Study of a New Operating Practice for Refining High Silicon Hot Metal in a BOF Converter

Within the context of Basic Oxygen Steelmaking, the refinement of high silicon hot metal is a cumbersome operation due to the strong tendency for slopping as the silicon concentration in the hot metal increases. According to generally recognized steel working practices, this issue could be resolved by a double-deslagging (slag removal) operation. In the present study, a new operating practice has been defined that eliminates slopping and increases productivity. The new tested procedure is a single-slag operation that results in a reduction in the tap to -tap time and greater gas recovery, affecting neither the slopping control nor the quality of the steel obtained at the end of the oxygen blow. The feasibility of such a new practice has been verified through a critical analysis of the results from thirty 30 experimental tests carried out at the industrial converters of a steel plant.