Excellent Performance at New Stainless-Steel Plant in China

A joint venture of Chinese steel producers Taiyuan Iron and Steel Group Co. (TISCO) and Shandong Xinhai Industry have granted the final acceptance certificate (FAC) to Primetals Technologies for an extensive combination of meltshop and casting equipment at a stainless-steel plant in Linyi, Shandong province, China.

TISCO is a holding subsidiary of China Baowu Iron and Steel Group, founded in 1934. TISCO focuses on developing special steels—e.g., ultra-wide, ultra-thick, ultra-thin strip tubes and high-quality silicon steel for electric vehicles. Based in Linyi, China, Shandong Xinhai Industry processes, manufactures, and distributes metal products. The company produces plating alloys, high nickel alloys, manganese alloys, and other products.

Optimized Results

All equipment has been implemented successfully, with performance figures exceeding expectations. Charge-to-tap times of less than 89 minutes, including the intermediate deslagging process, are a regular occurrence, which is particularly remarkable as the mass build-up of materials in the AOD converter is high.

The process optimization systems are also demonstrating excellent results. The contractual performance value for the hitting rate, i.e., 85 percent for a temperature range from -10 to +15 degrees Celsius, was already reached during startup. These systems are now exhibiting hitting rates of almost 100 percent for the given temperature and carbon windows. In addition, plant availability was above 99 percent during the performance test phase.

AOD Supplier

The essential equipment for this large project supplied by Primetals Technologies comprises four converters in total, two continuous slab casters, the AOD Controller—i.e., a process control system—and the process optimization system AOD Optimizer. Primetals Technologies has engineered, supplied, and implemented two AOD converters and two converters that can be used for either AOD or DeSi processes—the latter process desiliconizes the melt before it is sent to the AOD converters. The converter scope also encompasses Vaicon Quick vessel-suspension systems that ensure the fastest-possible vessel exchange.

Primetals Technologies is a leading provider of AOD equipment, which was one of the main factors contributing to the customer’s choice of supplier. The portfolio also includes special processes, like intermediate deslagging, and process optimization systems tailored to the AOD process. An additional important factor for the customer was Primetals Technologies’ extensive reference base, which includes several major stainless steelmaking projects in China.

Since 1988, Primetals Technologies has supplied eight new slab casters to TISCO, and the Chinese steel producer has tasked Primetals Technologies with 24 casting projects to date. The two stainless slab casters at the site in Linyi have an annual capacity of 0.9 and 1.2 million tons and a maximum width of 1,600 and 2,100, respectively. The bow radius is 9 meters.

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