Value in use of lime in BOF steelmaking process

Abstract

In the BOF steelmaking process, lime quality and quantity directly affect slag quality, affecting metallurgical results, liquid metal yield, productivity, and therefore the total cost and environmental impact of the steel production. In this paper, a value in use model based on mass balance and heat balance was developed and used to evaluate the impact of lime quality on the BOF process. The model has been successfully validated using the data of the Steel Plant. Then three types of lime with different qualities were used to elaborate on the impact of lime characteristics in optimizing the steelmaking process, metallurgical benefits, overall cost impact, potential savings, and environmental benefits. The calculation results show that good-quality lime could increase the scrap ratio, reduce the lime consumption, and reduce iron loss, accordingly, improve the steel quality, increase steel yield, reduce the smelting costs, stabilize smelting operations, and reduce CO₂ emissions.