The Institute of Metal Technology offers consumers technologies for electroslag surfacing under a commercial agreement with technical assistance and/or the development and manufacture of equipment for the required range of cast workpieces under a manufacturing agreement and is looking for partners interested in upgrading existing equipment and developing new technological processes under a technical cooperation agreement.

The electroslag remelting installation is used for production of alloyed steel ingots or bimetallic casting blocks for worm wheels.

The electroslag installation consists of an electrode gripping, driving and correction mechanism, a power supply, a low-voltage circuit, a liquid start device, a billet extraction mechanism, and an installation control system. The electrode gripping, driving and correction mechanism is for holding and three- coordinate displacement of the electrode.

The mechanism grips the electrode at home, moves it into a position above a crystallizer and then downwards into an initial operating point. It regularly feeds the electrode during the melting process, stops it in the end of melting in a preset point, and moves a stub into an unload point where it is released. All operations are performed hands-free in accordance with an execute program.

Depending on configuration, the mechanism has one or three servomotors with position sensors ensuring positioning of the electrode relative to the crystallizer to an accuracy of ± 1 mm in one or three coordinates. The mechanism makes it possible to remelt consumable electrodes up to 100 kg in weight and up to 1500 mm in length.

The electroslag installation can be equipped with PATON А622А or ТШС3000 power supplies (transformers). The transformer stepwise changes an operating voltage due to changing a total number of coils of the primary winding. It is fed by a single-phase alternative current (380 V ± 20 % /50 Hz). The transformer is turned on and off in both automatic mode (under the program) and manual ones. The power supply ensures production of tool steel ingots in diameters up to 450 mm. The low-voltage circuit connects the power supply with the electrode gripping mechanism (aluminum power rails, flexible water-cooled cable) and a water-cooled crucible table (aluminum power rails).

The liquid start device is for melting flux metal and maintainingя it in a liquid state. It is graphite crucible melting furnace with a crucible protective housing, a graphite electrode with an electrode displacement mechanism, and a rotation gear for pouring flux metal into the crystallizer. Operating current parameters of the melting furnace and a drive of the rotation gear are controlled in automatic and manual modes. The melting furnace does not require a separate power supply and is connected to a secondary winding of the main power supply.

The billet extraction mechanism is a hydro-mechanical system for mechanized and automated removal of billets from the crystallizer.

The installation control system is an information- management system and ensures:
- three-coordinate monitoring of the electrode position relative to the crystallizer (with a latest position memory function);
- three-coordinate electrode displacement in loading, melting, and unloading modes under the preset program;
- automatic two-coordinate electrode positioning ± 1 mm in the surfacing process;
- automatic control and maintenance of current parameters within each interval of the surfacing process under the preset program to produce qualitative castings;
- maintenance of the operating current in the liquid start device within program preset values;
- storage of five execute programs for surfacing of various types of parts;
- output of diagnostic messages of electrics input-output status.

Technical advantages of the electroslag remelting installation are the following:
- single-stage process of tool steel scrap processing
(Separate performing of metallurgical processes of sulphur removal, degassing and out-of-furnace treatment for reduction of detrimental and nonmetallic impurities);
- universal equipment (the same installation can produce both alloyed steel ingots and bimetallic billets);
- improved chemical homogeneity of ingots and a surfaced section of bimetallic blanks, caused by presence of directional solidification and small volumes of liquid metal when performing electroslag remelting in water-cooled crystallizers;
- compact equipment and simple maintenance.

The technology involves direct surfacing of a bronze crown onto the hub, eliminating the separate production of a hub from gray cast iron and a bronze crown, their subsequent machining, assembly and fastening with bolts and strips. In addition, equipment for electroslag surfacing allows the production of several workpieces at once in one operation, using a minimum amount of flux. As a result of directed crystallization, high chemical and structural homogeneity and the degree of metal purification from non-metallic inclusions, high mechanical properties of workpieces and minimal loss of alloying elements are ensured.

The achieved performance indicators correspond to the best world analogues, which is the basis for further promotion of electroslag casting equipment to the markets of the Republic of Belarus, the Russian Federation and foreign countries.

A distinctive feature of the installation is the presence of two working positions for installing water-cooled crystallizers, which allow organizing independent processes of electroslag remelting and electrical slag surfacing of bimetallic products in one installation without the need to dismantle the accompanying technological equipment.

It is possible to develop and manufacture equipment for the required range of cast workpieces, modernize existing equipment and develop new technological processes.

1. Installation for electroslag surfacing: Pat. 10330 Rep. Belarus: IPC C 22B 9/00 B 22D 19/00 / E. I. Marukovich, V. A. Zemtsov, I. O. Sazonenko, V. N. Ryabov, O. A. Tikhonovich, V. I. Sotnikov; date of publication: 07/18/2005. (in Russian)
2. Method for producing bimetallic casting: Pat. 11032 Rep. Belarus: IPC B 22D 19/16 / E. I. Marukovich, V. A. Zemtsov, I. O. Sazonenko, V. N. Ryabov, O. A. Tikhonovich, V. I. Sotnikov; date of publication: 07/18/2005. (in Russian).

The Institute of Metal Technology is the leading scientific organization of the republic in the field of development and creation of resource-saving, environmentally friendly high-tech foundry technologies, and the production of modern materials for industrial enterprises.

The main directions of scientific and technical activities of the institute:
- Technologies for obtaining the structure and properties of powdered hard alloys based on tungsten, titanium, tantalum carbides with cobalt as a binder material;
- Methods for recycling and hardening of hard alloys in order to improve their quality performance characteristics;
- Processes for recycling high-speed steel scrap to obtain material for tool products;
- Development of theoretical foundations for controlling the processes of formation of the structure and properties of metals and alloys during their crystallization and solidification;
- Thermophysics and hydrodynamics of special types of casting;
- Creation of new materials and resource-saving technological processes for their production, processing and strengthening.

The results of fundamental research of the institute are presented in scientific publications and are used:
- when creating environmentally friendly resource-saving technologies for continuous casting of ingots from ferrous and non-ferrous alloys;
- development of new cast, including bimetallic, materials with high consumer properties (strength, ductility, density);
- development of wear-resistant carbon-based composites, including those with a gradient of physical and mechanical properties.

The Institute develops, manufactures, supplies, installs and services equipment for continuous casting of ferrous and non-ferrous metals, electroslag casting of billets, including bimetallic ones, and centrifugal casting of bimetals.

According to consumer orders, the institute will produce:
- cylinder liners for high-performance engines;
- zinc anodes for galvanic coating;
- original prizes, souvenirs, bas-reliefs, figurines, memorial plaques and other sculptural works made of bronze and aluminum;
- molding casting of parts made of chromium wear-resistant cast iron for centrifugal crushing and grinding equipment for use in the construction industry.
- by casting by quenching solidification, castings from alloy AK12 with nanostructured eutectic silicon, castings from alloy AK15, AK18, AK21 with an ultrafine structure, which have unique physical-mechanical, wear-resistant and performance properties.
- by the method of continuous horizontal casting, rectangular, round and complex cross-section blanks made of cast iron and copper-based alloys, hollow castings made of cast iron and copper-based alloys, copper anodes for galvanic coating.
- electroslag casting bimetallic workpieces, stainless steel workpieces.

The Institute develops and manufactures foundry equipment:
- electroslag remelting installations;
- continuous horizontal casting installations;
- channel furnaces for melting brass and bronze;
- continuous casting lines for copper chloride tape;
- molds with a jet cooling system for continuous casting of metals and alloys.

The Institute offers services in:
1. Study of the structure and properties of metals and alloys:
- determination of the chemical composition of metals and alloys, compressed powders, wires using atomic emission spectroscopy;
- metallographic studies of the structure;
- determination of physical and mechanical properties.
2. Modeling of casting processes:
- solving thermal problems of solidification of castings and ingots of any configuration and problems of crystallization of metals and alloys;
- optimization of casting processes and other technological processes based on multi-criteria optimization techniques.

Consumers interested in purchasing technology for electroslag surfacing under a commercial agreement with technical assistance and/or developing and manufacturing equipment for the required range of cast workpieces under a manufacturing agreement.

Partners interested in upgrading existing equipment and developing new technological processes under a technical cooperation agreement.