Solidification and cooling of a continuously cast steel slab and the heating of the mould is a very complicated problem of transient heat and mass transfer. This original three-dimensional (3D) numerical model is capable of simulating the temperature field of a caster. The numerical computation has to take place simultaneously with the data acquisition-not only to confront it with the actual numerical model, but also to make it more accurate throughout the process. The utilization of the

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... al model of solidification and cooling plays an indispensable role in practice. An important step in this analysis is to determine the necessary quantities in the course of concasting. The software enables data acquisition in real time, which is necessary for optimization. This is ensured by the correct process procedure: real process → input data → numerical analysis → optimization → correction of process. This procedure is necessary for optimization (i.e. maximization of the quality of the process)-especially when reacting to specific needs and conditions in the operation.