Ladle refining furnace is a kind of important equipment used in the process of steel smelting, and its functions mainly include removing impurities in the molten steel, adjusting the composition and temperature of molten steel and so on. The functions of ladle refining furnace are described in detail below.
First of all, ladle refining furnace can effectively remove impurities in the liquid steel. In the process of steel smelting, the steel liquid often contains some impurities, such as sulfur, oxygen, nitrogen and so on. These impurities will have an adverse effect on the performance of steel, so they need to be removed. The ladle refining furnace can adsorb and capture these impurities by adding an appropriate amount of desulphurising agent, deoxidising agent, etc., so as to improve the purity of the liquid steel.
Secondly, ladle refining furnace can adjust the composition of steel. In the steel smelting process, the composition of steel is closely related to the performance of the final product. By adding suitable alloying elements, such as chromium, nickel, molybdenum, etc., into the ladle, the chemical composition of the molten steel can be changed, so as to meet the production of steel with different material and performance requirements. In addition, the ladle refining furnace can also carry out the temperature adjustment treatment of molten steel, so that the temperature of molten steel reaches the appropriate pouring temperature and improves the quality of steel.
In addition, the ladle refining furnace can also carry out the degassing treatment of molten steel. In the steel smelting process, the molten steel often contains a certain amount of hydrogen and nitrogen. These gases will have an adverse effect on the performance of steel, and therefore need to be degassed. The ladle refining furnace can adsorb and capture these gases by adding an appropriate amount of degassing agent, such as calcium alloy, aluminium alloy, etc., so as to improve the purity and uniformity of the steel.
In addition, the ladle refining furnace also has the functions of heat preservation and pressure retention. Inside the ladle refining furnace, insulation materials, such as refractory bricks and refractory fibres, are usually added to keep the high temperature and improve the thermal efficiency of the furnace chamber. At the same time, the ladle refining furnace will also improve the smelting speed and effect of molten steel through the pressurisation operation.