The industrial application of an aluminum wire injector for ladle metallurgy

CIM Bulletin, Vol. 75, No. 837, 1982

LOUCAS GOURTSOYANNIS Sidbec-Dosco, Montreal, Quebec, FRANK MUCCIARDI McGill University, Montreal, Quebec

Low and inconsistent recoveries of aluminum in the production of aluminum-killed steels triggered an extensive research program on the aluminum dissolution kinetics at McGill University. This research program led to the understanding of the melting kinetics and the hydrodynamics of making additions to liquid steel. It showed the necessity of gradually releasing liquid aluminum at the bottom of the ladle to increase aluminum recoveries.This knowledge was verified in practice at Sidbec-Dosco, where a prototype aluminum wire injector was developed and installed for the first time in Canada. The industrial application showed the validity of the theoretical and experimental results and provided further data for the mathematical modelling of the process.The development of the theoretical understanding, the industrial results, and the interaction between university and industry are presented.

Keywords: Technology, Wire injectors, Aluminum, Ladle metallurgy, Sidbec-Dosco, McGill University, Steel, Melting kinetics, Force monitoring.