is fitted inside the shaft and rotated together with the vertical shaft 23.A spline hole 25 is formed in the vertical shaft 23 upward from its lower end. Starr 3 spline shaft 2! is fitted. Further, the piston rod 24a of the fluid pressure cylinder 24 is connected to the spline shaft 2
This allows the stirrer 3 to move up and down between the heating chamber 14 and the cooling chamber 15 by the operation of the fluid pressure cylinder 24 (expansion and contraction of the piston rod 24a).
Moreover, it is designed to rotate together with the vertical shaft 23 via the spline hole 25 and the spline shaft 21. Note that the working fluid is supplied to the fluid pressure cylinder 24 from a rotary joint (not shown) provided at the upper part of the vertical shaft 23 through a supply path (shown path) formed in the vertical shaft 23. ing. Further, reference numeral 4a in the figure is a gas exhaust pipe provided in the upper casing 4.

Further, a discharge port 26 for the molten metal summer 9 is formed at the lower side of the container 2. As shown in FIG. 2, a guide tube 27 is fitted on the inner periphery of the discharge port 26 with its tip protruding somewhat from the outer periphery of the container 2. As shown in FIG. Further, an operation piece 2 extending toward the outside of the container 2 is provided on the inner end surface of the container 2.
An opening/closing lid 28 having a diameter 8a is provided in close contact with the discharge port 26, and the opening/closing lid 28 is supported by supporting members 29, 30 so as to be movable up and down, so that the discharge port 26 can be opened and closed.

Slurry removal mechanisms 31 having the same configuration are provided on the outer peripheral side of the peripheral wall 8 at positions facing the discharge port 26 at the ascending end and descending end of the container 2 (in the figure, the slurry discharging mechanism 31 is side only). The slurry take-out mechanism 31 consists of two guide shafts 3 fixed to the outer periphery of the peripheral wall 8.
2 and an opening/closing pawl that is connected to a movable part 34a of a linear motion bearing 34 attached to the guide table 33 and is movable in the vertical direction. 35, a duct 36 attached to the lower part of the guide stand 33, a fluid pressure cylinder 38 fixed to the peripheral wall 8 via a support plate 37, and a fluid pressure cylinder 39 attached to the guide stand 33. has been done. The opening/closing claw 35 faces the opening/closing lid 28 through a through hole 40 in the peripheral wall 8, which is formed so as to avoid the cooling medium supply pipe 17 (the heat medium supply pipe 16 on the heating chamber 14 side, see FIG. 1). , an engagement groove 35a is formed at its tip to be engaged with the operation piece 28a of the opening/closing M28. Also, the duct 36
is formed to have a U-shaped cross section, and has a downward slope from the tip inserted into the through hole 40 toward the rear end (not shown), where, for example, semi-solid metal slurry is formed into a plate shape. It is connected to a twin-roll continuous casting machine (not shown) that performs casting.

And the piston rod 37 of the fluid pressure cylinder 37
a is connected to the rear end of the guide stand 33, and thereby the opening/closing claw 3
5 is a retaining groove 35a at the tip of the fluid pressure cylinder 32 (expansion and contraction of the piston rod 32), which opens and closes the lid 28.
The duct 36 reciprocates between a position where it engages with the operating piece 28a and a position where it retreats into the through hole 40.
It reciprocates between a position where it protrudes downward and a position where it retreats into the through hole 40. The piston rod 39a of the fluid pressure cylinder 39 is connected to the upper end of the opening/closing pawl 35, so that the opening/closing pawl 35 is connected to its engagement groove 35a.
is adapted to move up and down together with the opening/closing lid 28 while being engaged with the operating piece 28a of the opening/closing M28.

Next, the operation of the slurry manufacturing apparatus A having the above configuration will be explained with reference to each figure.

In producing a semi-solid metal slurry, first, the fluid pressure cylinder 18.24 is operated to move the container 2 and stirrer 3 to the heating chamber 14 side, and the stirrer 3 is rotated by rotating the vertical shaft 23. Furthermore, the heating element 20 is energized to generate heat, and the heating medium is further circulated through the heating medium supply pipe 16 . As a result, the stirrer 3 and the container 2 are heated to desired temperatures by the heating element 20 and the heating medium, respectively. At this time, a small amount of cooling medium is circulated through the cooling medium supply pipe 17 to maintain it in a pre-cooled state, and the opening/closing claw 35 and the duct 36 are
is retreated into the through hole 4 by the fluid pressure cylinders 38 and 39 to close the discharge port 26.

Once the slurry 3 and container 2 are heated to the desired temperature,
Molten metal 1 is introduced into the container 2 from the supply pipe 9 or the supply pipe IO.
Supply 9. Then, by continuing to rotate the slurry 3 while maintaining the temperature of the molten metal 19 within the solid-liquid coexistence temperature range and applying stirring shear force to the molten metal 19, the growing dendrite crystal structure is crushed into a uniform fine spherical shape. Crystal grains are mixed in the molten metal I9 to form a semi-solid metal slurry, and temperature control during this time is performed as follows.

That is, during stirring by the slurry 3, if the temperature of the molten metal 19 is likely to rise beyond the desired temperature range due to heating, the fluid pressure cylinder 18.24 is operated to move the container 2 and the slurry 3 to the cooling chamber 15 side. At the same time, the power supply to the heating element 20 is stopped, and the cooling medium supply pipe 17 is
A predetermined flow rate of cooling medium is circulated. This allows container 2
is cooled by the cooling medium, and the temperature of the molten metal 19 decreases. Note that during cooling, the heat medium supply pipe 16 is maintained in a preheated state by reducing the flow rate of the heat medium circulating therein. If the temperature of the molten metal 19 is likely to drop below the desired temperature range due to cooling, the fluid pressure cylinder 18
．． 24 to move the container 2 and slurry 3 into the heating chamber 14.
At the same time, energization to the heating element 20 is restarted, and a predetermined flow of 1
circulating the heat medium. As a result, the container 2 is heated by the heat medium, and the temperature of the molten metal 19 is increased. Note that during IJn heat, the cooling medium supply pipe 17 is maintained in a pre-cooled state.

In this way, heating and cooling of the molten metal 19 is repeated as appropriate to form a predetermined semi-solid metal slurry, and then the fluid pressure cylinder 31 of the slurry extractor h'431 is operated to open the engagement groove 352L of the opening/closing claw 35. Operation piece 28 of opening/closing lid 28
a, the duct 36 is advanced below the guide tube 27, and then the hydraulic cylinder 39 is operated to raise the opening/closing pawl 35. As a result, the opening/closing lid 28 is raised and the discharge port 26 is opened, and the semi-solid metal slurry in the container 2 passes through the guide pipe 27 and is discharged into the duct 36. Supplied to the casting machine.

As explained above, the slurry manufacturing apparatus Δ of this embodiment moves the container 2 and the slurry 3 up and down between the heating chamber 14 and the cooling chamber 15 as appropriate while stirring the molten metal 19 stored in the container 2. At the same time, by appropriately adjusting the flow rates of the heat medium and cooling medium circulated through the heat medium supply qg I 6 and the cooling medium supply pipe 17, the molten metal 19 is repeatedly heated and cooled to control its temperature. It is something.

In this case, the heating medium supply pipe 1G and the cooling medium supply pipe I7 are arranged separately into the heating chamber 14 and the cooling chamber 15, respectively, so that the heating of the cooling medium supply pipe 17 by the heating medium supply pipe 16, Or cooling medium supply pipe 17
Therefore, the temperature controllability and thermal efficiency are deteriorated.

In addition, in this embodiment, by providing the heating medium supply pipe 16 and the cooling medium supply pipe 17 at a distance, the following special effects were obtained.

That is, in a slurry manufacturing apparatus that performs heating and cooling using a heat medium and a cooling medium as in this embodiment, conventionally, the supply pipes 16 and 17 are alternately embedded in the peripheral wall 8 so that heating and cooling are performed at the same location. However, in this case, the peripheral wall 8 was repeatedly and rapidly heated and cooled, so a large M stress was generated, and the durability of the peripheral wall 8 was inevitably lowered. However, in this embodiment, since the supply pipes 16 and 17 are embedded in the peripheral wall 8 at a distance, the peripheral wall 8 on the heating chamber 14 side receives only heating, and the peripheral wall 8 on the cooling chamber 15 side receives only cooling. As a result, thermal stress is significantly reduced and durability is significantly improved.

In addition, in this embodiment, especially the heating chamber 14 and the cooling chamber 15,
Although the container 2 and the slurry 3 are connected in the axial direction, the slurry manufacturing apparatus of the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the heating chamber 14 and the cooling chamber 1 are arranged in the three axial directions of the slurry.
If there is not enough space to connect 5,
It is naturally possible to connect the heating chamber 14 and the cooling chamber 15 in the horizontal direction, and to provide the container 2, the slurry 3, and the slurry drive mechanism 5 so as to be movable together in the horizontal direction.

[Effects of the Invention] As explained above, the present invention provides a heating device and a cooling device that are arranged separately in a heating chamber and a cooling chamber that are spaced apart from each other, and that a slurry for stirring the molten metal and a molten metal are stored. Since the container is movable between the heating chamber and the cooling chamber, the heat generated from the heating device and the cooling device do not affect each other, resulting in excellent temperature controllability and thermal efficiency. play.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a side sectional view showing an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a schematic groove diagram of a slurry take-out mechanism. A... Semi-solid metal slurry manufacturing device, 2...
...Container, 3-...Slurry, 14...
・Heating chamber, 15...Cooling chamber,! 6...
Heat medium supply pipe (heating device) 17... Cooling medium supply pipe, 19... Molten metal. Figure 1

Claims (1)

[Claims] It comprises a stirrer rotatably provided around its axis, a container provided opposite the stirrer, and a heating device and a cooling device provided around the container, While the temperature of the stored molten metal is maintained within the solid-liquid coexistence temperature range by the heating device and the cooling device, the stirrer is rotated in the container to apply stirring shear force to the molten metal to form a semi-solid metal slurry. In the semi-solid metal slurry production apparatus for producing semi-solid metal slurry, the heating device and the cooling device are arranged separately in a heating chamber and a cooling chamber spaced apart from each other, and the stirrer and the container are arranged between the heating chamber and the cooling chamber. A semi-solid metal slurry manufacturing device characterized by being movably installed.