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Rolled strips
Rolling operation
Rolling is the process of reducing the thickness (or changing cross
sections) of a long work-piece by compressive forces applied
through a set of rolls. The process is similar to the rolling of dough
with a rolling pin to reduce its thickness. Rolling which accounts
for about 90% of all metals produces by metal working processes,
was first developed in the late 1500s. The basic operation is flat
rolling, or simply rolling, where the rolled products are flat plate
and sheets.
Plates, which are generally regarded as having a thickness greater
than 6 mm are used for structural applications such as machines
structures, boilers, bridges, ship hulls and nuclear vessels. Plates
can be as much as 0.3 m thick for the supports for large boilers,
150mm for reactor vessels and 100-125 mm for battleships and
tanks.
Sheets are generally less than 6 mm thick; they are provided to
manufacturing facilities as flat pieces or as strip in coils for further
processing into various products. They are used for automobile
and aircraft bodies, appliances, food and beverage containers and
kitchen and office equipment. Commercial aircraft fuselages-
minimum of 1mm thick of Aluminum alloy sheet. Aluminum foil
used for wraping-0.008 mm thickness.
The Rolls
Rotating rolls perform two main functions:
Pull the work into the gap between them by friction between work part
and rolls.
Figure: (a) Schematic illustration of the flat-rolling process. (b) Friction forces acting on strip
surfaces. (c) Roll force, F, and the torque, T, acting on the rolls. The width of the strip, w,
usually increases during rolling
A metal strip of thickness h0 enters the roll gap and is reduced to thickness hf by
a pair of rotating rolls—each roll being powered individually by electric motors.
Flat-Rolling Process
The surface speed of the rolls is Vr the velocity of the strip increases
from its entry value, V0, as it moves through the roll gap, in the same
way fluid must flow faster as it moves through a converging channel.
The velocity of the strip is highest as the exit from the roll gap;
denoted as Vf. Because the surface speed of the roll is constant,
there is relative sliding between the roll and the strip along the arc
of contact in the roll gap, L.
At one point along the contact length, called the neutral point or no
slip point, the velocity of the strip is the same as that of the roll. To
the left of this point, the roll moves faster than the strip; to the right
of this point, the strip moves faster than the roll. Hence the
frictional forces, which oppose motion, act on the strip shown in the
figure (b).
Flat Rolling
Frictional Forces : The rolls pull the material into the roll gap
through a net frictional force of the material. The draft,
defined as the difference between the initial and final
thickness which is the function of the coefficient of friction
and the roll radius R.
1. Reducing friction
2. Using smaller-diameter rolls, to reduce the contact area
3. Taking smaller reduction per pass, to reduce the contact area
4. Rolling at elevated temperatures, to lower the strength of the material
5. Another effective method of reducing roll forces is to apply longitudinal
tension to the strip during rolling. Because they require high roll forces,
tensions are important particularly in rolling high-strength metals.
Tensions can be applied to the strip either at the entry zone (back
tension), at the exit zone (front tension), or both.
Flat Rolling
Figure: Increase in strip width (spreading) in flat rolling. Note that similar
spreading can be observed when dough is rolled with a rolling pin.
Flat-Rolling Practice: Hot rolling
The initial rolling steps (breaking down) of the material typically is done by
hot rolling.
Hot rolling converts the cast structure to a wrought structure with
finer grains and enhanced ductility, both of which result from the breaking
up of brittle grain boundaries and the closing up of internal defects
(especially porosity).
Figure: Schematic
illustration of typical
defects in flat rolling:
(a) wavy edges; (b)
zipper cracks in the
center of the strip; (c)
edge cracks; (d)
alligatoring, and (e)
center split.
(e)
Defects in Flat Rolling
Figure.
Figure.
Defects in Flat Rolling
Figure.
Because the quality of the edges of the sheet is important in sheet metal forming
operations, edge defects in rolled sheets are often removed by shearing and
slitting operations.
Various rolling processes and mills
Shape rolling
Straight and long structural shapes (such as channels, I-
beams, railroad rails, and solid bars) are formed at
elevated temperatures by shape rolling (profile rolling), in
which the stock goes through a set of specially designed
rolls.
Cold shape rolling also can be done with the starting
materials in the shape of wire with various cross-
sections.
Following figure shows the Steps in the shape rolling of
an I-beam part. Various other structural sections, such as
channels and rails, also are rolled by this kind of process.
Shape Rolling of an H-section part
Figure: (a) Schematic illustration of a ring-rolling operation. Thickness reduction results in an increase
in the part diameter. (b-d) Examples of cross-sections that can be formed by ring-rolling.
Thread Rolling
Thread rolling is a cold-forming process by which straight
or tapered threads are formed on round rods or wire by
passing them between dies.
Threads are formed on the rod or wire with each stroke
of a pair of flat reciprocating dies.
Figure shows Thread rolling processes: (a) and (b)
reciprocating flat dies; (c) two-roller dies; (d) A collection
of thread-rolled parts made economically at high
production rates.
Thread-Rolling Processes
Figure: Thread-rolling processes: (a) and (b) reciprocating flat dies; (c) two-roller dies. Threaded
fasteners, such as bolts, are made economically by these processes at high rates of production.
Source: Courtesy of Central Rolled Thread Die Co.
Machined and Rolled Threads
Figure: (a) Features of a machined or rolled thread. Grain flow in (b) machined and (c) rolled
threads. Unlike machining, which cuts through the grains of the metal, the rolling of threads
imparts improved strength because of cold working and favorable grain flow.
Roll/Tube Piercing
(The Mannesmann Process)
Rotary tube piercing is a hot-working process for making long, thick-wall
seamless pipe and tubing. It is based on the principle that when a round bar
is subjected to radial compressive forces, tensile stresses develop at the center
of the bar. When it is subsequently subjected to cyclic compressive stresses, a
cavity begins to form at the center of the bar.
Figure: Cavity formation in a solid, round bar and its utilization in the rotary tube-piercing
process for making seamless pipe and tubing.
(The Mannesmann mill was developed in the 1880s.)
Tube Rolling
The diameter and thickness of pipes and tubing can be reduced by tube rolling,
which utilizes shaped rolls.
Figure: Schematic illustration of various tube-rolling processes: (a) with fixed mandrel; (b) with
moving mandrel; (c) without mandrel; and (d) pilger rolling over a mandrel and a pair of
shaped rolls. Tube diameters and thicknesses can also be changed by other processes, such as
drawing, extrusion, and spinning.