Effect of ceramic work rolls on surface roughness of rolled SUS304 ultra-thin strips

Surface morphology and roughness are important parameters of surface quality of cold-rolled ultra-thin strip steel. In order to study the effect of Si₃N₄ ceramic work rolls on the surface roughness of SUS304 ultra-thin strip, ABAQUS finite element model calculation, 3D laser profilometry, and other methods were adopted based on the physical characteristics of Si₃N₄ ceramic roll and 9Cr2MoV steel roll, like anti-flattening performance and oil wettability. The surface morphology and roughness of SUS304 ultra-thin strip rolled by different material work rolls under oil lubrication conditions were measured. The results showed that under the rolling force of 10 kN, the maximum flattening amount of Si₃N₄ ceramic roll was reduced by 35.14% compared to that of 9Cr2MoV steel roll. The reduction rate of SUS304 ultra-thin strip rolled by ceramic roll was 34.19%, while that rolled by steel roll was only 22%; Si₃N₄ ceramic roll can further increase the number of alternating convex peaks and concave valleys in the rolled thin strip, reduce the profile steepness, reduce surface roughness, and enhance the planarization effect of surface micro-convex bodies, with improving surface quality and surface glossiness. Finally, the mechanism of Si₃N₄ ceramic roll significantly improving the surface roughness of rolled SUS304 ultra-thin strip was proposed.