ROLL SPEED SET-UP IN HOT STRIP FINISHING ROLLING MILL

Seong-Cheol Hong

Rolling Technology & Process Control Research Group

Technical Research Laboratories, POSCO
Tel: +82-54-220-6316
Email: schong1@posco.com

Abstract: Hot strip finishing mill is initially set up with rolling conditions such as roll
speed, roll gap, and cooling pattern obtained by a set-up model. To improve the accuracy
of initial roll speed setting for a 7-stand finishing mill, an equation for predicting forward
slip and a compensation method for initial roll speed setting were proposed and applied
for No.1 Hot Strip Mill at Pohang Steel Works, Pohang, Korea. As the results, mass flow
was improved and width error for strip head-end part caused by excessive strip tension
was decreased largely. Copyright © 2007 IFAC

Keywords: hot rolling mill, roll speed, forward slip.

1. INTRODUCTION
The purpose of hot rolling is to turn the slabs of 250
mm thickness produced in a continuous casting
process into the strips of thickness 1.0-20 mm. As
described in Fig.1, A hot strip rolling mill is
composed of a reheating furnace, a roughing mill, a
finishing mill, a run-out table, and a coiler. Slabs are
heated in the reheating furnace and then rolled on the
roughing mill which reduces the thickness of sheet
bars to 30-60 mm. after rough rolling; the strip is
further rolled by the finishing mill. The rolled strip is
cooled down by spraying water in the run-out table
and coiled by the down coiler. In addition, the final
product may be processed through a cold rolling mill
in order to produce thinner steel sheet.
This paper focuses exclusively on the finishing mill
that consists of six or seven stands. Each stand has
two work rolls and two large backup rolls inside a
mill housing. The work rolls perform the reduction
of the strip under the support of the backup rolls that
are pushed down by electrical screws or hydraulic
cylinders. The majority of the power to decrease the
thickness of the strip comes from one main drive per
stand which turns the work rolls, and whose speed is
used as a manipulated variable. Loopers are installed
between stands to store some strip in order that
disturbance does not cause the strip to become too
loose or tight and to measure the variations of the
mass flow of the strip. A perfect looper keeps the
strip tension constant and hence decouples upstream
stands from downstream ones. At each stand and
interstand are sensors to measure roll gap, rolling
force and looper angle, from which the strip gauge
and tension are estimated. Also at the exit of the mill
are various sensors to measure the process variables
such as thickness, profile, temperature, etc.
The process control for finishing rolling is divided
into three phases, mill set-up, real-time control, and
set-up model learning. Mill set-up presets the initial
settings of the mill parameters such as roll gap and
roll speed using a mathematical set-up model before
a sheet bar (at roughly 1100°C in temperature for
mild steel) enters the process. Real-time control takes
over once milling starts and includes automatic
gauge control, rolling speed control, and looper
tension control. The previously set parameter values
are dynamically adjusted as the strip thickness, roll
gap, rolling force, looper angle are measured during
milling. After milling finishes, the prediction errors
of the set-up model are used to update the parameters
of the model for the next strip in model learning.
 Down Coiler Run-out Table Finishing Mill
Fig. 1. A typical finishing rolling mill
The initial rolling conditions are not perfect due to
various reasons. If the errors are small, real time
controllers can usually compensate, but large errors
lead to mass flow unbalance, operation fault, quality
decline, and cost increase. Of a particular interest is
the precise setting of roll speed, since the high
accuracy of the roll speed setting is essential for mass
flow continuity and product quality. A roll speed is
calculated from the target strip speed at the exit of a
rolling stand and a forward slip computed by the set-
up model to consider the slippage between a strip and
a roll. Therefore, the prediction accuracy of the
forward slip is very important. In most steel works
around the world, the forward slip is usually
predicted using mathematical formulas based on the
metallurgical and mechanical knowledge
accumulated through decades of research and
development. The forward slip is influenced by
incoming thickness, reduction ratio, friction
coefficient, etc (Hum, et al., 1996; Kwak, et al.,
2002; Piispanen, 1978). Friction coefficient is known
to be affected by working roll parameters such as roll
speed, roll surface, lubricant oil (Jarl, 1988;
Yamashita, et al., 1987) and the friction coefficient in
the roll bite is not uniform (Liu, et al., 2001).
Therefore, getting the precise forward slip is not easy.
To improve the accuracy of the roll speed setting for
a 7-stand finishing mill, a regression equation for
predicting forward slip and a compensation method
for initial roll speed setting were proposed in this
paper and applied for No.1 Hot Strip Mill at Pohang
Steel Works, Pohang, Korea.
Standi+1 Standi
Vsi+1 Vsi
Looper
Looper
Controller
Manual
Operation
Fig. 2. Roll speed setting & control in a finishing
rolling mill
Roughing Mill Reheating Furnace
2. ROLL SPEED SET-UP AND CONTROL
A roll speed is calculated from target strip
thicknesses, the target strip speed at the exit of last
stand, and a forward slip computed by the set-up
model to consider the slippage between a strip and a
roll as follows.
Vsl * htl
Vri = (1)
(1 + f i ) * ht i
Where, Vr = roll speed, Vs = strip speed, ht = target
thickness, f = forward slip, the suffix ‘i’ indicates
stand number, and the suffix ‘l’ means last stand.
As depicted in Fig. 2, the initial roll speed is adjusted
by a looper control and an operator during milling.
Loopers are installed between two stands to store
some strip in order that unexpected rolling condition
change does not cause the strip to become too loose
or tight, so it can contribute to the quality of products.
It can also enable stable operation of the process by
absorbing excessive loop of the strip arising from a
mass flow unbalance. After the sheet bar has been
going through the finishing mill, the looper control
operates dynamically to keep a strip tension using the
actual angle and motor current of the looper and
hence to decouple upstream stands from downstream
ones. For example, in the case of low tension, the
looper angle increases to get proper tension, resulting
in stable threading of a strip, while, in the case of
high tension, the looper angle decreases to reduce
strip tension. Fig. 2 shows the relation between
looper angle and strip tension. Ideally, the looper
angle needs to keep a desired value during operation
to reduce the tension variation and to have the
Roll Speed flexibility to absorb large changes in loop length
Controller during an abnormal rolling condition. However, if
the initial roll speed setting has big error it is very
difficult to control the tension of strip head-end part
Roll Speed
Reference by looper. If strip length between stands increases
Calculation largely and excessive strip tension generates,
operation fault and strip dimension error can occur.
The high strip tension between stands induces width
Initial Roll
Speed shrinkage, thickness reduction and moreover can
Setting produce an edge wave on a strip. Fig. 4 and Fig. 5
show thickness and width variations for strip head-
end part caused by initial roll speed setting error.
 700

Strip U nit Tension(0.001§ /̧§ ±

)
600

500

400

300

200

100

0
100 120 140 160 180 200
Looperangle(0.1¡Æ
)
Fig. 4. Strip thickness variation caused by roll speed
Fig. 3. Looper angle and strip tension setting error

coolant and scale on a strip. The purge hood box has

the following functions.

To give the sensor a clean atmosphere in

which to work (Air Purging).
To keep the sensor at a range of
temperature (Water Cooling).
To protect the sensor from impact and
handling using internal shock mounts.

To measure a strip speed, a laser beam is split two

beams and projected normally on the strip as
described Fig. 7.

Fig. 5. Strip width variation caused by roll speed

setting error Standi+1 Standi Speed & Looper System
F6&F7 Looper F6&F7
Metal-In Angle Mill Speed

3. FORWARD SLIP MEASUREMENT AND

PREDICTION
Data Processing
Speed Sensor
& MMI Unit

3.1 Hot Strip Speed Measurement System Operation Panel

Signal
Processor
A hot strip speed measurement system was designed
and installed to measure a strip speed and a forward Valve Stand
slip. The system as shown in Fig. 6 consists of a Air & Water Supply
I/F Unit

speed sensor, a control panel, an operation panel, and Control Panel

a valve stand.
This system was designed considering the following
installation environment. Fig. 6. Hot strip speed measurement system

Strip temperature: Max. 1300°C.

Vibration: Max. 10G.
The space for installation is limited.
There are coolant and scale on a strip.
There is a considerable amount of steam,
spray, and dust.
The up and down dynamic range of a strip:
±100 mm

Speed sensor; The sensor, where Doppler Effect

principle is applied, is placed at the inside of a purge
hood box. The purge hood box with the sensor was
installed below the side guide between stands to cope Fig. 7. Principle of speed sensor used for measuring
easily with some measurement problems caused by strip speed
A beat frequency is measured, since the scattered 700

light frequencies are too high (about 1014 Hz) to be

measured by current electronic capabilities. The beat 600

frequency occurs when two frequencies are 500

superimposed into one receiver. It is equal to the

Roll & Strip Speed(mpm)

difference between the frequencies. This frequency 400

can be made to occur at a lower frequency (about

103~106 Hz) and is directly proportional to the strip 300
F6Speed
F7Speed
speed. 200 Strip Speed

Control Panel; The control panel has several units 100

for sensor signal processing, data processing & 0

monitoring, sensor on/off control, and data 1 501 1001 1501 2001 2501 3001 3501 4001 4501 5001 5501

communication with a finishing mill set-up system, a Time(ms)

speed and looper control system, and an AGC
(Automatic Gauge Control) system.
A signal processor transforms the beat frequency,
which is proportional to the strip speed, into a
voltage or a current or a digital signal. A data
processing unit calculates the strip speed(V1) at the
exit of Standi and the strip speed(V2) at the entry of
Standi+1 considering the strip speed(Vm) measured by
the sensor and a looper angle as follows.
V 2 =Vm / cos(θ )
(2)
V 1 = V 2 + dLp / dt
Where, θ is an angle between strip and the
perpendicular line to the sensor and is calculated
from the looper angle, LP is the length of strip
between stands. A data monitoring system shows a
strip speed, stand rolling speeds, and a looper angle
in graphical form and sensor status, optical bed
temperature, the internal temperature of purge hood
box, water flow sensor status, and the reflectance of
strip being measured.
Fig. 8. Measured strip speed
Physical characteristics that the measured
speed must be between the roll speeds of
Standi and Standi+1.
The speed of the head-end part of the strip
calculated manually.
Operator’s experience.
The strip speed between No.6 and No.7 stands shown
in Fig. 8 was measured when looper angle hunting
occurred largely and there was a considerable
amount of spray. The measured speed is between the
roll speeds of No.6 and No.7 stand and is nearly
same to the speed calculated for the head-end part of
the strip. As a result, it is shown that the accuracy of
the measured speed is enough.
3.2 Forward slip Prediction
The forward slip (fr) is calculated by equation (3)
that defines forward slip.

Operation Panel; The operation panel has the Vs − Vri

selection buttons of automatic and manual mode,
several lamps to represent whether the speed
measurement system is abnormal, and the same
function as the data monitoring system of the control
panel to show particularly an operator a strip speed
and stand rolling speeds. A PLC (Programmable
Logic Controller) in the control panel controls the
on/off operation of the sensor in automatic or manual
mode. The sensor is controlled automatically
according to finishing mill state when an operator
selects automatic mode in the operation panel.
Valve Stand; The valve stand is a unit to supply the
purge hood box dry air and clean water at a range of
temperature. Dry air and clean water are used to give
the sensor a clean atmosphere in which to work and
to cool the sensor.
Measured Strip Speed; To verify the accuracy of the
measured strip speed, the following items are
considered.
Accuracy when the speed of an object
rotating at a known speed is measured.
fri = i (3)
Vri
Forward slip should accurately be predicted for
initial roll speed setting. To do so, an equation for
computing forward slip, which has reduction ratio (r)
and rolling force per strip width (rfw) as input
variables and forward slip as output, was derived as
follows.
fr = a0 + a1 * r + a 2 * rfw (4)
The terms a0 to a3 are parameters.
The data set of 3000 coils is analyzed to find out the
input variables and used to decide the parameters and
the new data set of about 1000 coils for the
verification of the equation. Fig. 9 shows the
predicted values by the equation (4) against the
measured values for selected coils processed at
Pohang Works. The dots located on diagonal line
correspond to the perfect predictions. The further a
dot is from the line, the larger the error is. It is shown
that the equation estimates accurately forward slip.
 8

InitialRollSpeed C orrection Ratio(% )

Actual Predicted
6

-2

-4

-6

-8
1 51 101 151 201 251
CoilNumber

Fig. 9. Predicted & measured forward slip Fig. 11. Initial roll speed correction ratio prediction

Consequently, another compensation method for

4. COMPENSATION FOR INITIAL ROLL SPEED
SETTING
The initial roll speed is adjusted by a looper control
and an operator during milling so that a constant loop
angle is maintained and a roll speed in steady state is
achieved. Several factors make the deviation of the
initial roll speed from a roll speed in steady state.
These include forward slip prediction error and the
variations of rolling conditions such as the
temperature, thickness, and width of a sheet bar, roll
eccentricity, wear, thermal expansion, surface
roughness, bearing oil film thickness, and mill
chatter. Estimating or measuring these factors under
continuous rolling is impossible or not easy.
Therefore, to cope with the initial speed setting error
occurred by the unknown factors, a method to
compensate for the initial roll speed setting for next
strip using the deviation of the actual looper angle
from a reference value for strip head-end part is
normally employed. But the performance of the
method is not so good because deciding the looper
angle error and computing a speed correction from
the deviation are not simple. Fig. 10 shows roll speed
correction ratio and looper angle for strip head-end
part.
70
Looper Angle for Strip Top Part(¡Æ
)
initial roll speed was proposed to increase setting
accuracy. After milling finishes, this method predicts
a correction ratio for initial roll speed setting using
the actual rolling data of last coil such as looper
angle and the output of looper height controller
including manual speed correction ratio. The
correction ratio (Cr) is defined as:
∆Vr
Cr = (5)
Vr
Where, Vr = initial roll speed correction value.
A model for predicting the correction was developed
using the actual data set of about 5000 coils and
certified using new data set. Fig.11 shows correction
ratio prediction results by the compensation method.
5. CONCLUSIONS
In this paper, an equation for predicting forward slip
and a compensation method for initial roll speed are
proposed to increase initial roll speed setting
accuracy for hot strip finishing rolling.
Standi+1 Standi

60
Vsi+1 Vsi
50
Roll Speed
Looper Controller
40

30 Looper
Controller Roll Speed
Reference
20 Manual Calculation
Operation
10
Initial Roll Speed Initial Roll Speed
Correction Ratio Learning Setting Compensation
0
-8 -6 -4 -2 0 2 4 6
Initial Roll
RollSpeed Correction Ratio(% )
Speed Setting

Fig. 10. Roll speed correction ratio and looper angle Fig. 12. New roll speed setting & control in a
for strip head-end part finishing rolling mill

T he In cid en ce o f m in us w id th in strip
90 81.8
80
70
head en d p art(% ) 60
50
40
30
20
10
0
Before
Fig. 13. The incident of width shrinkage in strip
head-end part before and after the application of
the new roll speed setting method
A new speed set-up system, as depicted in Fig. 12,
was developed to produce the initial speed settings
based on the suggested speed compensation method
alongside with the speed settings for all finishing mill
stands using the forward slip prediction equation.
The system was applied for No.1 hot strip mill at
Pohang Steel Works, Pohang, Korea. As the
application results, mass flow unbalance between
stands was improved and the number of coils having
big width error for strip head-end part caused by
excessive strip tension was decreased largely. Fig. 13
shows the incident of width shrinkage in strip head-
end part before and after the application of the new
roll speed setting method.
REFERENCES
33.4
Hum, B., H.W. Colquhoun and J.G. Lenard (1996).
Measurements of friction during hot rolling of
aluminum strips. Journal of Materials
processing Technology, 60, 331-338.
After
Jarl, M. (1988), Friction and forward slip in hot
rolling, Scandinavian Journal of Metallurgy, 17,
2-7.
Kwak, W.J., Y.H. Kim, J.H. Lee and S.M. Hwang
(2002). A Precision On-line Model for the
Prediction of Roll Force and Roll Power in Hot-
Strip Rolling. Metallurgical and Materials
Transactions, 33A, 3255-3272.
Liu, Y.J., A.K. Tieu, D.D. Wang and W.Y.D. Yuen
(2001). Friction measurement in cold rolling,
Journal of Materials processing Technology,
111, 142-145.
Piispanen, V. (1978), Forward Slip in the Hot
Rolling of Sheet. Scandinavian Journal of
Metallurgy, 7, 88-90.
Yamashita, M., I. Yarita, H. Abe, T. Mikuriya and F.
Yanagishima (1987). Technologies of flying
gauge change in fully continuous cold rolling
mill for thin gauge steel strips. IRSID Rolling
Conf, vol. 2, E.36.1-E.36.11.