Modernisation of a cold strip mill

• Term: Funded in 2022
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 508163483

Forming processes involve complex interrelationships of plant technology, material and operating behaviour across numerous process stages. The area of semi-finished metal products is one of the most energy-intensive sectors and can therefore make a significant contribution to the energy turnaround through digitization and optimization. The industrial transformation already underway towards fully digitized processes with self-learning plants or factories has already been considered at IMF through the previous modernizations and digitization of the hot rolling facilities (currently IMF's casting mills, hot rolling stands and semi-continuous rolling mill). In order to be able to map and investigate the complexity of entire integrated rolling mills and the development strategies of modern material concepts by coupling hot and cold rolling lines, including the necessary heat treatment strategies, a fully digitized and plant-engineering modernized cold rolling stand with its auxiliary units is required. The aim of the overall concept is to develop a closed database for flat and shape rolling and also to make it available to other research groups. This is to serve both as a reference and as a training basis for model-based approaches and deep learning algorithms. Since no production processes are disturbed by this, it is possible at the IMF to work out new influencing parameters (increasing modelling depth) and individual aspects for process chains around hot and cold rolling including associated heat treatments can be investigated and modelled separately and completely. The present application concerns the necessary modernization and expansion of an existing cold rolling mill at the Institute for Metal Forming (IMF) of the TU Bergakademie Freiberg. The measure is to be carried out under the IMF's own direction and also includes plant components developed and manufactured at the IMF itself. The modernization of the plant on the equipment side is primarily aimed at extending the thickness range to between 15 and 0.05 mm (thin foils) and the rolling temperature range for cold roll cladding and (draw) rolling of high-strength or difficult-to-form materials up to 400 °C operating temperature for sheets, strips, bands and profiles. In addition to the modernization of the drive concept from a comb rolling drive to a multi-roll drive in two-, three- and multi-roll arrangement, the control and automation technology is to be renewed and the data acquisition brought up to the state of the art by means of the IBA system available at the institute. This will integrate the cold rolling stand into the digital concept of the IMF rolling mills. New interfaces are to be created for the new control and automation units, which will allow the rolling mill to be integrated into this concept. The reconstruction activities are to be carried out with the support of long-standing industrial partners from the fields of mechanical engineering, electric drives and plant control.

• DFG Programme: Major Research Instrumentation
• Major Instrumentation: Modernisierung eines Kaltbandwalzgerüstes
• Instrumentation Group: 2120 Walzmaschinen, Hammerwerke und Schmiedepressen
• Applicant Institution: Technische Universität Bergakademie Freiberg
• Leader: Professor Dr.-Ing. Ulrich Prahl