Cooling system for a rolling mill

Abstract

A method of cooling a material in a cooling system of a rolling mill using a cooling fluid, which includes the steps of: conveying, by a transportation mechanism, a length of material into the cooling system of a rolling mill; measuring, by a sensor, a speed of the length of material; comparing, by a control system, the measured speed to a setpoint speed, wherein the setpoint speed has a corresponding first flow rate of the cooling fluid; calculating, by the control system, a second flow rate of the cooling fluid based on the comparison, wherein the second flow rate is different from the first flow rate; and applying, to the material in the cooling system, the cooling fluid at the second flow rate.

1 . A method of cooling a material in a cooling system of a rolling mill using a cooling fluid, the method comprising the steps of:
 conveying, by a transportation mechanism, a length of material into the cooling system of a rolling mill;   measuring, by a sensor, a speed of the length of material;   comparing, by a control system, the measured speed to a setpoint speed, wherein the setpoint speed has a corresponding first flow rate of the cooling fluid;   calculating, by the control system, a second flow rate of the cooling fluid based on the comparison, wherein the second flow rate is different from the first flow rate; and   applying, to the material in the cooling system, the cooling fluid at the second flow rate.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1  wherein the second flow rate comprises an adjustment value, wherein the adjustment value is the result of the comparison between the measured speed and the setpoint speed, and further wherein calculating the second flow rate comprises adding the adjustment value to the first flow rate to give the second flow rate. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 2  wherein the adjustment value is a value which minimises a difference between a final temperature of the length of material after the length of material has exited the cooling system and a setpoint temperature. 
     
     
         4 . The method according to  claim 1  wherein the method further comprises:
 measuring, by a first temperature sensor, an initial temperature of the length of material before the length of material has entered the cooling system; 
 comparing the measured temperature to a setpoint temperature; 
 calculating, by the control system, a third flow rate based on the comparison; and 
 combining the third flow rate with the second flow rate. 
 
     
     
         5 . The method according to  claim 1  wherein calculating the first flow rate comprises:
 receiving, by the control system, a set of initial conditions relating to the material; 
 modelling, by the control system and using the set of initial conditions, a cooling process of the material; and 
 calculating, by the control system, the first flow rate based on the modelled cooling process. 
 
     
     
         6 . The method according to  claim 5  wherein the modelling further comprises:
 measuring, by a second temperature sensor, a final temperature of the length of material after the length of material has exited the cooling system; 
 comparing, by the control system, the measured final temperature to a predicted final temperature; 
 calculating, by the control system, a difference between the measured final temperature and the predicted final temperature; 
 modelling an enhanced cooling process of the material using the set of initial conditions and the difference; 
 calculating, by the control system, a fourth flow rate based on the modelled enhanced cooling process; and 
 combining the fourth flow rate with the second flow rate. 
 
     
     
         7 . The method according to  claim 1  wherein the measuring, by a sensor, a speed of the length of material comprises measuring the speed of the length of material within the cooling system. 
     
     
         8 . The method according to  claim 1  wherein the second flow rate  30  comprises a plurality of flow references and the cooling system comprises a plurality of spray headers, and wherein the step of applying the cooling liquid at the second flow rate comprises:
 applying, to the material by each of the plurality of spray headers, the cooling fluid according to the corresponding flow reference of said spray header. 
 
     
     
         9 . A system configured to cool a material in a rolling mill comprising:
 a transportation mechanism configured to convey a length of material into a cooling apparatus of a rolling mill;   a sensor configured to measure a speed of the length of material;   a control system configured to:   compare the measured speed to a setpoint speed, wherein the setpoint speed has a corresponding first flow rate of the cooling fluid;   calculate a second flow rate of the cooling fluid based on the comparison, wherein the second flow rate is different from the first flow rate; and   applying, to the material in the cooling system, the cooling fluid at the second flow rate.   
     
     
         10 . The apparatus according to  claim 9  further comprising a first temperature sensor configured to measure an initial temperature of a length of material before the length of material has been fed into a cooling system; and wherein the control system is further configured to:
 compare the initial temperature to a setpoint temperature; 
 calculate a third flow rate based on the comparison; and 
 combine the third flow rate with the second flow rate. 
 
     
     
         11 . The apparatus according to  claim 9  wherein the control system is configured to:
 receive a set of initial conditions relating to the material; 
 model, using the set of initial conditions, a cooling process of the material; and 
 calculate the first flow rate based on the modelled cooling process. 
 
     
     
         12 . The apparatus according to  claim 9  further comprising a second temperature sensor configured to measure a final temperature of a length of material after the length of material has exited a cooling system; and wherein the control system is further configured to:
 compare the final temperature to a predicted final temperature; 
 calculate a difference between the measured final temperature and the predicted final temperature; 
 model an enhanced cooling process of the material using the set of initial conditions and the difference; 
 calculate a fourth flow rate based on the modelled enhanced cooling process; and 
 combine the fourth flow rate with the second flow rate. 
 
     
     
         13 . The apparatus according to  claim 9  wherein the sensor is located within the cooling system. 
     
     
         14 . The apparatus according to  claim 9  wherein the cooling system comprises a plurality of spray headers.