5. Conclusion

Thanks to the chemical refining it enables, and the control of inclusion cleanliness, compositional homogeneity and solidification structure of the ingots produced, ESR electroslag consumable electrode remelting has become a major process in this field of secondary metallurgy, often referred to as "special processing", geared towards the production of very high value-added steels and superalloys.

The process is well mastered by manufacturers, who have developed considerable know-how in terms of melt regulation and optimization of the main operating parameters. Mathematical modelling and numerical simulation bring additional rigour to the implementation of this know-how.

The slag, made from fluorides and oxides, is a central component of the process, and largely determines its performance.

In addition, process variants...