High temperature oxide scale characteristics of low carbon steel in hot rolling

In this paper, hot rolling tests of low-carbon steel were carried out on a 2-high Hille 100 experimental rolling mill at various speeds and reductions. The rolling temperatures were between 1000 and 1030 °C. Nitrogen protection was used to control the scale thickness when the test samples were heated in the furnace and cooled in a cooling box. The rolling forces, rolling torques and scale thicknesses before and after rolling were measured. Surface characteristics of the steel samples were analyzed with SEM and Atomic Force Microscope (AFM). X-ray diffraction was performed to characterize the phase composition of the scale layers. The effects of scale thickness on rolling force and torque were also investigated.