Inverse estimation of surface heat flux distributions during high speed rolling using remote thermal measurements

An inverse method suitable for use with remote temperature measurements, is used to estimate time-dependent, axially-varying surface heat flux distributions during rolling. It is found that the diffusive time scale between the roll surface and the embedded measurement array determines the data sample rate and the solution's temporal resolution. The inverse method is first validated using simulated data from two representative measurement configurations. Following validation, the method is applied to experimental measurements from an instrumented work roll; flux distributions in this case are reconstructed over a period of approximately 3 h. Finally, a simple technique for regularizing temporally discontinuous flux distributions is introduced and demonstrated.