Electroslag Remelting (ESR) is a complex process used to produce high quality specialty alloy materials. The quality can be directly correlated to variances in melt rate and immersion depth. Conventional ESR furnaces control these quantities using two independent control loops using proportional changes in current for melt rate and driving the electrode up and down to match a voltage set point for immersion depth. However it is well known that the control loops are highly coupled, i.e. changing the current to account for melt rate deviations changes the voltage depth relationship and vice verse. In addition the noise in measurements of the ESR process can be considerable, forcing conventional controllers to use highly damped responses. A new model-based controller has been developed to embody the coupling and improve responsiveness by using estimates from a reduced-order linear ESR model and the typical process measurements to control melt rate and immersion depth simultaneously. Kalman filtering is used to optimally combine the model estimates of eight process states and the measurements of voltage, current, position and mass to estimate the instantaneous melt rate and immersion depth. Several ESR melts under steady state and transient conditions were conducted to evaluate the performance of the new controller. This paper will discuss the design of the new ESR model and controller and will present experimental results demonstrating its much improved control and responsiveness. While this controller was developed for the ESR process, the effectiveness of model-based control in managing such a complex process with relatively simple equations suggests the approach could be employed for many other processes as well.
Voltage and temperature distributions along the crucible were measured during VAR of 0.81 m diameter Ti-6Al-4V electrode into 0.91 m diameter ingot. These data were used to determine the current distribution along the crucible. Measurements were made for two furnace conditions, one with a bare crucible and the other with a painted crucible. The VAR furnace used for these measurements is of the non-coaxial type, i.e. current is fed directly into the bottom of the crucible through a stool (base plate) contact and exits the furnace through the electrode stinger. The data show that approximately 63% of the current is conducted directly between the ingot and electrode with the remaining conducted between the electrode and crucible wall. This partitioning does not appear to be sensitive to crucible coating. The crucible voltage data were successfully simulated using uniform current distributions for the current conduction zones, a value of 0.63 for the partitioning, and widths of 0.30 and 0.15 m for the ingot/crucible wall and plasma conduction zones, respectively. Successful simulation of the voltage data becomes increasingly difficult (or impossible) as one uses current partitioning values increasingly different from 0.63, indicating that the experimental value is consistent with theory. Current conducted between the ingot and crucible wall through the ingot/wall contact zone may vary during the process without affecting overall current partitioning. The same is true for current conducted through the ingot/stool and stool/crucible contact zones. There is some evidence that the ingot/stool current decreases with increasing ingot length for the case of the bare crucible. Equivalent circuit analysis shows that, under normal conditions, current partitioning is only sensitive to the ratio of the plasma resistance across the annulus to the plasma resistance across the electrode gap, thereby demonstrating the relationship between current partitioning and gap.
The gas-phase {mu}ChemLab{trademark} developed by Sandia can detect volatile organics and semi-volatiles organics via gas phase sampling . The goal of this three year Laboratory Directed Research and Development (LDRD) project was to adapt the components and concepts used by the {mu}ChemLab{trademark} system towards the analysis of water-borne chemicals of current concern. In essence, interfacing the gas-phase {mu}ChemLab{trademark} with water to bring the significant prior investment of Sandia and the advantages of microfabrication and portable analysis to a whole new world of important analytes. These include both chemical weapons agents and their hydrolysis products and disinfection by-products such as Trihalomethanes (THMs) and haloacetic acids (HAAs). THMs and HAAs are currently regulated by EPA due to health issues, yet water utilities do not have rapid on-site methods of detection that would allow them to adjust their processes quickly; protecting consumers, meeting water quality standards, and obeying regulations more easily and with greater confidence. This report documents the results, unique hardware and devices, and methods designed during the project toward the goal stated above. It also presents and discusses the portable field system to measure THMs developed in the course of this project.
A particularly challenging problem associated with vacuum arc remelting occurs when trying to maintain accurate control of electrode melt rate as the melt zone passes through a transverse crack in the electrode. As the melt zone approaches the crack, poor heat conduction across the crack drives the local temperature in the electrode tip above its steady-state value, causing the controller to cut back on melting current in response to an increase in melting efficiency. The difficulty arises when the melt zone passes through the crack and encounters the relatively cold metal on the other side, giving rise to an abrupt drop in melt rate. This extremely dynamic melting situation is very difficult to handle using standard load-cell based melt rate control, resulting in large melt rate excursions. We have designed and tested a new generation melt rate controller that is capable of controlling melt rate through crack events. The controller is designed around an accurate dynamic melting model that uses four process variables: electrode tip thermal boundary layer, electrode gap, electrode mass and melting efficiency. Tests, jointly sponsored by the Specialty Metals Processing Consortium and Sandia National Laboratories, were performed at Carpenter Technology Corporation wherein two 0.43 m diameter Pyromet® 718 electrodes were melted into 0.51 m diameter ingots. Each electrode was cut approximately halfway through its diameter with an abrasive saw to simulate an electrode crack. Relatively accurate melt rate control through the cuts was demonstrated despite the observation of severe arc disturbances and loss of electrode gap control. Subsequent to remelting, one ingot was sectioned in the "as cast" condition, whereas the other was forged to 0.20 m diameter billet. Macrostructural characterization showed solidification white spots in regions affected by the cut in the electrode.
A new controller has been designed for vacuum arc remelting titanium alloys based on an accurate, low order, nonlinear, melting model. The controller adjusts melting current and electrode drive speed to match estimated gap and melt rate with operator supplied reference values. Estimates of gap and melt rate are obtained by optimally combining predictions from the model with measurements of voltage, current, and electrode position. Controller tests were carried out at Timet Corporation's Henderson Technical Laboratory in Henderson, Nevada. Previous test results were used to correlate measured gap to voltage and current. A controller test melt was performed wherein a 0.279 m diameter Ti-6Al-4V electrode was melted into 0.356 m diameter ingot. Commanded melt rate was varied from 20 to 90 g/s and commanded gap was held at 1.5 cm. Because no measure of electrode weight was available on the test furnace, electrode position data were analyzed and the results used to determine the actual melt rate. A gap-voltage-current factor space model was used to check estimated gap. The controller performed well, and both melt rate and electrode gap control were successfully demonstrated.