Numerical simulation of basic oxygen furnace rotating tapping

Abstract

The rotation speed of the basic oxygen furnace (BOF) and the shape of the tapping hole have an important influence on the amount of slag carryover during the tapping process. The CFD fluid simulation software Fluent is used to analyze the flow field of the 210 t BOF rotation tapping process. The results revealed that the amount of slag carryover in the early stage is the largest when the tapping hole inclination angle is 0° and the rotation speed is 1.0 r/min. The flow field analysis shows that this is caused by the fluctuation of molten steel and slag, which makes the slag flow into the tapping hole again. The case of a rotation speed of 1.2 r/min shows the least amount of slag carryover. By comparing the three kinds of tapping holes, it can be known that a reduction in the tapping hole diameter brought a decrease in yield loss and a decrease in amount of slag carryover. As the height of molten steel decreases, the shear stress on the tapping hole decreases. The increase in the diameter of the tapping hole increases the shear stress, which in turn increases the wear of the refractory material.