MODULE II

Rolling

• Rolling is the process of reducing the thickness or changing

the cross section of a long workpiece by compressive forces
applied through a set of rolls
• Rolling is the plastic deformation of materials caused by
compressive force applied through a set of rolls
• The material gets squeezed between a pair of rolls, as a result
of which the thickness gets reduced and the length gets
increased.
• Rolling accounts for about 90% of all metals produced by
metalworking processes, was first developed in the late
1500s.
• The geometry of the product depend on the contour of the roll
gap
Rolling
Flat- and Shape-Rolling Processes
 Rolling Mills

Rolling mills can be conventionally classified with respect

to the number and arrangement of the rolls as follows
a. Two high mill
b. Three high mill
c. Four high mill
d. Cluster mill
e. Tandem mill
f. Planetary mill
 Two High Mill

• Simplest and most common type of rolling

• Further classified into reversing and non reversing mills
• In non reversing mills, rolls of equal size are rotated only in one direction
• In reversing mills, the work can be passed to and fro through the rolls by
reversing the direction of rotation
• The space between the rolls can be adjusted by raising or lowering the upper roll
• Two high mills are used for breaking down of ingots
D:\MT\VIDEOS\ROLLING\Two High Mill.mp4
 Three High Mill

• This consist of three rolls of equal

size one above the other
• The upper and lower rolls are power
driven, while the middle roll rotates
by friction
• The direction of upper and lower rolls
is the same
• It is used for the of angles, channels,
etc.
D:\MT\VIDEOS\ROLLING\Three High Mill.mp4
 Four High Mill

• This consist of two small diameter

working rolls and two large diameter
backup rolls placed one above the
other
• Function of backup roll is to prevent
the deflection of small rolls
• Less power is needed as less friction
due to less contact area
• Common products are rolled plates
and sheets
D:\MT\VIDEOS\ROLLING\Four High Mill.mp4
 Cluster Mill

• Each of the work rolls (power driven)

are supported by back up rolls for
support
• For rolling hard thin materials, it is
necessary to employ work rolls of
small diameter but considerable
length
• In such cases adequate support of the
working rolls can be obtained by
using a cluster mill
• Generally used for cold rolling work
D:\MT\VIDEOS\ROLLING\Cluster Mill.mp4
 Tandem Mill

• A series of rolling mills are placed one after the other, to

facilitate high production at each stand
• Each set of rolls is called stand
• Since different reduction takes place at each stand, the strip
will be moving at different velocities
 Planetary Mill

• For the rolling arrangements

requiring large reduction , a
number of free rotating wheels
instead of a single small rolls, are
fixed to a large back-up roll in the
planetary rolling mill
arrangement
Flat Rolling
 Flat Rolling

• A metal strip of thickness 𝐡𝐨 enters the roll gap and is

reduced to thickness 𝐡𝐟 by a pair of rotating rolls, each
powered individually by electric motors
• The surface speed of the rolls is 𝐕𝐫
• The velocity of the strip increases from its entry value of 𝐕𝐨
as it moves through the roll gap; the velocity of the strip is
highest at the exit from the roll gap and is denoted as 𝐕𝐟
• Surface speed of the rigid roll is constant, there is relative
sliding between the roll and the strip along the arc of contact
in the roll gap, L
 Neutral Point (No-slip Point)

• At one point along the contact length (called the neutral

point or no-slip point) the velocity of the strip is the same as
that of the roll.
• To the left of this point, the roll moves faster than the strip; to
the right of this point, the strip moves faster than the roll.
• The frictional forces which oppose motion between two
sliding bodies-act on the strip
• The rolls pull the material into the roll gap through a net
frictional force on the material
 Draft

• Although friction is necessary for rolling materials, energy is

dissipated in overcoming friction
• Increasing friction also increases rolling forces and power
requirements.
• High friction could damage the surface of the rolled product
• The maximum possible draft is defined as the difference
between the initial and final strip thicknesses, or (𝐡𝐨 - 𝐡𝐟 )
𝐡𝐨 − 𝐡𝐟 = 𝛍𝟐 𝐑
Where, R= Roll radius
μ = Coefficient of friction
 Angle of Contact (Angle of Bite)

• In rolling metals where all forces are transmitted through the

rolls, the maximum angle that can be attained between the roll
radius at the first contact and the line of roll centers
ho − hf △h
Cos α = 1 − =1−
2R 2R
• In order to ensure that the metal will be shifted by friction, the
angle of contact (α) must be less than the angle of Friction
(β), where tan β = µ (the coefficient of friction between roller
surface and metal).
 Roll Force

• The rolls apply pressure on the flat strip in order to reduce its
thickness, resulting in a roll force, F
• The roll force is perpendicular to the strip
𝐅 = 𝐋𝐰𝐘𝐚𝐯𝐠
Where L =roll-strip contact length
w= width of the strip
Yavg =average true stress of the strip in the roll gap
 Power

• The power required per roll can be estimated by assuming

that F acts in the middle of the arc of contact
𝟐ᴫ𝐅𝐋𝐍
𝐏𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫 𝐤𝐖 =
𝟔𝟎𝟎𝟎𝟎
Where, F is in Newton,
L is in meters, and
N is the revolutions per minute of the roll.
Hot Rolling
 Hot Rolling

• Hot rolling is the process of rolling a metal above its

recrystallization temperature
• Hot working of most steel products is done in Blooming mills
• Blooming mills are high reversing mills, with forged rolls each
weighing upto 20 tonnes
• As a result of squeezing, the grains are elongated in the direction
of rolling and after crossing the stress zone, grain starts refining
• Hot rolling is an effective way to reduce grain size in metals for
improved strength and ductility
• In hot rolling, the continuous exposure of metal to air produces a
layer of oxide called, scale which separates the work roll from
metal substrate
Cold Rolling
 Cold Rolling

• Cold rolling is a process of rolling metal below their

recrystallization temperature
• In cold rolling, the grain tend to retain the shape acquired the
shape acquired during rolling
• Cold rolling produces additional dislocations within the metal
structure
• When two or more dislocations meet, the movement of one tends
to interfere with the movement of the other
• As the working continues, the movement of the dislocations
become difficult
• This increases the strength of the metal and makes it stiffer
• The metal becomes more brittle
 Defects in Rolled Plates and Sheets

• Defects may be present on the surfaces of rolled plates and

sheets, or there may be internal structural defects
• Defects are undesirable not only because they compromise
surface appearance, but also because they may adversely
affect strength, formability, and other manufacturing
characteristics.
• Several surface defects (such as scale, rust, scratches, pits,
and cracks) have been identified in sheet metals.
 Defects in Rolled Plates and Sheets

(a) wavy edges;(b) zipper cracks; (c) edge cracks;(d) alligatoring

 Defects in Rolled Plates and Sheets
(Cont…)
• Wavy edges : Due to bending of rolls under the rolling pressure,
the rolls undergo deflection and the edges of the strip will be
compressed more than that at center. So the edges of the strip
obtained will be thinner than the center
• Zipper Cracks: These are cracks occur at the centre of the sheet
due to poor material ductility at the rolling temperature
• Edge Cracks : These defects are caused due to non-homogenous
plastic deformation of metal across the width
• Alligatoring: Due to friction present between the roll surface
and the upper or lower work-piece surface, the elongation on the
top and bottom surfaces is less than the deforming material at the
center. If the condition become severe, it may lead to opening up
at the free end of the rolled sheet
Roll Deflection
Cambering of rolls
 Cambering of rolls

• Due to roll force, the rolls are subjected to deflection and

they bend resulting in larger thickness at the center of the
rolled sheet and the edge being thinner
• To avoid this rolls are given a slight curvature on surface by
grinding so that the center of the rolls has higher diameter
than the edges.
Ring Rolling
 Ring Rolling

• In ring rolling, a thick ring is expanded into a large-diameter

thinner one.
• The ring is placed between two rolls, one of which is driven
while the other is idle
• Its thickness is reduced by bringing the rolls closer together as
they rotate
• Since the volume of the ring material remains constant during
plastic deformation(volume constancy), the reduction in ring
thickness results in an increase in its diameter
• Typical applications of ring rolling are large rings for rockets and
turbines, jet engine cases, gearwheel rims, ball-bearing and
roller-bearing races
 Thread Rolling

(a)and (c) reciprocating flat dies (b) two roller dies

 Thread Rolling

• Thread rolling is a cold-forming process by which straight or tapered

threads are formed on round rods or wire.
• The threads are formed on the rod or wire with each stroke of a pair
of flat reciprocating dies or with rotary dies
• Typical products are screws, bolts, and similar threaded parts
• The thread-rolling process is capable of generating other shapes as
well, such as grooves and various gear forms, and it is used to
produce almost all threaded fasteners at high production rates.
• The thread-rolling process has the advantages of generating threads
with good strength (due to cold working) and without any loss of
material (scrap).
Tube Rolling
 Tube Rolling

• The diameter and thickness of pipes and tubing can be

reduced by tube rolling
• In the pilger mill, the tube and an internal mandrel undergo a
reciprocating motion; the rolls are specially shaped and are
rotated continuously.
• The tube undergoes a reduction in both diameter and wall
thickness
 Skew Rolling

• Process similar to roll forging is

skew rolling
• Typically used for making ball
bearings
• Round wire or rod is fed into the roll
gap, and roughly spherical blanks are
formed continuously by the action of
the rotating rolls.