OREANDA-NEWS. BMZ finished reconstruction of important facilities of steel melting production complex.

The reconstruction of two important facilities of steel melting complex was finished in Byelorussian Steel Works. Electrical-arc furnace №1 and powder-gas catching aggregate №1 were activated after long period of  "silence", now they are renewed. Its reconstruction will permit to increase a steel production capacity, making melting process more economical and ecological. The solemn putting into operation of these facilities after reconstruction took place the 17.01.2014.

The reconstruction of Electrical-arc furnace №1 and powder-gas catching aggregate №1 is an integral part of BMZ development program till 2015, the main target of which is to reach 3 million tons of steel per year and complete usage of continuous cast billet with its full processing with high added value instead of its sale.

It is worth mentioning that three electrical-arc furnaces operate at BMZ. The modernizations of EAF-2 and EAF-3 that took place before permitted to increase its productivity till 1 million tons per year. Now, thanks to reconstruction, during which the oxygen technologies were inserted and hydraulic furnace system was modernized, EAF-1 can also achieve the similar level. The fulfilled actions, in addition to increase the capacity of facility, will permit to decrease specific consumption of electricity, electrodes, to make shorter time of melting, to improve ergonomic index of steel melting process. Taking into consideration the complex usage of oxygen technologies and fresh-burned lime, decreasing of harmful impurities content, it will be possible to increase the quality of melted steel. As for economy, an oxygen technologies introduction will permit the energy efficiency improvement of steel on 8,5 %. At the same time, a specific economy of electricity on 1 ton of melted steel will be 5,25 USD dollars/t or 4, 987 million USD dollars per year.

The modernization of EAF control is the important reconstruction result, that also could increase a furnace capacity. The change of physically old-fashioned automation system will permit to decrease production cost of liquid steel on EAF-1. A number of advantages that has new equipment will promote this. First, the increasing for long period of time (10 and more years) the reliability of control system will decrease production losses, linked with equipment failures.

Second, visualization will be implemented thanks to the usage of industrial computers and so called man-machine interface in the main new control methods and technological process. Third, a new possibilities of additional functions control are opened and they are linked with technology perfection as for decreasing of products cost. Not the least of the factors is the circumstance that a new control system of EAF-1, implemented gas-oxygen technologies, hydraulics and a new system of transformer protection was not possible without the installation of a new control system basing on Simatic S7.

The current modernization became the 3-rd for EAF-1, the history of BMZ began in fact from the commissioning of this facility. The initial annual capacity of the furnace was 10 731 tons, but very soon it could overcome a border of 1 million tons. The general costs for its reconstruction was more than 23 million of USD dollars.

Steel grade ApX with bore was melt during the solemn ceremony. After melting it was sent to the rolling mill 150 where it will be processed till 9 mm diameter and send to wire-mill-3 for production of cold-drawn rebars of 8 mm diameter for existing orders to Germany, Finland, Sweden.