A kinetic model to predict chemical composition changes in molten steel, slag, and inclusions in ladle refining was developed and used to elucidate the mechanism underlying the change in the chemical composition of the inclusions. The coupled reaction model was applied to estimate the reaction between molten steel/slag and molten steel/inclusion originating from the slag. The thermodynamic calculation software, FactSage6.3, was employed to obtain the activity of each component in the slag phase. Empirical equations were applied to the reaction between the slag and the refractory. The resulting model can calculate changes in (1) the composition of each element in the molten steel, slag, and the inclusion originating from the slag, (2) the amount of inclusion originating from the slag and the deoxidation products, and (3) the ratio of the inclusion originating from the slag and the deoxidation products to the total inclusion. The calculated results were found to agree with the operational results of a 165 t ladle refining process reported in the literature. The deoxidation products altered from alumina to a MgO·Al2O3 spinel-type inclusion due to an increase in the Mg content of steel. In the average composition changes of each element in the total inclusions, calculated results for the MgO and Al2O3 contents were also found to agree with the operational results.

Fig. 15. Relation between the distribution ratio of P 2 O 5 and the CaO content of the liquid at different (log g P 2 O 5 ,SS ) cal .

The formation of MgO·Al2O3 spinel-type inclusions has often been reported even when Mg is not added during treatment. Many researchers have investigated the dissolution behavior of Mg from slag; however, studies on the reaction between molten steel and MgO-type refractory are limited. In this paper, the inclusion composition of Al-deoxidized steel melted in a MgO crucible, and mass transfer rates of Mg from a MgO rod and MgO in slag to Al-deoxidized molten steel were investigated. These studies clarified that Mg dissolved in the molten steel and the spinel formed not only with the reaction of molten steel and slag but also with the reaction of molten steel and MgO crucible. The dissolution rate of Mg from MgO rod increased as the rotation rate and Al content in steel increased. The MgO·Al2O3 spinel layer formed at the interface between the metal and MgO rod. The Mg content was higher for the reaction between molten steel and MgO in slag compared to the reaction between molten steel and MgO rods, as it equilibrated with MgO activity in slag.

This paper studies the possibility of developing a new heat recovery system from various hot wastes generated by the steelmaking industry, by utilizing the endothermic heat of reaction instead of sensible heat. In the proposed system, the waste heat of the gas was first stored using a Phase Change Material (PCM), and then supplied to an endothermic, methane-steam reforming reaction (MSR) as a heat source. The molten slag was granulated using a rotary cup atomizer (RCA) and the sensible heat of the slag was recovered using MSR. A heat and material balance model was developed to evaluate this system and to predict all its operating data. An exergy analysis and an economic evaluation were conducted on the basis of the predicted data. The results showed that the exergy loss in the proposed system was only 15 % from the total exergy losses in the conventional system, and that the annual cost benefit of the proposed system totaled US$ 409 million from heat recovery, and US$ 1 945 million from slag granulation.

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