A three-dimensional (3D) transient multi-physical model of the feed rod melting in the floating zone (FZ) silicon single-crystal growth process is presented. Coupled temperature, electromagnetic (EM), and melt film simulations are performed for a 4 inch FZ system, and the time evolution of the open melting front is studied. The 3D model uses phase boundaries and parameters from a converged solution of a quasi stationary axisymmetric (2D) model of the FZ system as initial conditions for the time dependent simulations. A parameter study with different feed rod rotation, crystal pull rates and widths of the inductor main slit is carried out to analyse their influence on the evolution of the asymmetric feed rod shape. The feed rod rotation is shown to have a smoothing effect on the shape of the open melting front. (C) 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.