ROLL PASS EVALUATION FOR 3-DIMENSIONAL SECTION ROLLING USING A SIMPLIFIED FINITE-ELEMENT METHOD

A simplified finite element (FE) method for modelling the complex thre e-dimensional deformation inherent in section rolling is presented. Th is simplified FE technique has been developed by considering a single slice of material of finite thickness passing through the roll gap, to avoid performing a full three-dimensional finite element analysis. On ly one layer of a finite element mesh (consisting of brick elements) i s generated on the slice of the process material taken from the three- dimensional workpiece. The slice of material is considered to be compr essed using a pair of grooved dies, which have the same profiles as th e rolls. In order to make this simplified pseudo-two-dimensional model more realistic, the speed of compression of the grooved dies is modif ied according to the vertical component of the peripheral roll velocit y within the contact zone. Equations have been developed to approximat e the roll separation force. This method is applied to perform a pre- and post-rolling FE analysis for the rolling process of a special sect ion produced at British Steel's Skinningrove Works. The roll pass desi gn and the stability of the rolling process are evaluated according to the results obtained from the FE predictions. Comparisons between FE results and experiment are made where possible.