Plant for producing a metal band with protection

Details Plant for producing a metal band with protection Plant for producing a metal band with protection

2001-12-07

2004-07-20

Kastler, Scott (Department: 1742)

Metallurgical apparatus

Means treating a continuum of work

With heating means

C118S423000

Reexamination Certificate

active

06764641

ABSTRACT:

The invention relates to a plant for producing a metal band coated with at least one protection layer.
Generally, it is known that metal bands are realised in several successive steps, first of all the preparation of a raw product, by ingot mould casting or continuous casting, forging and hot-rolling of this product for providing a so-called ‘hot’ band reel and finally, cold rolling. Before cold rolling, the hot reel undergoes, generally, a descaling operation, for example, by etching or sandblasting. Cold rolling is realised, normally, in several successive steps, either into two opposite directions on a reversible train, or over several roll stands operating in tandem. An annealing treatment can also be necessary. On the other hand, cold transformation ends, most often, by a finishing treatment by passing, for example, through a ‘skin-pass’ mill and a planer, to provide the requested surface quality and mechanical characteristics.
Moreover, for certain applications, the band must be coated with a protection layer which may be a metal coating realised, generally, by galvanisation or, more easily, a plain coating such as paint.
These different treatments are realised in specific pieces of equipment which, normally, operate at different speeds and it is the reason why they had been, previously, realised in separate sections of a factory or even in different factories, whereby the band is wound into a reel to be transported from one section to the next.
For some years, it has been sought to integrate as far as possible several successive treatments in a continuous production line in order to avoid load failures, intermediate storage or reel handling from one section to the next. For example, a modern plant may comprise, in a single line, an etching section, a tandem roll mill, an annealing furnace and a sizing stand.
However, the different sections, for example the annealing, etching and rolling sections, operate at rather different speeds and may be slowed down or even stopped in case of failure or, simply, for maintenance purposes. It is therefore necessary to interpose, between certain sections, accumulators that enable to proceed with the treatment in a section in the case of stoppage or slowing down of the band in a section placed upstream or to accumulate the band at the exit of a handling section in case the production has stopped downstream.
A plant of such type is described, for example, in an article entitled ‘Tomorrow's cold factory’ published in the Revue de Metallurgie, January 1990.
Until now, such plants, which call for considerable investments, were considered as profitable only for very large productions. They operate therefore at very high speeds and, in order to absorb a stoppage or a slowing down, even for a few minutes, over a treatment section, the accumulators must have a capacity of several hundred meters. Usually, the band forms a number of parallel belts following two-ways paths determined by a set of fixed rolls and a set of mobile rolls placed on a looping-in carriage movable between two positions, respectively a minimum accumulation position and a maximum accumulation position. However, such an accumulator remains very cumbersome and continuous line plants are therefore placed in very large buildings comprising one or several halls fitted with travelling cranes enabling to handle the reels and/or the parts necessary to the maintenance of the various pieces of equipment. Such buildings cover a very large ground surface and are very expensive.
As stated, after cold transformation and finishing treatments, the rolled band must often be coated, at least over one face, with a protection layer, for example a metal galvanisation coating or a paint.
It is known that for galvanisation, the metal band passes first of all through a liquid metal bath that is deposited, at exit, on each face of the band, while forming a metal layer whose thickness is adjusted by a rinsing means. To ensure regularity of the deposit, it is necessary that the band should run vertically when exiting from the bath. The metal deposited is then cooled down to solidification. Generally, the band runs therefore along a path comprising a rising vertical branch extending along a cooling device over sufficient length so that the metal can be solidified sufficiently to pass over a deflector roll and a falling branch along which the band is cooled further.
Such a plant is therefore placed in a building whose height corresponds to the necessary cooling length.
The coating can also be applied as the band is running between paint spraying means or rolls.
However, the customers' requirements are quite varied and, according to the usage foreseen, it may prove necessary to provide for galvanisation or paint or even two superimposed protection layers.
After production, for example, of a number of reels of a galvanised band, the order book may call for the realisation of paint-coated band. To meet such requirements with great flexibility, a production factory, even if it is specialised in a certain type of product, must therefore comprise numerous pieces of equipment enabling to perform the necessary operations, for example, a cold rolling line with, possibly, annealing and etching, a galvanisation line and a paint-coating line.
Most often, these pieces of equipment are placed in separate buildings, whereas the cold rolled reels are directed to either of both coating lines in relation to the order book.
This enables to use pieces of equipment whose production can be suited to the needs, but handling the reels may damage the said reels and calls for intermediate storage steps.
Moreover, such a factory consisting of several buildings, which are used solely in relation to the needs, covers globally an extremely large surface.
Besides, it is sometimes necessary to apply a coat of paint over a metal coating whose surface quality must then be suited to the application of a paint.
It appears therefore that it would be interesting to combine the different treatments in order to meet the customers' requirements easily, but this is difficult in current plants whose operating conditions are rather rigid.
The object of the invention is to remedy these different problems thanks to a multi-purpose plant enabling to regroup, in the same line, the pieces of equipment necessary to coatings of different types. Moreover, the invention enables to use these pieces of equipment, either individually or in combination with other pieces of equipment, for example to provide the necessary surface quality or to produce an additional coating.
The invention therefore relates to a plant for producing a metal band coated with at least one protection layer comprising means for controlling the running of the band, successively, through a series of treatment sections, placed one after the other in a continuous line. According to the invention, the plant comprises at least, in one running direction of the band:
a supply section,
a first metal-type coating section with two lateral sides perpendicular to a longitudinal running direction of the band, respectively a first side and a second side, and comprising a means for feeding the band into the said metal coating section, located at a low level of the first lateral side of the said section and ending in a tub liable to be filled with a liquid metal bath, means for guiding the band along a first running path comprising an immersion section penetrating into the tub for depositing metal on the band, a rising section extending along a more or less vertical direction between the exit from the tub and a high level and a falling section extending between the said high level and an exit means from the said first coating section, located at a low level on the second lateral side of the said section, and cooling means arranged at least along the rising section of the said first running path for solidification of the metal deposited on the band,
a second application-type coating section, located beside the first section and having two lateral sides perpendicular to the running direc

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