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Project Abstract
Project Title: Manufacturing of TMT Bars
(Thermo Mechanically Treated Steel Bars)

Abstract:
The purpose of this project is to learn the manufacturing process of TMT bars, which
are manufactured in hot rolling mills and hot rerolling mills. TMT bars form the basic
pillars for construction and it is a very huge business market. Through this project we
shall be able to know how to manufacture, materials used, why they are used and
much more. All the results and details obtained will be revealed and discussed.
By,
B. Tech 3
rd
Year Mechanical
Piyush Gupta - 07241A0305
Levicus J ohn - 07241A0311
Abhijith. M - 07241A0301

3

INTRODUCTION
What is TMT Process:-
By adopting thermo mechanically treatment process higher strength of TMT bars is
obtained. In this process, steel bars get intensive cooling immediately after rolling.
When the temperature is suddenly reduced to make surface layer hard, the internal
core is hot at the same time. Due to further cooling in atmosphere and heat from the
core, the tempering takes place. This process is expected to improve properties such as
yield strength, ductility and toughness of TMT bars. With above properties, TMT steel
is highly economical and safe for use. TMT steel bars are more corrosion resistant
than Tor steel.

What are TMT Steel Bars:-
The full form of TMT is Thermo Mechanical Treatment; in this the steel bars are
passed through a specially designed water-cooling system. After the bars pass, the
outer surface of the bars solidifies while the core remains hot. This creates a
temperature gradient in the bars. After the intensive cooling, the bar is exposed to air
and the core re-heats the quenched surface layer by conduction, therefore tempering
the external martensite. When the bars are taken out of the cooling system, the heat
flows from the core to the outer surface, further tempering of the bars, which helps
them attain higher yield strength. The resulting heat-treated structure imparts superior
strength and toughness to the bars. Cooling process is illustrated below:
4

The pre-determined cooling of the bar periphery transforms the peripheral structure to
martensite and then annealed through the heat available at the core. The peripheral and
core temperature difference finally equalizes at around 600 degree C and the resultant
bar structure is of tempered martensite at the periphery and of fine-grained ferrite-
pearlite at the core. Generally speaking, the resultant soft core forms about 65-75 per
cent of the area (depending upon the desired minimum yield strength) and the rest is
the hardened periphery. The equalizing temperature together with the final rolling
temperature is the most important parameter to achieve the required mechanical
properties. Finally, when the bar is discharged on to the Cooling Beds, the remaining
austenite transforms into a very fine-grained pearlite structure.



5

After this process of thermo mechanical treatment, a dark etched peripheral rim of
tempered martensite and a grey core of ferrite pearlite get formed. The tempered
martensite surface layer is very hard while the microstructure of the core is a very
fine-grained ferrite and pearlite which is quite soft. The result is a structure with a
6

high yield strength combined with high ductility.

Hence from the above data it is seen that the sudden quenching is the key role in
hardening the steel bars. The pressure of the water jets on the hot molten bars
determines the thickness of the martensite structure and is controlled for the required
hardness.



Advantages of TMT Bars:-
Better Safety of structures: because of higher Strength combined with higher
Ductility.
Easy working at site: owing to better Ductility and Bendability. Pre-welded meshes
can be made to eliminate manual binding at site. Reduces construction and fabrication
time.
Resists fire: Unlike Tor steel/ CTD Reinforcement bars, TMT bars have high thermal
stability. They are the preferred choice when elevated temperatures of 400-6000 C
may be encountered (Chimneys, fires).
Resists corrosion: The TMT process gives the bar superior strength and anti-
corrosive properties. Controlled water-cooling prevents the formation of coarse
carbides, which has been cited as the main cause for the corrosive nature of common
bar.
Another reason for better corrosion resistance is the absence of surface stresses caused
by the cold twisting process.
7

Formability: Due to very high elongation values and consistent properties through
out the length of bar, TMT rebars have excellent workability and bendability.
Earthquake resistance: The soft ferrite-pearlite core enables the bar to bear dynamic
and seismic loading. TMT bars have high fatigue resistance to Dynamic/ Seismic
loads
due to its higher ductility quality. This makes them most suitable for use in earthquake
prone areas.
Malleability: TMT bars are most preferred because of their flexible nature
Fine welding features: TMT rebars (having low carbon content) can be used for butt
and other weld joints without reduction in strength at the weld joints.
Bonding strength: External ribs running across the entire length of the TMT bar give
superior bonding strength between the bar and the concrete. Fulfils Bond requirements
as per IS: 456/78 and IS: 1786/85.
Cost-effective: A high tensile strength and better elongation value gives you great
savings, Reduced Transportation Costs.

What is Heat treatment:-
Metals can be heat treated to alter the properties of strength, ductility, toughness,
hardness or resistance to corrosion. Common heat treatment processes include
annealing, precipitation strengthening, quenching, and tempering. The annealing
process softens the metal by allowing recovery of cold work and grain growth.
Quenching can be used to harden alloy steels, or in precipitation hardenable alloys, to
trap dissolved solute atoms in solution. Tempering will cause the dissolved alloying
elements to precipitate, or in the case of quenched steels, improve impact strength and
ductile properties.
Grades of tmt bars:-
The grades of TMT bars are nothing but the various compositions the TMT bars are
made off. These compositions determine the various characteristics of TMT bars such
as malleability, hardness, etc. The following chemistry of the steel used for the
production of TMT bars:
8

In the production of TMT bars the carbon is restricted to below 0.20% for imparting
better ductility and bend-ability and to ensure better weld-ability. The carbon
equivalent of the steel is controlled by the addition of Manganese (from 0.50% to
1.0% depending on the grade of the TMT bar being produced. In case of production of
corrosion resistant TMT bars, corrosion resisting elements are suitably added in the
steel.
Re-bar Quality Grade
Yield Strength
Mpa Min.
UTS
Mpa Min.
El.
(% Min.)
Bend up to
(Min.)
Is: 1786
Conventional
Re-bars
Fe-415
Fe-500
Fe-550
415
500
550
485
545
585
14.5
12.0
8.0
3d
4d
5d
TMT Bars
Fe-415
Fe-500
Fe-550
415
500
550
500
580
630
22.0
20.0
18.0
2d
2d
2d


Applications of TMT bar:-
TMT bars find wide applications in different spheres :
General purpose concrete re-enforcement structures
Bridges
Flyovers
Dams
High rise buildings
Industrial structures
Concrete roads
Underground structures
9

Characteristics of alloying elements :-

Manganese (Mn) improves hardenability, ductility and wear resistance. Mn
eliminates formation of harmful iron sulfides, increasing strength at high
temperatures.
Nickel (Ni) increases strength, impact strength and toughness, impart corrosion
resistance in combination with other elements.
Chromium (Cr) improves hardenability, strength and wear resistance, sharply
increases corrosion resistance at high concentrations (>12%).

Tungsten (W) increases hardness particularly at elevated temperatures due to stable
carbides, refines grain size.
Vanadium (V) increases strength, hardness, creep resistance and impact resistance
due to formation of hard vanadium carbides, limits grain size.
Molybdenum (Mo) increases hardenability and strength particularly at high
temperatures and under dynamic conditions.
Silicon (Si) improves strength, elasticity, acid resistance and promotes large grain
sizes, which cause increasing magnetic permeability.
Titanium (Ti) improves strength and corrosion resistance, limits austenite grain
size.
Cobalt (Co) improves strength at high temperatures and magnetic permeability.
Zirconium (Zr) increases strength and limits grain sizes.
Boron (B) highly effective hardenability agent, improves deformability and
machinability.
Copper (Cu) improves corrosion resistance.
Aluminum (Al) deoxidizer, limits austenite grains growth.
10

Let us have a through review about the entire manufacturing process in a brief
manner. J ust like the schematic shown above there are different stages in the
manufacturing of the TMT bars. It shows stage by stage development from the raw
material and gradually how the finished product is emerged.

These stages adopted here are a universal sequence to manufacture the TMT bars and
is followed in general practice. This is the best way to attain the finished products
using the equipment efficiently. Now let us briefly explain every stage in the process.
Note that every stage brings the raw material closer to the final product and any
miscalculation in any stage or occurrence of breakdown will result in loss of raw
materials, wastage of power and delay in production. Hence every process is equally
important. Now let us have a brief insight stage wise.
11

Now the first stage is handling the ingots and billets. They are the raw materials for
the TMT bars. They are unloaded from the truck and placed in stacks and are inline
with the next batch ready to be processed further. Various color coding is already
done based on their type. They are always placed in order as to reduce lead time.
There are few minor differences between ingots and billets which will be later
discussed in greater detail. The ingots then fed into the furnace and are softened to a
red hot ingot which is later on fed into the roughing mill which considerably decreases
the diameter of the ingot and gradually brings it closer to the final required diameter
and then leading its way to the intermediate mill to further decrease the diameter.
Finally the finishing mill comes into play where the final dimensions are obtained.
Note that the rod is still red hot after emerging from the finishing mill and enters into
the TMT quenching box where the pressure of water is set and the rod is hardened. In
the final stage the rod is placed on the cooling bed and then at last they are stacked
together and are ready for dispatch. Thus this brief summary gives us a proper
foundation how the TMT bars are manufactured.
Phases in the Manufacture of TMT Steel Bars

RAW MATERIALS

The raw materials used in production of TMT bars are of two types. They are
1) Ingots
2) Billets.

12

Billet

Ingot:-
The ingots have a structure similar to a trapezoid. It is like a cuboid structure but with
a little taper included at the sides. This makes the area of one side of ingot bigger than
the other end.
These ingots are manufactured by casting process with either iron ore or iron scrap at
a furnace plant. The iron ore or scrap metal is melted in the furnace and poured in
vessels and after cooling the ingots are taken out of the vessels.
The ratio metals used to make the ingots depend upon the order. There are 5 standard
ratios that all ingot furnaces follow. Every ratio has a colour allotted to it and after
manufacturing the ingot are marked with that color so that there is no margin of error.

There are certain specifications given to the ingots. They have certain optimum sizes
at which they are available.
BASIC INGOT SIZE
52 to 60 inches ingot length is used for TMT production
3 types based on the breadth and height of ingot
34 X 44 inches
32 X 42 inches
4 X 5 inches
Billets:-
The ingots and billets are almost similar but billets have better finish and there is less
chance of blow holes being present inside within. The final product obtained by using
billets have better finish when compared to the ingots.
Billets are more refined raw material which has less chance of blow holes and smooth
surface finish.
13

Billets have no standard color coding or a standard ratio. They are entirely made as on
order. But after manufacturing the billets are supplied with a Heat number (a test
certificate) which elaborates the ratios of metals used and order size. The dimensions
of billets are almost similar to the ingot.
The cross section area of a billet is : 125.Average mass per length 3.1kg per inch in
length
Raw Material Suppliers:-
Billets=TATA
VSP
MAITHAN, Etc

Ingots=Prakash Spectro
Sai Bhaskar Iron PVT LTD, Etc.


Color Coding:-
As we know that there is a specific color coding for each ingot based on the carbon
percent present in the ingot. This helps in better handling of raw materials as well as
final product. The color allotted is given below
Below 18 white paint
18 to 20 blue paint
21 to 23 green paint
24 to 26 Yellow paint
27 to 30- orange paint
Above 30 red paint

Unloading and loting :-
14

Initially when the raw material batch arrives from the ingot suppliers there are various
types of color coded ingots in the same truck. Every trucks material is given a lot
number that means that all the materials that is there in one truck get the same lot
number. They are then divided during the raw material handling. Based on the color
coding done they are pilled. The billets are pilled according to their heat number. The
raw materials are unloaded with the help of a EOT crane.


The crane shown in the figure is yellow in color. It operates at a vertically elevated
plane. It has a capacity of 25 tons.
Before using the raw materials for production they are stacked in batches which make
it easier for keeping track of the raw materials and avoiding confusion and decreasing
lead time. They are stacked in a similar fashion as shown in the following figure.
15

Ingots stacked

The entire handling of the raw materials purely depends on the scheduling, which in
turn depends on the priority of the customer orders. Its the most important point as
the stocks are piled in order as to the batch that is to be dispatched.

INSPECTION OF RAW MATERIALS:-

The incoming material is inspected visually at the initial stage before it unloaded. The
QA person tags yellow ribbon to the material which indicates the material is for
Inspection. After inspection based on the C% the respected Ribbon colors will be
issued. The stacked is done based on the color Code.
The ingots are identified by lot number, color Code is issued based on the C%.
Billets dont have any standard color coding but they are tested and coding is done by
the company itself.
16

There is a heat number mentioned on Billets which is evidenced to the Chemical

Composition in Supplier TC.
Before feeding there is a procedure of inspection where there is a series of chemical
tests done which determines the percentage of Carbon, Sulphur, Phosphorous and
Manganese.
1. The presence of carbon affects the strength where 30 is the maximum.
2. The presence of sulphur and phosphorous gives more strength where the
maximum allowable level is 0.060%
THE FOLLOWING ARE THE VARIOUS CHEMICAL TEST DONE ON THE
RAW MATERIAL:-
Determination of Carbon:
PRINCIPLE:-
The sample is burned in a current of pure oxygen in presence of a suitable flux Combustion of the
sample in a stream of oxygen thus converts all the carbon content into carbon dioxide . After
removal of sulfurous gases by suitable absorbents, the carbon dioxide is collected into a specially
jacketed burette along with the excess oxygen. The carbon dioxide is then absorbed in an alkali. On
passing the excess oxygen back to the burette, the contraction in the volume is read against the
burette scale, calibrated directly to the percentage of carbon.

PROCEDURE:

1. Before use, the apparatus should be tested for satisfactory working against standard sheet of
appropriate values of carbon.
2. For plain carbon steel- take one gram of an accurately weighing and clean sample free from
extraneous carbon in the form of small drillings or shavings in a porcelain boat which can
withstand a temperature of 1150C without breaking or cracking.
3. For low alloy and high steel- take one gram of an accurately weighed and clean sample free
from extraneous carbon in the form of small drillings or shavings in a porcelain boat, which
can withstand a temperature of 1250C without breaking or cracking. Spread 0.5 gms of tin
granules over the sample. In case of high alloy steel mix the sample with 0.5gms of pure iron
17

fillings also. Introduce the boat into the hot combustion tube in the furnace, kept between
1150 to 1250C.
4. Close the furnace inlet with a rubber stopper, allow the sample to heat for one to one and a
half minute. Regulate the flow of oxygen to 300-400 ml per minute into the furnace and
establish connection with the burette. Which has been, previously filled with acidulate brine
water coloured with methyl red. So that the liquid level in the bulbed portion of the gas
burette does not fall rapidly. After a minute or so, the level of water in the burette falls more
rapidly. Though the same rate of oxygen is maintained, indicating the completion of
combustion.
5. Take readings, when the level reaches near the zero graduation mark after closing the bend
way stopcock and equalizing the levels of the burette and connected leveling bottle. Pass the
collected and measured gas twice into the absorbing bulb, till a constant reading is obtained.
Record the burette reading. On the basis of one gram of the sample taken for analysis, the
burette is graduated to measure directly the percentage of carbon. Examine the combustion
boat for complete fusion of the sample, if not thoroughly fused, repeat the determination with
a free sample.
Blank- run a blank experiment on the same quantity of accelerators used, without any and makes
the appropriate corrections.



18

CALCUATION: -
Carbon percent=(A-B) x F
A=burette reading after adsorption of carbon dioxide in caustic potash with
one gram of the sample.
B=burette reading for the blank experiment.
F=correction factor for temperature and pressure.
19

REPRODUCTABILITY:- +/- 0.01 percent up to 1.50 percent of carbon.

Determination of Sulphur:

PRINCIPLE:
The sample is burnt in a system of oxygen to convert it to sulphur-di-oxide, which is
treated with dilute Silver Nitrate solution. During these process it is converted to Nitric Acid , which
is titrated with standard Sodium Hydroxide solution using tashiro as indicator.

PROCEDURE:
1. A known weight of sample is burnt in a Muffle Furnace maintained at a high temperature of 12 c.
and above. Pass a steady streamof purified oxygen after passing hrough bottles of silica gel ,
Potassium Hydroxide and Sulphuric Acid through the tube where the sample is under fusion or
melting.
2. The gasses evolved are made to bubble through a bubbling bottle contain in 50ml of Silver
Nitrate solution which is normally yellow or pale red.
3. The gas is converted to Nitric Acid
4. To allow the gas to pass through 5 to 10 minutes and add two drops of indicator before titrating
with Standard Sodium Hydroxide solution to green color.
5. To estimate Sulphur as given below:

CALCULATION:- SULPHUR % = Ml of Sodium Hydroxide / Factor X 0.01
Weight of sample

20

REMARKS:-
A). Silver Nitrate Solution is 0.1% and is to be saturated with oxygen and neutralized
finally for use.
B). Evolved gases are made to pass through cotton before entering into the bubbling
flask and the cotton is to be changed frequently for deposits of oxides.
REPRODUCTABILITY:-
UP TO 0.05% 0.005
21

UP TO 0.1% 0.008
UP TO 0.5% 0.01

Estimation of phosphorous:
PRINCIPLE:
Phosphorous in steels is oxidized to ortho phosphoric acid by the addition of
potassium permanganate, precipitate as ammonium molybdate in just acidic medium.
Filtered,washed perfectly and treated with the standard nitric acid using phenolpthalein as indicator.

PROCEDURE:

1. A known weight of the sample is taken in 500 ml flask and 40 ml of the dilute nitric acid (1:1) is
added.
2. To keep the 10ml of flask on hot plate for dissolving.
3. To add to 10ml of 10% Ammonium per sulfate after the sample has gone into solution oxidized
carbon.
4. To add 5 to 10ml of 2% potassium permanganate solution after some time to affect oxidation.
5. To digest the solution for 10 to 15 and potassium permanganate is reduced by drop wise addition
of sodium nitrate till the solution becomes clear and then, boil for a short time remove nitrogen
dioxide fumes.
6. To cool the flask and the acid is neutralized by adding ammonium solution till it is just acidic. If
the limit is passed the precipitate hydroxides are dissolved again by the drop wise addition only.
7. To warm the contents of the flask and to treat with 40ml of ammmonium molybdate solution and
the solution is shaken well.
8. The precipitate is settled for half an hour and filtered through filter paper No.1 with the pulp and
continue under section. It is well washed with 1% potassium permanganate solution to free from
acid.
9. To take the precipitate in 500 ml flask with 50 ml of potassium permanganate solution and add
new drops of phenolphthalein indicator.
22

10. A known volume of standard sodium hydroxide is added.
11. The flask is well shaken.
12. If the color fades, some more standard sodium hydroxide is added.
13. To allow some time for the reaction to complete and titrate back the excess standard sodium
hydroxide with a standard nitric acid for equal strength to colorless
14. To calculate phosphorous as given below.

CALCULATION:- Phosphorous % = No. of cc of sodium hydroxide X factor X 0.01
Weight of sample




FURNACE
After quality testing, the ingots are ready to be fed in the furnace. It is necessary for
the ingots to have a high temperature for the rolling process through the rollers. This is
where the furnace comes to play. The ingots are fed into the furnace wherein they are
constantly heated for 4 hours. The material, on exit is suitable to undergo Rolling. The
furnace generates heat energy by the combustion of coal gas, which is produced in a
coal gas plant located near by.
The furnace has three processes:-
1. Feeding
2. Heating
23

3. Ejection

Feeding:-

The feeding of the raw material into the furnace is done with the help of conveyer
rollers. The ingots are placed on the conveyer rollers manually; tongs are used in the
positioning onto the conveyor system, which transports the raw material to the feeding
bed. Once the ingots are stacked one after the other on the feeding bed, they are
pushed into the pre-heating chamber of the furnace with a mechanism which consists
of a worm gear pushing the ingots into the furnace. This mechanism is also controlled
manually by a person due to discontinuity in feeding.



24

Entire Feeding Process

Mechanism used for pushing ingots

In the below figure, the entrance of the furnace can be seen and the feeding bed and
the pusher are ready to operate. This type of operation decreases lead time and is
comfortable while starting the plant again.

25

The pusher mechanism pushing ingots into furnace

Heating Chamber:-
The Heating Chamber or furnace is the chamber where the ingots are made molten,
which makes it feasible to pass it through the rollers. The furnace is a fuel consuming
chamber which works on coal gas. The furnace has a total of 8 burners. There is a pre-
heating zone, which leads to the intermediate zone ultimately leading to the final zone.
The gas plant is where the coal gas is produced. There is a pipeline system which
leads the gas to the burners. The peak temperature in the furnace goes up to 1200C.
The gas is streamlined to vary the temperature.
Lot of precaution is taken as there is immense heat in proximity to the furnace.
The furnace interior is made of refractory bricks to withstand the high temperatures.
There are also certain doors at the side for inspection during maintenance. There is
another controller near the exit of the furnace to guide the red hot ingots outside of the
furnace and position them onto the rollers; leading them to the rolling mill.
26

FURNACE

The above picture shows the structure of the furnace. Several pipelines can be seen at
the entrance of the furnace, for exhaust. The pipes present near the burners
Consist of the gas fuel pipeline. The doors or gates present at the side are used for
inspection or to replace the refractory bricks during maintenance.

27

Furnace gate
The 8 burners balance the heat such that there is uniform temperature. In usual
practice the last 4 burners are usually varied.

Final furnace burners
The above figure shows the four burners placed inline. And the pipes are the carriers
of coal gas. Usually during maintenance the pipes are cleaned and the soot is removed.

Furnace Exit:-
After heating, the ingot is ready for the roughing mill. Authorized personnel are
stationed at various nodal points to navigate the heated raw material from the Furnace
to the Roughing mill. The exit door is opened by the person who removes the ingot.
28

Furnace exit
The furnace exit is shown in the above figure. The gate opens when an ingot is ready
to be rolled and the rollers in the path provided, carry the heated ingot onto the roughing
mill. This describes the process involved in the furnace.

ROUGHING MILL:
J ust after the ingot comes out of the furnace it is slowly led to the roughing mill. The
roughing mill is the first mill among the three mills present there. The mills are operated
with a high capacity motor. There is a gear reduction of ratio 1:6 to provide the necessary
torque required for rolling. The roughing mill is where there is very slight elongation and
gradually decreases in diameter and this is the main function of the roughing mill. There are
three sets of rollers present in the roughing mill.
29

Fig.10 ROUGHING MILL
This figure shows the entire set of the roughing mill. There are three sets of rollers and
each set has three rollers placed one over each other. Now the hot ingot is moved into the
first roller. A single roller is something like described below



Diag.2 roughing mill
30

The single motor shaft is transmitted to three shafts through the distributer. The sequence
of the alignment of the motor, couplings, bearings are as shown in the figure below.

Here is the order of the layout of the roughing mill. C stands for coupling and B
stands for bearing. While entering the first set of the roughing mill it roles at about seven
times at the same roller in different slots.

The different slots are shown in diag.2 which are the gray parts and the molten ingot
passes through these slots and then manually put back into the next slot and after 7 times
in the first set of rollers it moves through the guide way which leads it to the second set
of rollers and again leading it through the third roller and then the roughing mill is over.
The roughing mill is where most of the elongation is done and the area cross section
gradually decreases and the length increases. But the ingot is still in the molten state and
it continuously moves on to the next rollers through the guide ways.
The motor used for the roughing mill has a capacity of 800HP. Enough power has to be
produced to as the shaft power has to be divided among three shafts.

31

Fig.11 Roughing mill main motor
Here in the above picture it can be seen that on the motor shaft there is the coupling and
the the bearing is present. This kind of setup gives proper stability and utilization of the
shaft power.
In the following picture fig.12 the flywheel can be seen and then the bearing and
followed by the coupling. After the coupling there is the gear box which later on goes to
the 3 shaft divider.
The gear box used has a gear ratio of 1:6.Which shows that there is enough torque
required in reducing the speed of the motor to about 6 times.


32

Fig.12 flywheel & gearbox of roughing mill

After the roughing mill it passes to the next mill that is the intermediate roller and to
actuate its movement out of the roughing mill there are some accelerators placed at
certain intervals. These are called pinch rolls. There are springs on these pinch rolls
which puts the pressure on the moving rod. The motor used in the pinch rolls have a
power of 50HP.
Figure13. Pinch rolls
33

When the rollers in a mill get worn out then the same rollers are machined at the
machining section of the plant. Heavy lathe machines are used. When the dimensions of
the rollers slightly vary they are compensated by the universal joint which is at the shaft
attached to the rollers.

fig.13 universal joints
The slight angle between the shafts is visible in the above figure.
CUTTERS:
After the roughing mill it moves through the guide ways which are mostly made of cast
iron and these guides also provide an open top jus in case the rod expands and comes out
of the guide. The guide ways are sometimes placed with a cone which decreases miss
alignment.
These guide ways helps the tip of the red hot rod to enter into the next roller that is the
intermediate mill. This is the automated part of the mill which does not need the manual
method of feeding like in the roughing mill.
34

Hence there are front and back cutters which remove the front and back tip of the hot rod
as to allow proper entering into the next mill.

Fig.14 Shearer or cutter
Here the cutter blade is visible it moves in a to and fro motion and as the red hot rod is
still soft it easily shears it. These shearers are sensory activated and are automated. The
sheared waste pieces are put aside as scrap. They usually fall beside the cutter it self and
are removed during maintenance. In the picture fig.15 the cut pieces are shown laying
aside. These pieces actually fly off when they are cut. Shearing is easy as the rod is red
35

hot and still not fully hardened. This helps in easy shearing of these pieces. The front and
back tips of the rod are cut to enable it to freely pass through the next roller.

FIG.15 Pieces of rod cut from cutters

After every roller there is increase in the length of the rod which results in bending or
misalignment while entering into the roller. For that reason there are some special cones
placed while entering into the roller shown in the figure below.
These cones help the rod to enter in and
align properly and go into the allocated
grove in the roller. Without this it may
result in the slipping or entering into
the wrong grove. These are usually
made of cast iron and are long lasting.
They are made in such a way so it
would be easy while changing or
removing the setup.
FIG. 16
36

INTERMEDIATE MILL:
After passing through the roughing mill, the rod is led into the Intermediate mill. It
should be observed that, there is a considerable decrease of the size of the rod after
passing through the Roughing mill. The main function of the Intermediate mill is to
prepare the specimen for the finishing mill. The figure below shows the Intermediate
mill. Each roller is placed adjacent to the other. The guide way can also be seen in the
picture.

Fig. 17 Intermediate mill

This is the sequence of the intermediate mill. There is a speed increaser placed as
shown. This facilitates for the smooth movement of the rod as the motor is incapable
of giving the entire push to the rod. The speed increaser is placed wherever more
thrust is required.
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After the intermediate mill, two pinch rolls are placed. A Shearer is placed before the
finishing mill.

The picture shows the speed
increaser. A pneumatic piston
can be seen, which pushes the
rod and presses it between the
two rollers. A speed increaser
is placed where more power is
required. As all power cannot
be given by the motor,
auxiliary power is given by
these speed increasers.






FIG.18 Speed Increaser

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The picture shows a screw which is used to
lower or heighten the roller position which
is compensated by the universal joint. The
rollers are machined at the plant itself
which enables them to machine the same
rollers even after they are worn out.





FIG.19 Adjusting screw of roller

FINISHING MILL:
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The finishing mill is the main roller where the required dimension is obtained. The
rollers are made with precision and in such a way that the exact dimension can be
obtained. Quality is of great importance, since the manufactured products are graded
and approved by the ISI. This gives the company an edge over its competitors. The
finishing mill also facilitates for the brand imprint to be put onto the rod. The picture
shows the finishing mill.















FIG.20 Finishing Mill
The last three rollers of the finishing mill are placed inline. Separate motors are used for
each roller. The motors can also been seen coupled to the rollers with shafts and universal
joints.
J ust before entering the finishing mill, two pinch rolls are placed to improve the speed
and then, the red hot feed subsequently enters the roller through a
40

Shearer. The shearer is placed in such a way that the force of the rod itself removes its
tip. The schematic below describes the entrance of the finishing mill.



The final dimensions of the TMT steel bar are achieved by finishing rollers. The rods,
after passing through the finishing rollers; are still soft due to high temperature. There is a
special guide way present after the finishing rollers which leads the rods to the TMT
quenching box. The conic shaped guide way helps in the alignment of the rods while
movement to prevent torsion.




FIG. 21 conic guide ways
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Before the finishing mill there is a Shearer which cuts the edge suitably, to enter the
finishing mill. The sequence of the finishing mill is shown below.


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TMT QUENCHING BOX:

One of the most important parts of the plant is the TMT box where the hardening takes
place. Water is sprayed on the red hot rod to reduce the temperature abruptly which
results in the hardening of the outer surface of the rod. The amount of hardening depends
on the pressure of the water from the nozzle.

FIG.23 TMT quenching box

This fig. shows the quenching process. Various pipes can be seen which carry water and
several gauges are present for the measurement of water pressure. The pipes in blue show
the passage, through which hot rod passes.
The rods are made to fall on the cooling bed after the TMT treatment, but the speed of the
rods is too high due to the motor power and various pinch rolls. Hence to reduce the
speed before the rod on exit, a breaker is used. It reduces the speed of the incoming rod.
The breaker provides safety to the labor and prevents accidents.
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FIG 24 BREAKERS (SPEED REDUCER)

The finished products are then organized for Dispatch.







44

Acknowledgements:
The information furnished in this report was procured from the following data sources:

Sujana TMT Steel Products Pvt. Ltd.
Wikipedia- www.wikipedia.org
http://www.metal2009.com/sbornik/Lists/Papers/131.pdf.
Your guide to Civil Engineering basics TMT Bars.mht