A blast furnace is a type of metallurgical furnace used for smelting to produce metals, generally iron. Metallurgy is a domain of Materials science that studies the physical and chemical behavior of metallic elements, their intermetallic compounds, and their A furnace is a device used for Heating The name derives from Latin fornax, Oven. Chemical reduction, or smelting, is a form of Extractive metallurgy.
In a blast furnace, fuel and ore are continuously supplied through the top of the furnace, while air (sometimes with oxygen enrichment) is blown into the bottom of the chamber, so that the chemical reactions take place throughout the furnace as the material moves downward. Fuel is any material that is burned or altered in order to obtain energy An ore is a volume of rock containing components or Minerals in a mode of occurrence that renders it valuable for mining Temperature and layers The temperature of the Earth's atmosphere varies with altitude the mathematical relationship between temperature and altitude varies among five A chemical reaction is a process that always results in the interconversion of Chemical substances The substance or substances initially involved in a chemical reaction are called The end products are usually molten metal and slag phases tapped from the bottom, and flue gases exiting from the top of the furnace. The M acro E xpansion T emplate A ttribute L anguage complements TAL, providing macros which allow the reuse of code across Slag is the By-product of Smelting Ore to purify Metals They can be considered to be a mixture of metal Oxides however
Blast furnaces are to be contrasted with air furnaces (such as reverberatory furnaces), which were naturally aspirated, usually by the convection of hot gases in a chimney flue. A reverberatory furnace is a metallurgical or process Furnace that isolates the material being processed from contact with the Fuel, but not from contact According to this broad definition, bloomeries for iron, blowing houses for tin and smelt mills for lead would be classified as blast furnaces. A bloomery is a type of Furnace once widely used for Smelting Iron from its oxides. A blowing house or blowing mill was a building used for Smelting Tin in Cornwall and on Dartmoor in Devon in South West England Tin is a Chemical element with the symbol Sn (stannum and Atomic number 50 Smeltmills were water-powered mills used to smelt Lead or other metals Characteristics Lead has a dull luster and is a dense, Ductile, very soft highly However, the term has usually been limited to those used for smelting iron ore to produce pig iron, an intermediate material used in the production of commercial iron and steel. Iron ores are rocks and Minerals from which Metallic Iron can be economically extracted Pig iron is the intermediate product of Smelting Iron ore with coke, usually with Limestone as a flux Iron (ˈаɪɚn is a Chemical element with the symbol Fe (ferrum and Atomic number 26 Steel is an Alloy consisting mostly of Iron, with a Carbon content between 0
Certain modern furnaces used for non-ferrous smelting processes are known as blast furnaces, and are particularly in the production of lead and copper. Ferrous, in the chemical science realm indicates a bivalent iron compound (+2 oxidation state (as opposed to Ferric, which indicates a trivalent iron compound (+3 oxidation Characteristics Lead has a dull luster and is a dense, Ductile, very soft highly Copper (ˈkɒpɚ is a Chemical element with the symbol Cu (cuprum and Atomic number 29 However this article (except its final section) will concentrate on furnaces for the production of pig iron.
Contents |
History
Blast furnaces existed in China from about the 5th century BC, and in the West from the High Middle Ages. China ( Wade-Giles ( Mandarin) Chung¹kuo² is a cultural region, an ancient Civilization, and depending on perspective a National The High Middle Ages was the period of European history in the 11th 12th and 13th centuries (AD 1000&ndash1299 They spread from the region around Namur in Belgium in the late 15th century, being introduced to England in 1491. List of Governors 1830 - 1834 Goswin de Stassart (Liberal 1834 - 1840 Joseph Lebeau (Liberal 1840 - 1847 Edouard The Kingdom of Belgium is a Country in northwest Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts its headquarters as well as those England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland The fuel used in these was invariably charcoal. The successful substitution of coke for charcoal is widely attributed to Abraham Darby in 1709. Coke is a solid Carbonaceous material derived from Destructive distillation of low-ash low-sulfur Bituminous coal. Charcoal' is the blackish residue consisting of impure Carbon obtained by removing water and other volatile constituents from Animal and Vegetation Abraham Darby ( April 14, 1678 &ndash May 5, 1717) was the first and most famous of three generations with that name in an The efficiency of the process was further enhanced by the practice of preheating the blast, patented by James Beaumont Neilson in 1828. James Beaumont Neilson ( June 22, 1792 &ndash January 18, 1865) is a Scottish Inventor whose hot-blast process
The blast furnace is to be distinguished from the bloomery in that the object of the blast furnace is to produce molten metal that can be tapped from the furnace, whereas the intention in the bloomery is to avoid it melting so that carbon does not become dissolved in the iron. A bloomery is a type of Furnace once widely used for Smelting Iron from its oxides. Bloomeries were also artificially blown using bellows, but the term 'blast furnace' is normally reserved for furnaces where iron (or other metal) are refined from ore. A bellows is a device for delivering pressurized Air in a controlled quantity to a controlled location
The Ancient World
The oldest existent blast furnaces were built during the Han Dynasty of China in the 1st century BC. The Han Dynasty ( 206 BC–220 AD followed the Qin Dynasty and preceded the Three Kingdoms in China. China ( Wade-Giles ( Mandarin) Chung¹kuo² is a cultural region, an ancient Civilization, and depending on perspective a National However, cast iron farm tools and weapons were widespread in China by the 5th century BC,[1] while 3rd century BC iron smelters employed an average workforce of over two hundred men. Cast iron usually refers to grey cast iron, but identifies a large group of Ferrous Alloys which solidify with a Eutectic. [1] These early furnaces had clay walls and used phosphorus-containing minerals as a flux. Clay is a naturally occurring material composed primarily of fine-grained Minerals which show plasticity through a variable range of Water content, and Phosphorus, (ˈfɒsfərəs is the Chemical element that has the symbol P and Atomic number 15 In Metallurgy, a flux is a chemical cleaning agent which facilitates Soldering, Brazing, and Welding by removing Oxidation from [2] Also, the effectiveness of the Chinese blast furnace was enhanced during this period by the engineer Du Shi (circa 31 AD), who applied the power of waterwheels (hydraulics) to piston-bellows in forging cast iron. Du Shi ( d 38 was a Chinese governmental Prefect of Nanyang in 31 AD and a mechanical Engineer of the Eastern Han Dynasty in Ancient A water wheel is a means of extracting power from the flow (or fall of water otherwise known as Hydropower. For the mechanical technology see Hydraulic machinery and Hydraulic cylinder Hydraulics is a topic of science and Engineering A piston is a component of Reciprocating engines Pumps and Gas compressors It is located in a cylinder and is made gas-tight by Piston A bellows is a device for delivering pressurized Air in a controlled quantity to a controlled location [3]
While it was long thought that the Chinese developed the blast furnace and cast iron as their first method of iron production, Donald Wagner (the author of the above referenced study) has published a more recent paper[4] that supersedes some of the statements in the earlier work; the newer paper still places the date of the first cast iron artifacts at the 4th and 5th century BC, but also provides evidence of earlier bloomery furnace use, which migrated in from the west during the beginning of the Chinese Bronze Age of the late Longshan culture (2000 BC). A bloomery is a type of Furnace once widely used for Smelting Iron from its oxides. The term Bronze Age refers to a period in human cultural development when the most advanced Metalworking (at least in systematic and widespread use included techniques for Longshan culture ( was a late Neolithic culture in China, centered on the central and lower Yellow River and dated from about 3000 BC to He suggests that early blast furnace and cast iron production evolved from furnaces used to melt bronze. Certainly, though, iron was essential to military success by the time the State of Qin had unified China (221 BC). Qín or Ch'in ( Wade-Giles) (秦 ( 778 BC - 207 BC) was a State during the Spring and Autumn and Warring States Periods By the 11th century, the Song Dynasty Chinese iron industry made a remarkable switch of resources from charcoal to bituminous coal in casting iron and steel, sparing thousands of acres of prime timberland from felling. The Song Dynasty ( Wade-Giles: Sung Ch'ao was a ruling dynasty in China between 960&ndash1279 CE it succeeded the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Charcoal' is the blackish residue consisting of impure Carbon obtained by removing water and other volatile constituents from Animal and Vegetation Bituminous coal is a relatively soft Coal containing a tarlike substance called Bitumen. A forest is an area with a high density of Trees There are many definitions of a forest based on various criteria [5]
In Europe, the iron was made in bloomeries by the Greeks, Celts, Romans, and Carthaginians in the ancient period; several examples have been found in France; and materials found in Tunisia suggest their use there as well as in Antioch during the Hellenistic Period. A bloomery is a type of Furnace once widely used for Smelting Iron from its oxides. The Greeks ( Greek: Έλληνες) are a Nation and Ethnic group native to Greece, Cyprus and neighbouring regions Celts (ˈkɛlts or /ˈsɛlts/, see Names of the Celts Ancient Rome was a Civilization that grew out of a small agricultural community founded on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 10th century BC Carthage (Καρχηδών Karkhēdōn, Carthago from the Phoenician קרת חדשת phn-Latn Qart-ḥadašt meaning new town) refers The Hellenistic period of European history was the period between the death of Alexander the Great (Alexander III of Macedon in 323 BC and the annexation Though little is known of its use during the Dark Ages, the process probably continued in use. This article is about the phrase "Dark Age(s" as a characterization of the Early Middle Ages in Western Europe The improved bloomery named Catalan forge was invented in Catalonia, Spain during the 8th century. A bloomery is a type of Furnace once widely used for Smelting Iron from its oxides. Catalonia (Cataluña Catalunya Aranese: Catalonha) is an Autonomous Community in the northeast part of Spain. Spain () or the Kingdom of Spain (Reino de España is a country located mostly in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Instead of using natural draught, it relied on bellows for pumping the air in. This enabled it to produce better quality iron and enlarge the capacity.
Medieval Europe
The oldest known blast furnaces in the West were built in Dürstel in Switzerland, the Märkische Sauerland in Germany, and Sweden at Lapphyttan where the complex was active between 1150 and 1350. Switzerland (English pronunciation; Schweiz Swiss German: Schwyz or Schwiiz Suisse Svizzera Svizra officially the Swiss Confederation The Sauerland is a rural hilly area spreading across most of the south-eastern part of North Rhine-Westphalia, in parts heavily Forested and apart from the major Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany ( ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant is a Country in Central Europe. "Sverige" redirects here For other uses see Sweden (disambiguation and Sverige (disambiguation. Lapphyttan in Norberg, Sweden, may be regarded as the Type site for the Medieval Blast Furnace. [6] At Noraskog in the Swedish county of Järnboås there have also been found traces of blast furnaces dated even earlier, possibly to around 1100. [7] These early blast furnaces, like the Chinese examples, were very inefficient compared to those used today. Chinese civilization originated in various city-states along the Yellow River ( valley in the Neolithic era The iron from the Lapphyttan complex was used to produce balls of wrought iron known as osmonds, and these were traded internationally - a possible reference occurs in a treaty with Novgorod from 1203 and several certain references in accounts of English customs from the 1250s and 1320s. QtubIronPillarJPG|thumb|right| Iron pillar at Delhi India containing 98% wrought iron]] Wrought iron is commercially pure Iron. Osmond iron (also spelt osmund and also called osborn was Wrought iron made by a particular process Veliky Novgorod (Вели́кий Но́вгород is the foremost historic city of North-Western Russia and the administrative center of Novgorod England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland Other furnaces of the 13th to 15th centuries have been identified in Westphalia. Westphalia (Westfalen) is a region in Germany, centred on the cities of Bielefeld, Bochum, Dortmund, Gelsenkirchen, Münster [8]
Knowledge of certain technological advances was transmitted as a result of the General Chapter of the Cistercian monks, including the blast furnace, as the Cistercians are known to have been skilled metallurgists. Metallurgy is a domain of Materials science that studies the physical and chemical behavior of metallic elements, their intermetallic compounds, and their [9] According to Jean Gimpel, their high level of industrial technology facilitated the diffusion of new techniques: "Every monastery had a model factory, often as large as the church and only several feet away, and waterpower drove the machinery of the various industries located on its floor. " Iron ore deposits were often donated to the monks along with forges to extract the iron, and within time surpluses were being offered for sale. The Cistercians became the leading iron producers in Champagne, France, from the mid-13th century to the 17th century,[10] also using the phosphate-rich slag from their furnaces as an agricultural fertilizer. Champagne is a historic province in the northeast of France, best known for the production of the sparkling white wine that bears the region's name This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics. A phosphate, an Inorganic chemical, is a salt of Phosphoric acid. Agriculture refers to the production of goods through the growing of plants and fungi and the raising of domesticated Animals The study of agriculture Fertilizers ( also spelt fertiliser are chemical compounds given to Plants to promote growth they are usually applied either through the soil for uptake by plant [11]
Archaeologists are still discovering the extent of Cistercian technology. [12] At Laskill, an outstation of Rievaulx Abbey and the only medieval blast furnace so far identified in Britain, the slag produced was low in iron content. Laskill is a small hamlet situated 5 Miles (8 Kilometres north-west of Helmsley, North Yorkshire, England, on the road from Rievaulx Abbey is a former Cistercian Abbey, headed by the Abbot of Rievaulx, located in the small village of Rievaulx (pronounced 'Ree-voh' See also Kingdom of Great Britain Great Britain (Breatainn Mhòr Prydain Fawr Breten Veur Graet Breetain is the larger of the two main islands [13] Slag from other furnaces of the time contained a substantial concentration of iron, whereas Laskill is believed to have produced cast iron quite efficiently. Cast iron usually refers to grey cast iron, but identifies a large group of Ferrous Alloys which solidify with a Eutectic. [13][14][15] Its date is not yet clear, but it probably did not survive Henry VIII's Dissolution of the Monasteries in the late 1530s, as an agreement (immediately after that) concerning the 'smythes' with the Earl of Rutland in 1541 refers to blooms. Henry VIII (28 June 1491 &ndash 28 January 1547 was King of England and Lord of Ireland, later King of Ireland and claimant to the Kingdom of The Dissolution of the Monasteries, sometimes referred to as the Suppression of the Monasteries, was the formal process between 1536 and 1541 by which Henry VIII disbanded Thomas Manners 1st Earl of Rutland (c 1492 &ndash September 20 1543) was created an earl by King Henry VIII of England in 1525 [16] Nevertheless, the means by which the blast furnace spread in medieval Europe has not finally been determined.
Early modern blast furnaces: origin and spread
The direct ancestor of those used in France and England was in the Namur region in what is now Belgium. List of Governors 1830 - 1834 Goswin de Stassart (Liberal 1834 - 1840 Joseph Lebeau (Liberal 1840 - 1847 Edouard The Kingdom of Belgium is a Country in northwest Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts its headquarters as well as those From there, they spread first to the Pays de Bray on the eastern boundary of Normandy and from there to the Weald of Sussex, where the first furnace (called Queenstock) in Buxted was built in about 1491, followed by one at Newbridge in Ashdown Forest in 1496. The Pays de Bray is a small (about 750 km² Natural region of France situated to the north-east of Rouen, straddling the French départements Normandy (Normandie Norman: Normaundie) is a geographical region corresponding to the former Duchy of Normandy. The Weald (wɪəld is the name given to a physiographic area in south-east England situated between the parallel Chalk Escarpments of the North Sussex is a historic county in South East England corresponding roughly in area to the ancient Kingdom of Sussex. Buxted is a village and Civil parish in the Wealden District of East Sussex in England. Ashdown Forest is in the county of East Sussex, in South East England is an open area of of heathland together with pine birch and oak woodland in the High They remained few in number until about 1530 but many were built in the following decades in the Weald, where the iron industry perhaps reached its peak about 1590. Most of the pig iron from these furnaces was taken to finery forges for the production of bar iron. Pig iron is the intermediate product of Smelting Iron ore with coke, usually with Limestone as a flux Iron tapped from the Blast furnace is Pig iron, and contains significant amounts of Carbon and Silicon. QtubIronPillarJPG|thumb|right| Iron pillar at Delhi India containing 98% wrought iron]] Wrought iron is commercially pure Iron. [17]
The first British furnaces outside the Weald were not built until the 1550s, but many were built in the remainder of that century and the following ones. The Weald (wɪəld is the name given to a physiographic area in south-east England situated between the parallel Chalk Escarpments of the North The output of the industry probably peaked about 1620, and was followed by a slow decline until the early 18th century. This was apparently because it was more economic to import iron from Sweden and elsewhere than to make it in some more remote British locations. "Sverige" redirects here For other uses see Sweden (disambiguation and Sverige (disambiguation. Charcoal that was economically available to the industry was probably being consumed as fast as the wood to make it grew. [18]
The first blast furnace in Russia opened in 1637 near Tula and was called the Gorodishche Works. Russia (Россия Rossiya) or the Russian Federation ( Rossiyskaya Federatsiya) is a transcontinental Country extending Tula (Ту́ла is an industrial city in the European part of Russia, located 193 km south of Moscow, on the river Upa. The blast furnace spread from here to the center of Russia and then finally to Urals. Riphean redirects here For the time period see Riphean stage The Ural Mountains (Ура́льские го́ры Uralskiye [19]
Coke blast furnaces
In 1709, at Coalbrookdale in Shropshire, England, Abraham Darby began to fuel a blast furnace with coke instead of charcoal. Coalbrookdale is a side valley of the Ironbridge Gorge in the borough of Telford and Wrekin and ceremonial county of Shropshire, England England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland Abraham Darby ( April 14, 1678 &ndash May 5, 1717) was the first and most famous of three generations with that name in an Coke is a solid Carbonaceous material derived from Destructive distillation of low-ash low-sulfur Bituminous coal. Charcoal' is the blackish residue consisting of impure Carbon obtained by removing water and other volatile constituents from Animal and Vegetation Coke iron was initially only used for foundry work, making pots and other cast iron goods. Foundry work was a minor branch of the industry, but his son built a new furnace at Horsehay (nearby), and began to supply the owners of finery forges with coke pig iron for the production of bar iron. Iron tapped from the Blast furnace is Pig iron, and contains significant amounts of Carbon and Silicon. Coke pig iron was by this time cheaper to produce than charcoal pig iron. The use of a coal-derived fuel in the iron industry was a key factor in the British Industrial Revolution. The Industrial Revolution was a period in the late 18th and early 19th centuries when major changes in agriculture manufacturing and transportation had a profound effect on the [20] Darby's 'old blast furnace' has been archaeologically excavated and can be seen in situ at Coalbrookdale as part of the Ironbridge Gorge Museums. Coalbrookdale is a side valley of the Ironbridge Gorge in the borough of Telford and Wrekin and ceremonial county of Shropshire, England The Ironbridge Gorge is a deep Gorge formed by the river Severn in Shropshire, England
A further important development was the change to hot blast, patented by James Beaumont Neilson at Wilsontown Ironworks in Scotland in 1828. Hot blast refers to the preheating of air blown into a Blast furnace or other metallurgical process James Beaumont Neilson ( June 22, 1792 &ndash January 18, 1865) is a Scottish Inventor whose hot-blast process The ruins of the Wilsontown Ironworks are located near the village of Forth in Scotland, approximately 23 miles to the south east of Glasgow. This further reduced production costs. Within a few decades, the practice was to have a 'stove' as large as the furnace next to it into which the waste gas (containing CO) from the furnace was directed and burnt. The resultant heat was used to preheat the air blown into the furnace. [21]
A further significant development was the application of raw anthracite coal to the blast furnace, first tried successfully by George Crane at Yniscedwyn ironworks in south Wales in 1837. Anthracite ( Greek Ανθρακίτης literally "a type of coal" from Anthrax, coal is a hard compact variety of mineral Coal that has a high [22] This was taken up in America by the Lehigh Crane Iron Company at Catasauqua, Pennsylvania (q. The Lehigh Crane Iron Company (often simply the Crane Iron Company) was a major ironmaking firm in the Lehigh Valley from its founding in 1839 until its sale in 1899 Catasauqua is a borough in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, settled in 1805 and chartered as a borough in 1853 v. ) in 1839.
Modern furnaces
The blast furnace remains an important part of modern iron production. Modern furnaces are highly efficient, including Cowper stoves to pre-heat the blast air and employ recovery systems to extract the heat from the hot gases exiting the furnace. Hot blast refers to the preheating of air blown into a Blast furnace or other metallurgical process Competition in industry drives higher production rates. The largest blast furnaces have a volume around 5580 m3 (190,000 cu ft)[23] and can produce around 80,000 tonnes of iron per week.
This is a great increase from the typical 18th century furnaces, which averaged about 400 tons per year. Variations of the blast furnace, such as the Swedish electric blast furnace, have been developed in countries which have no native coal resources.
Modern process
1. Hot blast from Cowper stoves
2. Hot blast refers to the preheating of air blown into a Blast furnace or other metallurgical process Melting zone (bosh)
3. Reduction zone of ferrous oxide (barrel)
4. Iron(II oxide, also known as ferrous oxide, iron oxide/oxidized iron or more commonly rusted Reduction zone of ferric oxide (stack)
5. Iron(III oxide —also known as ferric oxide, Hematite, red iron oxide, synthetic maghemite, colcothar, or simply Rust —is Pre-heating zone (throat)
6. Feed of ore, limestone, and coke
7. Iron ores are rocks and Minerals from which Metallic Iron can be economically extracted Limestone is a Sedimentary rock composed largely of the Mineral Calcite ( Calcium carbonate: CaCO3 Coke is a solid Carbonaceous material derived from Destructive distillation of low-ash low-sulfur Bituminous coal. Exhaust gases
8. Column of ore, coke and limestone
9. Removal of slag
10. Slag is the By-product of Smelting Ore to purify Metals They can be considered to be a mixture of metal Oxides however Tapping of molten pig iron
11. Pig iron is the intermediate product of Smelting Iron ore with coke, usually with Limestone as a flux Collection of waste gases
Modern furnaces are equipped with an array of supporting facilities to increase efficiency, such as ore storage yards where barges are unloaded. The raw materials are transferred to the stockhouse complex by ore bridges, or rail hoppers and "ore transfer cars". A railcar (not to be confused with a railway car) is a self-propelled railway Vehicle designed to Transport passengers Rail-mounted scale cars or computer controlled weight hoppers weigh out the various raw materials to yield the desired hot metal and slag chemistry. A "skip car" powered by winches brings these to the top of the furnace. right|200px|thumb|A full skip A skip (occasionally rubbish skip and in American English classed as a type of dumpster) is a large open-topped container designed A winch is a mechanical device that is used to pull in (wind up or let out (wind out or otherwise adjust the " Tension " of a Rope or Wire rope [24]
There are different charging systems: With the classical bell top the position of the charged material can only be modified within small limits. More possibilities and precise charging are offered by "bell less top" systems: the Distribution Chute and the Gimbal Top.
The ironmaking blast furnace itself is built in the form of a tall chimney-like structure lined with refractory brick. A chimney is a system for venting hot Flue gases or Smoke from a Boiler, Stove, Furnace or Fireplace to the outside A refractory is a material that retains its strength at high Temperatures ASTM C71 defines refractories as "non-metallic materials having those chemical and physical Coke, limestone flux, and iron ore (iron oxide) are charged into the top of the furnace in a precise filling order which helps control gas flow and the chemical reactions inside the furnace. Limestone is a Sedimentary rock composed largely of the Mineral Calcite ( Calcium carbonate: CaCO3 In Metallurgy, a flux is a chemical cleaning agent which facilitates Soldering, Brazing, and Welding by removing Oxidation from Iron ores are rocks and Minerals from which Metallic Iron can be economically extracted Four "uptakes" allow the hot, dirty gas to exit the furnace dome, while "bleeder valves" protect the top of the furnace from sudden gas pressure surges. The coarse particles in the gas settle in the "dustcatcher" and are dumped into a railroad car or truck for disposal, while the gas itself flows through a Venturi scrubber and a gas cooler to reduce the temperature of the cleaned gas. A venturi scrubber is designed to effectively use the energy from the inlet gas stream to atomize the liquid being used to scrub the gas stream [24]
The hot blast temperature can be from 900°C to 1300 °C (1600°F to 2300°F) depending on the stove design and condition. [24] The hot blast is directed into the furnace through water-cooled copper nozzles called "tuyeres" near the base. The temperatures they deal with may be 2000 °C to 2300 °C (3600°F to 4200°F). [24] Oil, tar, natural gas, powdered coal and oxygen can also be injected into the furnace at tuyere level to combine with the coke to release additional energy which is necessary to increase productivity. An oil is a substance that is in a viscous Liquid state ( "oily") at ambient temperatures or slightly warmer and is Tar is a viscous black Liquid derived from the Destructive distillation of organic matter Natural gas is a Gaseous Fossil fuel consisting primarily of Methane but including significant quantities of Ethane, Propane, Oxygen (from the Greek roots ὀξύς (oxys (acid literally "sharp" from the taste of acids and -γενής (-genēs (producer literally begetteris the [24]
The "casthouse" at the bottom half of the furnace contains the bustle pipe, tuyeres and the equipment for casting the liquid iron and slag. Once a "taphole" is drilled through the refractory clay plug, liquid iron and slag flow down a trough through a "skimmer" opening, separating the iron and slag. Modern, larger blast furnaces may have as many as four tapholes and two casthouses. [24]
Chemistry
The main chemical reaction producing the molten iron is:
Preheated blast air blown into the furnace reacts with the carbon in the form of coke to produce carbon monoxide and heat. Třinec Iron and Steel Works (TŽ (Třinecké železárny Huta trzyniecka is a producer of long rolled Steel products in Třinec, Moravian-Silesian Region Iron (ˈаɪɚn is a Chemical element with the symbol Fe (ferrum and Atomic number 26 Oxygen (from the Greek roots ὀξύς (oxys (acid literally "sharp" from the taste of acids and -γενής (-genēs (producer literally begetteris the Carbon (kɑɹbən is a Chemical element with the symbol C and its Atomic number is 6 Oxygen (from the Greek roots ὀξύς (oxys (acid literally "sharp" from the taste of acids and -γενής (-genēs (producer literally begetteris the Carbon monoxide, with the chemical formula CO is a colorless odorless tasteless yet highly toxic Gas. The carbon monoxide then reacts with the iron oxide to produce molten iron and carbon dioxide. Altogether there are sixteen known Iron Oxides and oxyhydroxides Carbon dioxide ( Chemical formula:) is a Chemical compound composed of two Oxygen Atoms covalently bonded to a single Hot carbon dioxide, unreacted carbon monoxide, and nitrogen from the air pass up through the furnace as fresh feed material travels down into the reaction zone. As the material travels downward, the counter-current gases both preheat the feed charge, decompose the limestone to calcium oxide and carbon dioxide, and begin to reduce the iron oxides in the solid state. Calcium oxide ( CaO) commonly known as burnt lime, lime or quicklime, is a widely used Chemical compound. The main reaction controlling the gas atmosphere in the furnace is called the Boudouard reaction:
The decomposition of limestone in the middle zones of the furnace proceeds according to the following reaction:
- CaCO3 → CaO + CO2[24]
The calcium oxide formed by decomposition reacts with various acidic impurities in the iron (notably silica), to form the slag which is essentially calcium silicate, CaSiO3. The Boudouard reaction is the Redox reaction of a Chemical equilibrium mixture of carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide at a given temperature The Chemical compound silicon dioxide, also known as silica or silox (from the Latin " Silex " is an Oxide Calcium silicates are a set of four compounds obtained by reacting Calcium oxide and silica in various ratios Calcium (ˈkælsiəm is the Chemical element with the symbol Ca and Atomic number 20 Silicon (ˈsɪlɪkən or /ˈsɪlɪkɒn/ silicium is the Chemical element that has the symbol Si and Atomic number 14 Oxygen (from the Greek roots ὀξύς (oxys (acid literally "sharp" from the taste of acids and -γενής (-genēs (producer literally begetteris the [25]
The "pig" iron produced by the blast furnace has a relatively high carbon content of around 4-5%, making it very brittle, and of little commercial use. Some pig iron is used to make cast iron. The majority of pig iron produced by blast furnaces undergoes further processing to reduce the carbon content and produce various grades of steel used for tools and construction materials. Steel is an Alloy consisting mostly of Iron, with a Carbon content between 0
Although the efficiency of blast furnaces is constantly evolving, the chemical process inside the blast furnace remains the same. According to the American Iron and Steel Institute; "Blast furnaces will survive into the next millennium because the larger, efficient furnaces can produce hot metal at costs competitive with other iron making technologies. The American Iron and Steel Institute ( AISI) is an association of North American Steel producers "[24] One of the biggest drawbacks of the blast furnaces is the inevitable carbon dioxide production as iron is reduced from iron oxides by carbon and there is no economical substitute - steelmaking is one of the unavoidable industrial contributors of the CO2 emissions in the world (see Greenhouse gases). Carbon dioxide ( Chemical formula:) is a Chemical compound composed of two Oxygen Atoms covalently bonded to a single Greenhouse gases are gaseous constituents of the atmosphere bothnatural and anthropogenic that absorb and emit radiation at specific wavelengths within the spectrum of thermal infrared
Other metals
Blast furnaces are used today to smelt lead from its oxide, after it has been desilvered.
One less commonly used method for smelting zinc is through the blast furnace process. Zinc smelting is the process of converting zinc concentrates (ores
See also
- Basic oxygen furnace
- Blast furnace zinc smelting process
- Extraction of iron
- Laskill
- Category:Ironworks and steelworks in England, which covers ironworks of all kinds. A basic oxygen furnace, also known as an LD converter, is the place within an integrated steel mill where molten iron from the blast furnace is changed into liquid Zinc smelting is the process of converting zinc concentrates (ores Iron (ˈаɪɚn is a Chemical element with the symbol Fe (ferrum and Atomic number 26 Laskill is a small hamlet situated 5 Miles (8 Kilometres north-west of Helmsley, North Yorkshire, England, on the road from
References
- ^ a b Ebrey, Walthall, Palais (2006). East Asia: A Cultural, Social, and Political History. Boston: Houghton-Mifflin Company. P. 30.
- ^ Early iron in China, Korea, and Japan, Donald B. Wagner, March 1993
- ^ Needham, Joseph (1986). Science and Civilization in China: Volume 4, Physics and Physical Technology, Part 2, Mechanical Engineering. Taipei: Caves Books Ltd. P. 370.
- ^ The earliest use of iron in China, Donald B. Wagner, 1999
- ^ Ebrey, Walthall, Palais (2006). East Asia: A Cultural, Social, and Political History. Boston: Houghton-Mifflin Company. P 158.
- ^ Archaeological Investigations on the Beginning of Blast Furnace-Technology in Central Europe
- ^ A. Wetterholm, 'Blast furnace studies in Nora bergslag ' (Örebro universitet 1999, Järn och Samhälle) ISBN 91-7668-204-8
- ^ N. Bjökenstam, 'The Blast Furnace in Europe during the Middle Ages: part of a new system for producing wrought iron' in G. Magnusson, The Importance of Ironmaking: Technological Innovation and Social Change I (Jernkontoret, Stockholm 1995), 143-53 and other papers in the same volume.
- ^ Thomas Woods, How the Catholic Church Built Western Civilization (2005), ISBN 0-89526-038-7; p 34
- ^ Jean Gimpel, The Medieval Machine: The Industrial Revolution of the Middle Ages (New York: Penguin, 1976; London: Pimlico, 1992), p 67. For the California legislator see Tom Woods (politician. Thomas E
- ^ Woods, p 35
- ^ Woods, p 36
- ^ a b Woods, p 37
- ^ R. W. Vernon, G. McDonnell and A. Schmidt, 'An integrated geophysical and analytical appraisal of early iron-working: three case studies' Historical Metallurgy 31(2) (1998), 72-5 79
- ^ David Derbyshire, 'Henry "Stamped Out Industrial Revolution"', The Daily Telegraph (21 June 2002); cited by Woods. For "The Daily Telegraph" in Australia see The Daily Telegraph (Australia.
- ^ H. R. Schubert, History of the British iron and steel industry from c. 450 BC to AD 1775 (Routledge, London 1957), 395-7.
- ^ B. Awty & C. Whittick (with P. Combes), 'The Lordship of Canterbury, iron-founding at Buxted, and the continental antecedents of cannon-founding in the Weald' Sussex Archaeological Collections 140 (2004 for 2002), 71-81.
- ^ P. W. King, 'The production and consumption of iron in early modern England and Wales' Economic History Review LVIII(1), 1-33; G. Hammersley, 'The charcoal iron industry and its fuel 1540-1750' Economic History Review Ser. II, XXVI (1973), 593-613.
- ^ Yakovlev, V. B. (August 1957). "Development of Wrought Iron Production". Metallurgist Volume 1 (Number 8): 545. New York: Springer. doi:. A digital object identifier ( DOI) is a permanent identifier given to an Electronic document. 0026-0894.
- ^ A. Raistrick, A Dynasty of Ironfounders (1953; York 1989); C. K. Hyde, Technological Change and the British iron industry (Princeton 1977); B. Trinder, The Industrial Revolution in Shropshire (Chichester 2000)
- ^ * A. Birch, Economic History of the British Iron and Steel Industry , 181-9
- C. K. Hyde, Technological Change and the British iron industry (Princeton 1977)
- ^ C. K. Hyde, Technological Change and the British iron industry (Princeton 1977), 159.
- ^ Made in Ukraine, <http://www.madeinua.info/view.aspx?type=ja&lang=2&jaid=261>. Retrieved on 05-20-2008.
- ^ a b c d e f g h AISI
- ^ a b c d Blast Furnace. Science Aid. Retrieved on 2007-12-30. Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Events 1460 - Wars of the Roses: Battle of Wakefield. 1816 - The Treaty of St
External links
- Science Aid: Blast Furnace How iron is extracted, for high school level
- Blast Furnace animation
- How a Blast Furnace works Illustrated.
- Precursors of the Blast Furnace
- Extensive picture gallery about all methods of making and shaping of iron and steel in North America and Europe. In German and English.
- Blast Furnace Museum Radwerk IV
- Schematic diagram of blast furnace and Cowper stove
- ironfurnaces.com - a free wiki dedicated to preserving the history and location of historic blast iron furnaces
Dictionary
blast furnace
-noun
- a furnace in which iron ore is smelted to iron; the process being intensified by a blast of hot air
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