The time of information technology determines its priorities, which are a prerequisite for building a competitive production and economy. The ubiquitous spread of digitalization is one of the basic principles of new economy, a new type of socio–economic structure that is gradually being formed in the modern world through the introduction of scientific and technological progress and innovative methods of management, intellectualization and capitalization of human knowledge, the use of advanced new information and material technologies, accelerated development of knowledge-intensive sectors of the economy, the formation of creative, efficient, rational information and material production. Currently, at large foundries with mass and large-scale production of castings, the task of automating the control of technological processes using digital control systems was solved in general. They implement algorithms for controlling technological processes of casting in closed circuits (locally). The systems under consideration allow to implement optimal control strategies and automatically perform sequences of operations (start and stop of equipment; calculation and input of metal charge; calculation of formulations, dosing and mixing of molding and core mixtures) of multi-stage periodic casting processes. Digital transformation can significantly change the established practice of foundry production (from direct control and management of technological processes to business planning and document management). The transformation will have an impact on all parameters of the enterprise: economic efficiency of production (productivity, operating costs); reliability (operational readiness); safety (number of incidents); compliance with legislative norms on ecology. The technological criterion for success of the digital transformation of foundry production will be the release of a nomenclature of castings with a minimum level of defect, commercial – the release of a nomenclature of castings in demand on the market (machine parts and mechanisms), with a minimum self-cost, which is determined by the technological level of preparation of the production and its implementation and, as a consequence, low costs and optimal quality of molds, metal and castings.

Alloys of the Fe‒C‒Si‒Мn‒Сr‒W‒V system widely used for hot-rolling roll repairs provide high resistance of the deposited layer against abrasion, but its thermal endurance is relatively low. It is shown that in order to ensure the quality of roll repair, it is necessary to improve the composition of the flux-cored wire charge and the technology of their use. It is proposed to reduce the structural heterogeneity of the deposited metal the use of flux-cored wire of the type PP-Np-35V9X3SF. The influence of the introduction of carbon-fluorinated elements and titanium on hydrogen concentration, microstructure, level of pollution by non-metallic inclusions, grain size, hardness and rate of wear of the deposited metal layer was evaluated. The data on the chemical composition of the deposited layer, the content of non-metallic inclusions in it, the microstructure of the deposited metal, depending on the content of titanium in the flux-cored wire, are presented. It was found that an increase the concentration of titanium increases the hardness of the deposited layer and reduces the rate of wear (abrasion) of samples. The effect on the level of contamination of the studied fused layers with oxide inclusions was not revealed. Increasing the hydrogen content in the deposited layer re-duces its hardness and increases the rate of wear of the deposited layer. Increasing the content of titanium in the depos-ited layer helps to reduce the size of the martensite needles, as well as the size of the former austenite grain. The de-pendencies of HRC hardness and wear resistance on the content of titanium and hydrogen in the deposited layer were established

Microstructural parameters of clad metal from Fe – C – Si – Mn – Cr – Ni – Mo – Vpowder wire with an addition containing carbon and fluorine cleaning dust of aluminum production instead of amorphous carbon are determined. The chemical composition and the microstructural parameters including the grain diameter, the interlamellar distance, the type of the structure of the deposited layer and its chemical composition are determined.

The paper considers research of quality of the electric arc coating obtained using flux-cored wire of the Fe – C – Si – Mn – Cr – W – V system with additives of carbon-fluorine-containing material and titanium. The formation of an electric arc coating was carried out using an automatic arc welding machine ASAW-1250 with a new chromium-containing flux-cored wire on plates made of St3 steel. To exclude mixing of the deposited metal with the substrate steel, multilayer surfacing was conducted. The surfacing mode was calculated and refined experimentally. The authors studied the composition and properties of the surface of the electric arc coating after surfacing. As a substitute for amorphous carbon they used a carbon-fluorine-containing material (dust of gas purification of aluminum production). Surfacing was carried out under a flux made from slag produced by silicomanganese with a high content of sulfur. A regression analysis of influence of the deposited layer’s chemical composition on its hardness and wear rate was carried out and mathematical models of the investigated performance characteristics of the electric arc coating were obtained. With an increase in the content of chromium, tungsten, carbon and silicon, hardness of the deposited metal and its resistance to abrasive wear increase. The results of the conducted research make it possible to develop measures ensuring the required level of performance characteristics of the electric arc coating and can be used to make a forecast of hardness of the deposited layer and its wear resistance when the chemical composition of the metal changes, to predict the operational resistance of rolling rolls deposited with wires of the PP-Np-35V9Kh3SF type. Mathematical models of hardness of the deposited layer and its wear resistance help to clarify the mechanism of hardening and formation of protective properties of the surface layers of rolling rolls by means of electric arc coatings deposited with flux-cored wires.

The possibility of improving structural qualities of deposited layers such as hardness and wear resistance by introducing titanium into the composition of powder wires of the Fe – C – Si – Mn – Cr – W– Vand Fe – C – Si – Mn – Cr – Mo – Ni systems is investigated. The chemical composition, structure, hardness, and wear resistance of layers deposited on steel 09G2S are investigated. The degree of contamination of the layers with non-metallic inclusions is determined. The positive effect of titanium powder additives in the composition of powder wires on the studied characteristics of the deposited layers is shown.

Analysis of the existing trends in development of technologies for production of welding and surfacing fluxes showed that one of the actively developing areas is the production of fluxes using man-made waste (including metallurgical one) as components of the initial charge. This is due to the fact that the slag waste of metallurgical production contains a large amount of manganese and silicon, which in turn are the basis in welding fluxes. Within the framework of this direction development, the article describes principal possibility and efficiency of using materials based on ladle electric steelmaking slag from JSC “EVRAZ United West Siberian Metallurgical Combine” and slag produced by silicomanganese from LLC “West Siberian Electrometallurgical Plant” in the charge for production of fluxes used in the surfacing of rolling rolls. All the laboratory tests were made using the equipment of the scientific and production center “Welding Processes and Technologies”. For surfacing steel samples, the authors used a flux additive obtained by mixing ladle electric steelmaking slag of a fraction less than 0.2 mm with liquid sodium glass in a ratio of 62 and 38%. The resulting flux additive was mixed with slag from the production of silicomanganese of a fraction of 0.45–2.50 mm in various ratios. Chemical composition studies (by the spectral method) and metallographic studies of the deposited layer revealed a tendency to an increase in sulfur content and in contamination with non-metallic inclusions in it with an increase in content of the flux additive in the charge of more than 20%. According to the results of visual quality control of the deposited layer macrostructure, the absence of defects was established with a flux additive content of up to 30%.

The structure and composition of the arc sprayed coatings formed using a flux cored Fe–C–Si–Mn–Cr–Ni–Mo wire are studied. A carbon-fluorine-containing additive, namely, the gas purification dust of aluminum production ((wt %) 21–46 Al2O3, 18–27 F, 8–15 Na2O, 0.4–6 K2O, 0.7–2.3 CaO, 0.5–2.5 SiO2, 2.1–3.3 Fe2O3, 12.5–30.2 Ctot, 0.07–0.9 MnO, 0.06–0.9 MgO, 0.09–0.19 S, 0.10–0.18 P) is introduced into the charge of the flux cored wire instead of amorphous carbon. The problems of the influence of the carbon–fluorine additive on the weldability and the contamination of the deposited metal with oxide nonmetallic inclusions are considered; the microstructure and the contamination of the deposited metal are studied. The microstructure of the deposited layer formed using a flux cored electrode of the Fe–C–Si–Mn–Cr–Ni–Mo system consists of acicular and lath martensite arranged in the former austenite grains, along the boundaries of which ferrite layers precipitate. Silicates (undeformable) and oxides (point) are found to exist in the deposited metal. According to the results of quantitative analysis of the chemical composition of the nonmetallic inclusions obtained using a Teskan Mira 3 scanning electron microscope, the nonmetallic inclusions in the deposited metal are at most 10 μm in size; their globular shape positively influence the wear resistance of the deposited layer. The chemic composition of the nonmetallic inclusions shows that they mainly consist of silicon, aluminum, and manganese oxides; there are also traces of sulfur, calcium, and magnesium. The metallic matrix contains iron (dominant amount), chromium, manganese, and silicon; the molybdenum content is substantially lower.

The composition of the non-metallic inclusions and microstricture of the electric arc coating using the flux-cored wire of Fe–C–Di–Mn–Cr–Ni–Mo system has been studied. The electric arc coating has been formed with the help of the ASAW-1250 automatic arc welding machine using the investigated flux-cored wire. To reduce the level of contamination of the deposited metal with non-metallic oxide inclusions, aluminum gas purification dust was introduced into the flux-cored wire (instead of amorphous carbon). The composition of the electric arc coating was determined by using the XRF-1800 spectrometer. The microstructure of the electric arc coating has been studied by optical microscopy. The phase and elemental composition have been studied using scanning electron microscopy at the MIRA 3 LMH instrument. The non-metallic inclusions in the electric arc coating consist of oxides of silicon, fluorine, calcium, aluminum, and magnesiums. The darker component in the inclusion, which looks like rectilinear crystals directed from the surface deep into the inclusion, has a similar phase composition. However, the content of chemical elements in it is somewhat different. A small dark component with a rounded shape (aluminum and magnesium oxides) is observed in the inclusion. Traces of sulfur are distinct along the contour of the globules. Metallographic analysis of the deposited surface has shown that the microstructure of the deposited layer is a coarse-needle martensite. Its structure is uniform and has a dendritic (columnar) structure characteristic for cast metal. The results of the performed investigations allow elaborating the measures to reduce the content of non-metallic inclusions containing elements of fluorine, sodium and aluminum, which, in turn, may adversely affect the physical and mechanical properties of the deposited layer, for example, by using refining additives to reduce the contamination of the deposited layer with non-metallic inclusions.

The influence of reducing metals on the metallurgical processes of thermite welding has been studied. Iron scale and powdery materials were used as starting materials for the metallothermic mixture: titanium powder PTS according to TU 15‒1958, aluminum powder PA-2 according to GOST 6058‒73. Aluminum gas purification dust was introduced into the composition of the metallothermic mixture. The chemical composition of the metal was determined by the atomic emission method using the DFS-71 spectrometer according to GOST RISO 14284‒2009, the slag composition was determined by the X-ray fluorescence method on the Shimadzu XRF-1800 spectrometer according to GOST 28033‒89. The composition of the titanothermite mixture has been developed, which ensures the production of dense metal. The addition of a small amount of aluminum powder to the composition of the titanium-thermite mixture ensures the completeness of the interaction and reduction of iron scale, at the same time, the amount of molten metal increases. The introduction of aluminum gas purification dust into the thermite mixture as a flux reduces gas emission during thermal processes. In addition, the addition of a carbon-fluorine-containing flux additive increases the carbon content in the resulting metal and improves its mechanical properties.

Potentialities have been studied for using flux-cored wire containing industrial wastes (dust taken from the gas-purification facilities of silicomanganese and aluminum production) in order to perform wear-resistant hardfacing. The hardfacing procedure has been carried out using a welding tractor under silicomanganese slag produced by the West Siberian Electrometallurgical Plant. The wear rate of the samples was determined using a 2070 SMT-1 machine. The method for determining wear rate is based on changing in the sample weight during disk-pad testing. The chemical composition of the hardfaced metal layer has been determined using an XRF-1800 X-ray fluorescence spectrometer and using a DFS-71 spectrometer according to atomic emission method. The hardness of the hardfaced layers was measured using a METH-DO hardness tester. The evaluation of the number of nonmetallic inclusions was performed according to GOST (State Standard) 1778–70 using an OLYMPUS GX-51 optical microscope. The manganese uptake coefficient was found at different ratios between components. This coefficient is associated with the reduction of manganese oxide of the manganese-containing flux (due to the carbon contained in the flux-cored wire). In the case of a significant excess of carbon in the flux-cored wire based on manganese-containing flux, the level of manganese uptake exceeds 100%. The process of manganese uptake is determined by the filling coefficient of the flux-cored wire, by the amount of the carbon-containing material in the charge mixture, and by the content of carbon in the arc coating itself. The hardfaced metal layer contains nondeforming silicates and point oxides. The contamination of the hardfaced metal layer by oxide-based nonmetallic inclusions is low. The presence of these nonmetallic inclusions does not affect to any significant extent the operational characteristics of the hardfaced layer.

Рассмотрена возможность улучшения структуры, а также повышения твердости и износостойкости наплавленных слоев за счет введения титана в состав порошковых проволок систем Fe - C - Si - Mn - Cr - W - V и Fe - C - Si - Mn - Cr - Mo - Ni. Исследованы химического состав, структура, твердость и износостойкость наплавленных на сталь 09Г2С слоев. Определена степень загрязненности слоев неметаллическими включениями. Показано положительное влияние добавок порошка титана в состав порошковых проволок на исследованные характеристики наплавленных слоев.

The creation of modern technologies for the formation of wear-resistant coatings by the electric arc method requires research on the structure and composition of the electric arc surface layer. The composition of nonmetallic inclusions and microstructure of electric arc coating using flux-cored wire of Fe‒C‒Si‒Mn‒Сr‒Ni‒Mo system were studied. The formation of electric arc coating was carried out with a welding tractor ASAW-1250 using fabricated flux-cored wire on plates of 09Г2С steel. In order to influence the level of contamination of the deposited metal with oxide nonmetallic inclusions, aluminum production gas cleaning dust (instead of amorphous carbon) was introduced into the composition of the cored wire. The chemical composition of the deposited metal was determined by X-ray fluorescence spectrometer XRF-1800 and atomic-emission method using spectrometer DFS-71. The microstructure of electric arc coatings was studied using an optical microscope Olympus GX51. The study of the phase and elemental composition was carried out on a scanning electron microscope MIRA 3 LMH. The non-metallic inclusions in the arc coating consist of oxides of aluminum, silicon, fluorine, with a low content of sodium and magnesium. The dark component in the inclusion consists of aluminum and magnesium oxides with a low content of manganese. Traces of sulfur are observed along its contour. The metallographic analysis of the clad surface showed that the microstructure of the clad layer is coarse-needle martensite. The structure is uniform and has a dendritic (columnar) structure characteristic of cast metal. The results of the studies allow us to develop measures to reduce the content of non-metallic inclusions containing elements of fluorine, sodium and aluminum, which in turn can adversely affect the physical and mechanical properties of the clad layer. For example, by using refining additives to reduce the contamination of the cladding layer with nonmetallic inclusions.

The paper describes the possibility of using cored wire for wear­resistant hardfacing containing waste (dust of gas­cleaners) from the production of silica manganese and aluminum. Hardfacing was carried out using a submerged welding tractor made of silica manganese slag produced by the West Siberian Electrometallurgical Plant. The wear rate on the samples was determined on 2070 CMT­1 machine. The method for it is based on change in the sample mass during the disc – pad test. Chemical composition of the deposited metal was determined by X­ray fluorescence method on XRF­1800 spectrometer and by the atomic emission method on DFS­71 spectrometer. The hardness of the deposited layers was measured using METH­DO hardness tester. Evaluation of the quantity of nonmetallic inclusions was made according to GOST 1778 – 70 using an OLYMPUS GX­51 optical microscope. The coefficient of manganese recovery was found at different ratios of components. This coefficient is associated with the reduction of manganese oxide from manganese­containing flux (due to the carbon contained in the cored wire). With a significant excess of carbon in the cored wire from manganese­containing flux, recovery of manganese exceeds 100 %. The process of manganese recovery was determined by filling coefficient of the cored wire, amount of the carbon­containing material in the charge, and carbon content in the electric­arc coating itself. The deposited metal contains non­deformable silicates and point oxides. Contamination by oxide nonmetallic inclusions of the deposited metal is small. The presence of these non­metallic inclusions does not significantly affect the operational characteristics of the deposited layer.

The authors have studied the elemental and phase compositions of electric arc coating with a flux-cored wire of Fe – C – Si – Mn – Cr – Ni – Mo system. Formation of electric arc coating was carried out using ASAW-1250 welding tractor with fabricated flux-cored wire on plates made of 09G2S steel. Aluminum production gas cleaning dust has been introduced into the composition of flux cored wire (instead of amorphous carbon). Chemical composition of the deposited metal was determined by X-ray fluorescence method on XRF-1800 spectrometer and by the atomic emission method on DFS-71 spectrometer. Microstructure of the electric arc coatings was studied using OLYMPUSGX-51 optical microscope. Analysis of phase and elemental compositions was performed by scanning electron microscopy using LEO EVO 50 instrument. Segregation of tungsten and molybdenum was revealed in electric arc coating. Concentration of tungsten changes more than 3 times, and molybdenum – more than 2 times. Fractures of the samples are formed as a result of ductile fracture of the material. There are surface layers on the samples fractures, thickness of which is determined by chemical and elemental composition of the electric arc coating. The layer under consideration is characterized by a relatively small diameter of fracture pits compared to the samples volume. Their diameter ranges from tenths to tens of micrometers. The largest pits are formed on particles of the second phase with micron sizes (2 – 3 µm). Contamination of metal of electric arc coatings with non­metallic inclusions was studied. It was established that chemical composition of flux-cored wire of the studied system does not significantly affect the level of contamination with non-metallic inclusions in electric arc coatings. Parameter a of crystal lattice and values of areas of coherent scattering of Fe and CrC phases formed as a result of hardfacing were determined by X-ray phase analysis.

Исследованы параметры микроструктуры наплавленного металла порошковой проволокой системы Fe - C - Si - Mn - Cr - Ni - Mo - V, в состав шихты которой взамен аморфного углерода введена добавка, содержащая углерод и фтор - пыль газоочистки алюминиевого производства. Проведен анализ химического состава и изучены параметры микроструктуры, такие, как диаметр зерна, межпластинчатое расстояние, тип получаемой структуры наплавленного слоя.

The main process leading to the destruction of the cast elements of gas-collection bell of electrolyzer, made of grey cast iron, is the oxidation of iron by oxygen, SO2 gas and sulfur vapors to form magnetite, hematite and pyrrhotin. The simultaneous formation of iron oxides and sulfides does not prevent further corrosion, since scale is formed with a loose structure that does not have protective properties. Reducing the length of the interfacial boundaries inside the material of the cast enables to reduce the rate of corrosion destruction, which can be achieved by modifying the cast iron to change the shape of graphite inclusions, i.e. obtaining high-strength cast iron with a spherical shape of graphite inclusions. However, the obtaining spherical graphite in cast iron using magnesium modification does not exclude the access of aggressive gases to the surface of the products and the possibility of their diffusion along the grain boundaries. It was shown that alloying can be an alternative, which leads not only to the exclusion of lamellar secretions of graphite in the structure of cast iron, but also to the formation of surface oxide layers based on the alloying element preventing the corrosion. Alloying with chromium gives cast iron high abrasive resistance due to the presence of a carbide component in the structure, as well as corrosion resistance due to the alloying of the metal base, heat resistance due to increasing the electrochemical potential of the metal base and creating a strong neutral oxide film on the surface of the castings, heat resistance, etc. An experimental comparative analysis of the corrosion resistance of cast iron used for manufacturing of gas collecting bell of electrolyzers showed that chromic cast iron ЧХ3 has a higher corrosion resistance than high-strength cast iron with spherical graphite ВЧ50 and much higher than grey cast iron with lamellar graphite. However, chromic cast iron ЧХ3 has low casting properties, is very sensitive to the cooling rate and has a large heterogeneity in structure, which makes it difficult to use it for the manufacture of gas collecting bell of electrolyzers.

Obtaining and using ligatures, modifiers and deoxidizers to obtain structural alloys of a given composition and properties in metallurgy and foundry is an important production task. One of the existing developments in the field of technologies for the preparation of functional composites on a matrix basis for non-ferrous and ferrous alloys is the combination of solid filler with a melt of an active metal binder. At that, from the filler material, which is selected from the group comprising iron, nickel, titanium, silicon, boron, manganese, first a porous workpiece of a given geometric shape with a technological total pore volume is formed, then it is heated to a temperature corresponding to the liquidus temperature of the active binder, the heating being carried out in a gas inert medium, after which the heated workpiece is impregnated with the melt of this binder by forced infiltration of the melt into the pores of the workpiece under pressure, mainly by the method of liquid stamping. The task of the study was to expand the scope of use of composites, to create a single flexible universal, and at the same time, simplified technology that will provide an opportunity to obtain a wide range of diverse in composition and service characteristics of deoxidizers, modifiers and ligatures for non-ferrous and ferrous alloys. The developed technology, based on vacuum impregnation (suction) of the matrix alloy through porous filler, makes it possible to obtain new functional metal-matrix composite materials of a given composition for use as inexpensive ligatures, modifiers and deoxidizers in metallurgical processes, as well as to simplify and make their use safe. The proposed method for obtaining ligatures, modifiers and deoxidizers provides a possibility of their industrial serial production and is easy to perform, and also reduces the cost of the metallurgy product obtained with their application by increasing the effective content of active components and their more complete assimilation, which reduces the consumption of scarce and expensive materials.

Samples of flux-cored wire samples based on the Fe—C—Si—Мn—Сr—Mo—Ni system by adding different amounts of titanium powder, or submerged-arc surfacing from slag obtained during the production of silicomanganese. The data on the microstructure of surfacing and the presence of non-metallic inclusions in them are presented. The results of studies of the dependence of hardness and wear resistance of deposited layers on the percentage of titanium are shown and the corresponding correlation models are presented.

Rollers for hot rolling mills are hardened by surfacing operation by flux-cored wire ПП-Нп-35В9Х3СФ due to GOST 26101–84. The deposited layer has a high resistivity against abrasion, but its thermal endurance is comparatively low, therefore rollers surfaced by this type of wire often failed because of formation of fire crack network and spalling. It was established that the structure nonuniformity of the deposited metal can be decreased by introducing of titanium into the flux-cored wire. The effect of introducing titanium into flux-cored wire of the Fe–C–Si–Мn–Сr–W–V system on the properties of the deposited layer has been studied. It was shown that metal structure with the addition of titanium represents martensite formed within the boundaries of the former austenite grain, a small amount of residual austenite in the form of separate areas and thin layers of δ-ferrite. The microstructure of the samples contains a carbide network. An increase in the titanium content in the deposited layer contributes to a decrease in the size of the martensite needles, as well as the size of the former austenite grain. The microstructure of the samples contains medium-acicular and fine-acicular martensite. The size of the martensite needles varies from 2 to 9 microns. It was established that introduction of titanium in the composition of the flux-cored wire in an amount of 0.02–0.13% increases the hardness of the deposited layer and reduces the abrasion of the samples.

The formation of foundry and technological defects in castings is largely influenced by the quality of casting molds, which in most cases is determined by the composition and properties of the molding mixture. To ensure optimal parameters of the molding mixture, automation and optimization of control of technological processes of mixture preparation, algorithms for the functioning of process control systems have been developed. The description of the circuit and methods of control using process control system presented. It was shown that the algorithms provide the calculation of the generalized optimization parameter according to the values of the main physical, mechanical and technological properties of the components of the molding mixture, sequential analysis and search of the optimum by the simplex method of Nelder–Mead with restrictions on several parameters. Subsystems of the process control systems considered, which enable to change quickly the technology according to the criterion of minimum defectiveness. The algorithm for calculating the values of the generalized criterion of the quality of the mixture includes a mathematical model “composition – properties” of the mixture, linking the content of the component of the molding mixture (spent mixture, quartz sand, lignosulfonate, bentonite suspension, water) with the values of physical, mechanical and technological properties (compressive strength in the wet state, rammability, formability, gas permeability, binder content, fluidity, wetness and crumbling). The current values of the quality parameters of the mixture are determined as a result of express analysis in the shop laboratory and by automatic sensors. The proposed algorithm of optimization control of preparation of the molding mixture enables to develop recommendations of technological and organizational nature and to set recipes of the molding mixture that minimize the level of defectiveness of castings. An adapted version of the algorithm has been tested for use in the preparation of various brands of molding and rod mixtures, which indicates its versatility.