Steelmaking · Buyer's guide
A tundish receives steel from the ladle and feeds the continuous caster. Its internal flow layout, refractory layers and outlet-control system must work together. This page separates a published single-strand modelling study from manufacturer lining and flow-control options, so the study’s results do not become specifications for an unrelated vessel.
01
Warzecha and co-authors, writing in ISIJ International, sampled billets cast from an operating tundish in a Polish steel plant rather than from a water model. It is a trough-type tundish with six nozzles and a nominal capacity of 15 tons, with an andalusite-tile lining, a high-magnesite gunite working layer and an impact pad, used for sequences of more than ten heats [4].
In the base layout, billet samples from nozzle no. 3, the outlet nearest the inlet, held the highest amount of inclusions. The authors attribute this to a short circuit between the inlet and that nozzle; their LES model, run with a shroud inlet velocity of 2.2 m/s, showed the impact pad directing steel to the inner nozzles 3 and 4 [4].
After a turbulence inhibitor was fitted, repeat plant measurements on billets from three strands showed much smaller differences between strands; the model then placed the highest inclusion counts at nozzles 2 and 5 instead. Samples were 53 × 28 mm sections cut from 160 × 160 billets [4]. For a multi-strand caster, ask for per-strand cleanliness data measured before and after any flow-control change, not only one residence-time figure for the vessel.
02
The research paper discusses how internal devices alter flow and opportunities for inclusion flotation. Its own comparison measures residence-time distributions and temperature fields; it does not establish a guaranteed inclusion-removal result for an operating steel plant [1].
| Device | What it does | Watch for |
|---|---|---|
| Weir | Divides the inlet and outlet chambers, calms turbulence in the inlet chamber and reduces surface waves at the outlet [1] | A weir on its own can produce short-circuit flow [1] |
| Dam | Directs flow upwards to prolong residence time and can eliminate the short-circuit flow a weir creates [1] | Its effect depends on what else is installed (see the study below) |
| Turbulence inhibitor | Absorbs the high-velocity ladle stream, protecting the lining and limiting slag entrainment at the steel/slag interface [1] | In one configuration it weakened the effect of the dam [1] |
| Gas curtain | Bubbles can assist flotation of small inclusions; the paper discusses this mechanism and models how a curtain changes the flow [1]. | Require caster-specific validation, gas-distribution design and steel-quality acceptance criteria. A smaller computed dead zone is not a measured cleanliness guarantee. |
03
Use these five component groups to separate vessel fabrication, refractory supply and outlet equipment in the order. This is a functional assembly reference, not a model manufacturing BOM or a list of interchangeable spares.
| Component group | Role in the assembly | Material and interface evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Refractory lining | Working layer contacts steel and slag; the backup layer is a separate specification. | Vesuvius lists MgO dry vibratable working products and high-alumina backup castables. A nozzle material is not evidence for the entire working lining [2]. |
| Submerged entry nozzle / shroud | Introduces and distributes steel below the mould surface and helps prevent reoxidation. | Vesuvius distinguishes one-piece SEN from two-piece nozzle/shroud arrangements. It describes isostatically pressed products and occasional clay-graphite constructions; select the actual grade and joint design for the caster [3]. |
| Stopper or slide-gate system | Adjusts flow from tundish to mould; this function must not be assigned to the SEN alone. | Vesuvius offers both stopper and slide-gate configurations, with application-specific nose mixes or plate refractories. Confirm mechanism, actuator, refractory geometry and emergency shut-off scope [3]. |
| Steel shell | Forms the vessel envelope supporting the refractory package. | The cited sources do not establish the shell steel grade, thickness, weld acceptance or lifting details for an offered vessel. Obtain the certified assembly and fabrication specification; the old anonymous A516/S355 and thickness claims are not retained. |
| Dams, weirs and turbulence-control internals | Redirect internal flow and absorb the incoming stream according to the selected layout. | Their location and geometry must be validated together. The paper’s dimensions belong to its single-strand case; material grade and fixing details require the refractory supplier’s drawing [1]. |
04
Sheng and Chen studied a 51-tonne single-strand prototype and a 1:2 water model. The table is their non-isothermal CFD prediction for that prototype, not a factory performance table. Intermixing time means the interval between 0.2 and 0.8 on the cumulative tracer-response curve; it is not mean residence time or a universal grade-change rejection interval [1].
In the isothermal water experiments, adding a turbulence inhibitor to the weir-and-dam layout raised dead volume from 14% to 19%. In the heated prototype CFD it fell from 15% to 7%. The authors attribute the different trend to thermal buoyancy. Ask which thermal boundary conditions, scale and validation support the proposed layout; the two results do not describe the same physical experiment [1].
The paper proposes a compromise layout: inlet-to-weir distance 1200 mm, weir-to-dam or gas-curtain distance 600 mm, bottom clearance 150 mm and dam height 360 mm. These dimensions belong to its geometry and comparisons, rather than an independently established optimum for every caster. Its CFD also omits the slag layer; do not treat it as a plant slag-entrainment test [1].
05
Tundishes use a disposable working lining over a longer-lived safety (permanent) lining. One refractory maker's range shows the choices [2].
For hydrogen-sensitive steel, ask for the selected grade’s moisture and binder data and its approved installation, drying and start-up instructions. Product-family descriptions do not replace that procedure.
06
Define total caster throughput separately from each strand’s flow, and specify drying and preheating as an approved procedure. The fields below identify what the offered vessel and refractory package must establish; they are not category-wide operating limits.
| Field | What must be defined |
|---|---|
| Working capacity | State steel inventory at the specified bath level and usable operating range. The research prototype is 51 tonnes; it does not establish a universal capacity range [1]. |
| Total throughput | Give total caster demand, strand count and operating variations; do not borrow the old 1–3.5 t/min range. |
| Lining material | Identify working and backup layers separately, with named grades, thicknesses and application process [2]. |
| Shell material | Provide grade, thickness, structural and lifting design, weld inspection and drawing revision. No shell grade has been verified for a selected vessel. |
| Slide-gate size / nozzle interfaces | Specify the actual mechanism and dimensional drawing, bore, seating and tube-change interfaces. An anonymous DN label cannot establish compatibility [3]. |
| Slide-gate plate material | Match the refractory grade and plate geometry to casting conditions; Vesuvius describes application-specific and zirconia-inserted options, not one universal composition [3]. |
| Preheat temperature | Use the selected lining’s approved drying/preheat procedure and acceptance measurements; the old 1100–1200 °C claim has no established basis. |
| Heating rate | Require the product-specific ramp and hold stages rather than one generic heating rate. |
| Thermal homogeneity | Define measuring locations, transient or steady conditions and acceptable spread. The paper models temperature distribution; it does not prove a universal ±5 °C guarantee [1]. |
| Working-lining service life | State grades, sequence, thermal cycles, wear criteria and guarantee basis; do not promise an anonymous number of heats. |
| Slide-gate service life | Agree grade, sequence, wear/replacement limits and plate or tube-change scope separately from lining campaign life [3]. |
| Preheat fuel and demand | Specify the station, available fuel and burner scope; request the heat balance and consumption basis. The old gas-flow range is unverified. |
| Cover | Agree cover construction, refractory, openings and interfaces in the assembly drawing; a generic steel/fibre description is not a confirmed build. |
| Capacity accuracy | Clarify whether this means weighing-system accuracy, nominal vessel tolerance or level-to-volume calibration. The original ±2% claim lacks a defined measurement basis. |
| Molten-steel temperature | Specify grade, liquidus/superheat basis, inlet and outlet conditions and sequence transients. The old 1520–1560 °C window is not a universal operating boundary. |
| Individual-strand steel flow | Give each outlet’s demand and balancing/control requirements separately from total caster throughput [3]. |
| Gate or stopper operating range | Request the valve characteristic, actuator/control interfaces and validated shut-off strategy. No universal 20–80% opening rule is established [3]. |
07
A tundish order can split between a steel vessel maker and a refractory supplier; make the interfaces explicit.
08
Paste it into your enquiry below or into an email to a maker, then replace every bracket.
Product: continuous-casting tundish [vessel / refractory package / both], quantity [units] Caster: [slab / bloom / billet], strands [n], casting speed [m/min], ladle size [t] Tundish: capacity [t], steel bath depth [mm], drawing attached [yes/no] Steel grades: [list], cleanliness target [inclusion size or ppm], hydrogen-sensitive [yes/no] Outlet: [stopper / slide gate], SEN or shroud drawing [revision], tube change [scope] Internal flow layout: [weir / dam / turbulence inhibitor / gas curtain], request modelling basis [water model / CFD] Working lining: [spray / dry vibratable], start-up [preheated / non-preheated], sequence length [heats] Safety lining: [castable type], target campaign life [ ] Preheating: burner or station supplied [yes/no] Delivery to [country], installation supervision [yes/no], target date [date]
See source-checked manufacturers Send an enquiry through CNFX
Manufacturer profiles associated with Tundish.
Explore company information and manufacturing capabilities, then discuss the scope of your project with a relevant supplier.
It absorbs the high-velocity stream from the ladle, protecting the lining and reducing turbulence at the steel/slag interface that can cause slag entrainment. [1]
A weir can create short-circuit flow, while a dam redirects flow upwards. In the paper’s heated prototype CFD, bare and weir-plus-dam dead volumes were 20% and 15%. Those values do not establish the correct geometry for another tundish. [1]
The paper discusses bubble-assisted small-inclusion flotation and predicts changes in flow with a gas curtain. Its comparison is not an operating-plant inclusion-removal test. Require steel-grade, gas-delivery and cleanliness validation before specifying one. [1]
Vesuvius offers sprayed working products and MgO-based dry vibratable products. Compare the named grade’s application and start-up procedure, moisture and binder data against your steel grades and plant practice; family descriptions do not provide a complete operating procedure. [2]
Vesuvius attributes a combined drying/preheating cycle to BASILITE QuickStart and says it avoids an additional 2–2.5-hour drying cycle. This does not authorize skipping drying for another product; use the selected refractory’s approved procedure. [2]
In an ISIJ International plant study of a six-nozzle, 15-ton billet tundish, Warzecha and co-authors measured much smaller strand-to-strand differences in billet inclusions after a turbulence inhibitor was installed. The result describes that vessel only. [4]
Sources checked 2026-10-12. Standards bodies and regulations define the requirements; manufacturer pages show published ranges for those models only. CNFX does not certify products or suppliers.
Ask for use case, specification boundaries, supplier type, and RFQ preparation information for this product.
Compare manufacturer profiles with relevant product and process capability.