Development of a thermomechanical and metallurgical model in order to design a predictive control tool in line

This project wants to build up a model which is able to predict mechanical properties achieved depending on parameters governing the inline thermal treatment developed by Siemens Metals Technologies between multiple rolling stages. Such technologies consists in a specific treatment of quenching and tempering processes, like the Rail Head Hardening System that is actually the new evolutional technology to increase the performances in terms of safety and wear of the high speed train railways. In order to guarantee a model which could be considered as more flexible as possible, the results want to be exploitable even in case of necessity to model other thermal processes. The model will be developed in order to achieve the exact simulation for thermal treatment proposed by Siemens Metals Technologies, but it will be simply adjustable in order to allow predictions even in case of other thermal processes. The approach which is going to be followed is the result of the compromise among the trial to develop a model on the state of the art, the in-field results offered by Siemens Metals Technologies and the experimental validation executable into the laboratories.