The process of melting by rolling contact

This paper describes the fundamentals of the heat transfer melting process occurring in the narrow rolling contact region between a body of phase-change material and a solid body that acts as a heater. The theory is based on the following assumptions : (i) the phase-change material is at the melting point temperature, (ii) the surface of the solid is isothermal, (iii) the effect of frictional heating in the liquid gap is negligible, (iv) the peripheral length of the liquid region is much smaller than the radius of the roller, (v) the liquid gap region is slender, and (vi) the effect of surface tension is negligible. The general solution constructed in this manner relates the mechanical loading of the roller (normal force, tangential force, applied torque) to the angular speed of the roller, the temperature difference between the heater and the phase-change material and the thermophysical properties of the liquid phase. Simpler calculation procedures are developed for two special applications : (a) the melting of a cylinder mounted freely on its axle, and (b) the melting of a turning cylinder the axle of which is stationary relative to the heater surface.