Published online by Cambridge University Press: 21 February 2011
The correlation between ribbon thickness and the length of the melt puddle residing on the surface of a melt-spinning wheel was established for a Ni-base superalloy. Since the melt puddle length defines the solidification time in which a ribbon with a certain thickness is formed, the above correlation allowed a direct derivation of the propagation velocity of the solid-liquid interface. The solidification rate V (mm/s) so obttined as a function of ribbon thickness S (mm) is V = 3.54S−1. Further, the above solidification correlation was analyzed using heat transfer considerations to yield information about the ribbon-wheel interfacial thermal conductance, the solid-liquid interfacial temperature, and the local cooling rate through the ribbon thickness. These thermal results are compared to those deduced from the secondary dendrite arm spacing measurements. Finally, there is a discussion on the ribbon microstructure based on our rapid solidification kinetic result.