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Electroslag remelting cladding (ESRC) with a t-shape current carrying mold was adopted to make a compound roll including a working layer and mandrel. A comprehensive coupled transient model was established to reveal the basic phenomena of electromagnetic fields, flow fields, temperature fields, and multiphase flow. Meanwhile, the movement of the mandrel and working layer relative to the slag pool was simulated by dynamic mesh technology to reveal the interface bonding mechanism. The mechanism is as follows: The temperature of the mandrel increases and the mandrel melts slightly when the mandrel passes through the slag pool. The fusion layer is a mixture of molten steel of mandrel and working layer that is the connector between the mandrel and the working layer. Therefore, the interface bonding quality is dependent on a fusion layer that is affected by the voltage/power. The investigation indicates that the fusion layer thickness is between 2 and 4 mm in the condition of 40 V that benefits from obtaining a good interface bonding quality.

In the present study, a new electroslag cladding method by using of the advanced current supplying mold technology was used for manufacturing the high speed steel (HSS)/ductile cast iron (DCI) composite roll. The graphite morphology, matrix microstructure, elements distribution, carbides morphology, and carbides composition have been investigated by means of optical microscope (OM), scanning electron microscope (SEM), and energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS). With increasing distance from the HSS side, a transition of graphite morphology from naught to existence and from small and dispersed to large and nonuniform was obtained at the interface. It was closely related to the fact that graphite in DCI participated in the phase change and the roll core surface and its nearby positions was heated to a high temperature by the liquid slag during the whole electroslag cladding process. Due to the combined effects of melting and elements diffusion, a significant migration of the alloying elements have occurred through the line scan analysis. Based on this, different types of carbides with the morphology and composition were found at the bonding interface. In addition, no obvious slag inclusions, porosity, shrinkage and other defects at the bonding interface were found. Results of the tensile test also illustrated that the bonding interface had a good quality and it could fully meet the requirements of the roll.

Removal of non-metallic inclusions to CaF2-based slag is one of the most important functions of electroslag remelting. In this work, the dissolution behavior for alumina-based inclusions in CaF2-Al2O3-CaO-MgO-SiO2 slag has been investigated. Results indicate that the diffusion or permeability capacity of slag components into alumina particles is F−, Ca2+, Si4+, Mg2+, from strongest to weakest, for CaF2-Al2O3-CaO-MgO-SiO2 slag. Alumina inclusions react with F− in liquid slag at first and then react with CaO to form xCaO-yAl2O3 system. Subsequently, MgO substitutes for CaO to form a MgO-Al2O3 system layer surrounding the other product and reactant, and then enters the liquid slag. CaF2 can improve the dissolution capacity of slag to alumina inclusions. A complex region was formed between alumina-based particles and the slag, with different areas dominated by CaF2, CaO-Al2O3, CaO-SiO2 and MgO-Al2O3. The dissolution process of alumina particles in slag is different from the formation of compound inclusions originated from the Al-O deoxidization reaction.