The metallurgical structure and composition of ingots which depend critically on the fluid motion within the molten pool during the vacuum arc remelting (VAR) process have important effect on the subsequent mechanical processes like forging, rolling and welding. In order to determine the fluid motion of molten pool, a 2D finite element model is established using ANSYS10.0 software, combined with the turbulent fluid flow and heat transfer. The fluid motion caused by thermo buoyancy forces is investigated at different VAR processes in the present study. The results indicate that the fluid flows symmetrically along the axis of the molten pool and clockwisely along the circle at the right pool's profile. It is also shown that the maximum velocity increases with increasing melting rate and a direct proportional relationship exists. © Shanghai Jiaotong University and Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2011.