Emulsion for Single Phase Alpha-Brass in Hot Rolling Process: Case Study

According to the hydrophile-lipophile balance (HLB) theory and the evaluation results of friction, wear and lubrication using a four-ball tribometer, a novel oil-in-water emulsion was developed for the hot rolling process of hard brass (single phase alpha-brass, CuZn32 (ASTM C26200) and CuZn30 (ASTM C26000)) by controlling the composition of the emulsion, such as emulsifying, antiwear, extreme pressure, antirust and so on. In the actual hot rolling process, the roller material was the welded-stainless steel ASTM 420 (HRC34-44), in which the lubrication mechanism of brushing grease discontinuously was replaced by emulsion jet directly to the hot roller surface. The actual hot rolling results proved that it was easy to control the accuracy and size of the brass sheet with the emulsion jet. This new process increased the antiwear and anti-galling abilities of the rollers, and improved the surface quality of the brass sheet. For example, the formation of deep, dark streaks in the hot rolled copper sheet is prevented, galling and roughening of the roller surfaces during hot rolling is reduced and it also saved labor, and increased production efficiency and the service life of the hot roller greatly.