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Applied Sciences
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Recent Advances in Metallurgical Process Engineering
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Recent Advances in Metallurgical Process Engineering

A special issue of Applied Sciences (ISSN 2076-3417). This special issue belongs to the section "Mechanical Engineering".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 November 2023) | Viewed by 5807

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Branislav Bul’ko

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Faculty of Materials, Metallurgy and Recycling, Technical University of Kosice, Letná, 9-042-00 Košice, Slovakia
Interests: physical modelling and simulation of flow processes; lime utilization in metallurgy, including testing of its properties; continuous casting; high-temperature stability of quartzite; high-temperature laboratory experiments; hydrogen utilization in metallurgy; optimization of properties of metallurgical slag; secondary steelmaking processes
Dr. Mária Hagarová

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Faculty of Materials, Metallurgy and Recycling, Technical University of Kosice, Letná, 9-042-00 Košice, Slovakia
Interests: high-temperature interaction in power industry; degradation processes on materials surfaces; innovative surface treatment; renovation of metal surfaces; structure analysis of materials; high-temperature laboratory experiments in simulated environments; characterization of service life of components; wear resistance of materials surface
Dr. Dana Baricová

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Research - Innovation and Technology Center, NPO, Werferova 6, 04011 Košice, Slovakia
Interests: ironmaking and steelmaking processes; modeling of metallurgical processes; slag-forming processes; ecological aspects of ironmaking and steelmaking processes; processing and recycling of metallurgical waste; decarbonization of metallurgical processes; new metallurgical technologies
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The metallurgical sector is one of the main pillars of European, and indeed global, industry. Metallurgy is important not only for the modern economy of developed countries, but is also essential for building the infrastructure of developing countries. Therefore, the demand for metallurgy is expected to grow in the coming decades to meet growing social and economic needs.

Increasing demand for metallurgical products on the world and domestic markets, as well as current geopolitical and economic events, are creating pressure to innovate and optimize current processes in the metallurgical sector.

The global climate goals for the period 2030 to 2050 will place strong pressure on the decarbonization of the metallurgical industry. This must be reflected in a significant change in steel production processes. The metallurgical industry produces approximately 8% of CO2 emissions worldwide. The transformation itself should take place during production, with minimal limitation to production volume, in order to ensure not only employment, but also that the demand for steel is met.

By optimizing and innovating the production process through the introduction of low-carbon technologies and alternative energy sources, digitalization and automatization, and increasing the efficiency of raw materials and energy resources, the metallurgical sector has a great ability to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and make energy consumption more efficient, thus increasing its competitiveness.

At present there is a global demand for energy transformation, the essential goal of which is to significantly reduce the burden of emissions. The energy consumption required for each process step is governed by the efficiency of the best-available manufacturing equipment and the essential process physics of the manufacturing operation. Another possible strategy for improving the efficiency of energy-intensive sectors includes the extension of the lifetime of components in production units. Therefore, there is space for researchers to find new high-quality steels, for example, to produce heat-exchanger superheater tubes.

Both the increasing demand for metallurgical products on the global and domestic markets as well as current geopolitical and economic events are creating pressure to innovate and optimize current processes in the metallurgical sector.

One focus of modern metallurgical processes is the application of additive manufacturing, 3D welding, organic design, complex material analysis, modern virtualization tools and numerical simulations, and the digitization of steel components for mechanical engineering. An integral aspect is the optimization of the components for mechanical engineering using organic design to improve technological and utility properties. New findings will lead to a reduction in the energy and material demands of the production.

A general task is to engage in research and development regarding the digitization of metallurgical processes using a combination of modern virtualization tools such as numerical simulation, digitization of key components, collection, sorting, visualization and the evaluation of data from the production process with the possibility of optimizing numerical simulation parameters. One integral aspect could be the overall streamlining of the production process preparation, implementation and optimization.

This Special Issue will be dedicated to new perspectives in the metallurgical sector as well as advances in metallurgical process engineering.

Dr. Branislav Bul’ko
Dr. Mária Hagarová
Dr. Dana Baricová
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Applied Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • optimalisation and innovation
  • decarbonization of metallurgical industry
  • digitalization
  • automatization
  • low-carbon technologies
  • alternative energy sources
  • power industry
  • steel
  • emissions
  • physical modeling
  • mathematical modeling
  • simulation
  • metallurgical waste
  • metals recovery
  • raw materials
  • additive manufacturing
  • 3D printing
  • organic design
  • 3D welding
  • alloy
  • metallography
  • operational experiments
  • 3D measurement
  • sensorics
  • data processing
  • energy efficiency

Published Papers (6 papers)

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Research

14 pages, 3517 KiB  
Article
Comparison of Degassing Efficiency on a Foundry Degassing Unit Using Different Rotor Types
by Jan Kolínský, Tomáš Prášil, Ladislav Socha, Jana Sviželová, Karel Gryc, Josef Häusler and Martin Dvořák
Appl. Sci. 2024, 14(5), 2216; https://doi.org/10.3390/app14052216 - 6 Mar 2024
Viewed by 505
Abstract
The present paper describes a comparison of the efficiency of different types of rotors used in the refining of aluminium melt at a foundry degassing unit (FDU). Physical modelling was used to obtain data for six different rotor types under defined experimental conditions. [...] Read more.
The present paper describes a comparison of the efficiency of different types of rotors used in the refining of aluminium melt at a foundry degassing unit (FDU). Physical modelling was used to obtain data for six different rotor types under defined experimental conditions. In order to evaluate the data from the physical model, an evaluation method based on the interpolation of degassing curves was developed in such a way that the resulting characteristic can be expressed by a single parameter. Using the new methodology, the datasets were replaced by a single dimensionless parameter, a, which characterizes the rotor performance at a given gas flow rate. Based on the comparison of these performance parameters, it was possible to mutually compare the rotor efficiency depending on the selected conditions. The comparison is also demonstrated on the expected degassing time to a certain required concentration. Based on the physical model results, the study found that rotor D had the highest degassing efficiency, followed by rotors F and A. Rotors B and E had similar efficiency at a flow rate of 17 Nl·min−1. However, rotor B showed better efficiency at higher inert gas flow rates (19 and 21 Nl·min−1), while rotor E showed better efficiency at lower flow rates (13 and 15 Nl·min−1). Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recent Advances in Metallurgical Process Engineering)
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14 pages, 4656 KiB  
Article
Applications of Tungsten Pseudo-Alloys in the Energy Sector
by Adéla Macháčková, Otakar Bárta and Silvie Brožová
Appl. Sci. 2024, 14(2), 647; https://doi.org/10.3390/app14020647 - 12 Jan 2024
Viewed by 513
Abstract
New energy generation methods are currently being discussed with a view towards the transition from traditional primary sources to more environmentally friendly options, particularly renewables. Energy storage is also closely related to this transition. Battery storage currently dominates this area. However, flywheel energy [...] Read more.
New energy generation methods are currently being discussed with a view towards the transition from traditional primary sources to more environmentally friendly options, particularly renewables. Energy storage is also closely related to this transition. Battery storage currently dominates this area. However, flywheel energy storage system technology offers an alternative that transforms stored kinetic energy into mechanical and electrical energy using a motor generator. The flywheel energy storage system technology is thus flexible and can be applied in different industrial applications. The management of the technology of recycling tungsten multi-metallic composites (W-MMC) waste material from other products and the subsequent trial production of high-strength W-MMC material with a density of more than 17,500 kg/m3 from recycled powders allowed us to test the limits of the so-called “heavy” flywheels used in rotor production. The results achieved lead to the conclusion that the developed recycled materials of the W-MMC type with a density ≥17,500 kg/m3, with a yield strength of 1200–1700 MPa depending on the production method, can be used as a substitute for the structural steels used today without an enforced reduction in the maximum allowed rotor speed due to exceeding the maximum allowed stress. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recent Advances in Metallurgical Process Engineering)
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15 pages, 4554 KiB  
Article
Optimization of Structural Parameters of Venturi Vertical Cooling Furnace
by Haifeng Li, Tengfei Qi and Yongjie Zhang
Appl. Sci. 2023, 13(23), 12858; https://doi.org/10.3390/app132312858 - 30 Nov 2023
Viewed by 561
Abstract
Theoretically, the vertical sinter sensible heat recovery process can significantly improve the recovery rate of sinter sensible heat. However, the segregated distribution of the sinter and uneven gas–solid flow in vertical cooling furnaces result in insufficient contact and heat exchange between the high-temperature [...] Read more.
Theoretically, the vertical sinter sensible heat recovery process can significantly improve the recovery rate of sinter sensible heat. However, the segregated distribution of the sinter and uneven gas–solid flow in vertical cooling furnaces result in insufficient contact and heat exchange between the high-temperature sinter and the cooling gas, thereby limiting the improvement in the sinter sensible heat recovery rate. A Venturi vertical cooling furnace can improve the contact heat transfer between gases and solids and the uniformity of the sinter and the cooling gas temperature. However, this leads to a significant increase in the gas pressure drop and affects the integrity of the downward movement of the sinter. To control the increase in the gas pressure drop while increasing the sensible heat recovery and maintaining the integral flow of the sinter, this study takes a Meishan Steel vertical cooling furnace as the research object and uses the DEM-CFD coupling model to optimize the structural parameters of the Venturi-type vertical cooling furnace. Firstly, a scaling method was designed to reduce the computational cost. Secondly, based on the on-site conditions, the selection range of structural parameters for the Venturi furnace was determined. Finally, an orthogonal experiment was designed. Taking the sensible heat recovery of the sinter and the pressure drop of the cooling gas as the main index, the integrity of the sinter flow was taken as the secondary index to study the Venturi structure parameters suitable for the Meishan Steel vertical cooling furnace, including the width of the vertical part w, the length of the vertical part l, the contraction angle of the contraction part β, and the expansion angle of the expansion part α. The results showed that the order of structural parameters affecting the sensible heat recovery was w, β, α, and l, and the order of parameters affecting the gas pressure drop was w, β, l, and α. The appropriate structural parameters of the Venturi furnace type, obtained by considering the sensible heat recovery and gas pressure drop, were w = 1.1 m, β = 16°, α = 13°, and l = 0.5 m. In addition, in order to improve the integrity of the sinter flow, it was also necessary to increase the wall friction of the particles in the central area of the vertical section by adding steel plates. The results can provide theoretical guidance for improvements to the Meishan Steel vertical cooling furnace. The operation parameters corresponding to the Venturi furnace type can be studied later. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recent Advances in Metallurgical Process Engineering)
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27 pages, 18540 KiB  
Article
Evaluation of Factors Affecting the MgO–C Refractory Lining Degradation in a Basic Oxygen Furnace
by Jaroslav Demeter, Branislav Buľko, Peter Demeter and Martina Hrubovčáková
Appl. Sci. 2023, 13(22), 12473; https://doi.org/10.3390/app132212473 - 18 Nov 2023
Viewed by 901
Abstract
Identification of the factors influencing refractory lining wear and its residual thickness in the basic oxygen furnace (BOF) is a prerequisite for optimizing the steelmaking process. In this study, the factors that contribute significantly to the wear of the refractory lining in the [...] Read more.
Identification of the factors influencing refractory lining wear and its residual thickness in the basic oxygen furnace (BOF) is a prerequisite for optimizing the steelmaking process. In this study, the factors that contribute significantly to the wear of the refractory lining in the most stressed areas of the banded lining (i.e., the trunnion ring area and slag line area) are identified. Knowledge of the rate at which a given factor acts on refractory wear is closely related to the development of technological procedures aimed at limiting its influence. This research evaluates the technological causes and describes the lining wear mechanism and the thermodynamic parameters of the reactions between the MgO–C metal, slag, and gunning material phases. In researching the topic, real operational data were processed using statistical methods and data analysis, which were supported by thermodynamic modeling of chemical reactions. The results show that the combination of technological factors, mechanical action of the raw materials, blowing and free oxygen in the metal, silicon from the pig iron, and slag viscosity have the greatest influence on the residual thickness of the MgO–C refractory lining in BOFs. Refractory gunning material consumption, its effect on campaign length, and the cost-effectiveness of repair work were also analyzed. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recent Advances in Metallurgical Process Engineering)
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23 pages, 12106 KiB  
Article
Rudomain Iron Ore Treatment by High-Temperature Reduction
by Jaroslav Legemza, Róbert Findorák, Dana Baricová, Branislav Buľko, Peter Demeter, Slavomír Hubatka and Kostyantyn Karamanits
Appl. Sci. 2023, 13(19), 10698; https://doi.org/10.3390/app131910698 - 26 Sep 2023
Viewed by 1214
Abstract
The purpose of this study was to conduct experiments comprising the high-temperature reduction treatment of commercially produced iron ore fines and lumps aimed at increasing the use value of the ore. The analysed ore was Ukrainian iron ore sold under the Rudomain commercial [...] Read more.
The purpose of this study was to conduct experiments comprising the high-temperature reduction treatment of commercially produced iron ore fines and lumps aimed at increasing the use value of the ore. The analysed ore was Ukrainian iron ore sold under the Rudomain commercial name, mined from a bed located in the southern part of the Saksagan region (Kryvyi Rih, Ukraine). The study describes in detail the basic physical, chemical, and physico-chemical properties of the analysed ore, and it comprised a thermodynamic analysis, which is typically used as the basis for defining reduction conditions. The Ukrainian ore—Rudomain—exhibited a lower total Fe content (58.20 wt%) and, by contrast, the highest SiO2 content (13.40 wt%), whereas SiO2 is present in this type of ore not only in form of silica (SiO2) but also in form of hydrated iron silicate (Fe3Si2O5(OH)4), i.e., the form of iron that is the most difficult to reduce. In the study, tests of thermal stability and thermal shock stability were carried out in various conditions, while the hardened pellets were thermally stable up to temperatures of 950 °C. The results of the performed experiments in high-temperature reduction of Rudomain iron ore were then compared with the results obtained with two other types of iron ores, in particular Krivbas and Carajas. Krivbas and Carajas ores show higher degrees of reduction and degrees of metallization than Rudomain ore. High-temperature experiments in thermal stability and carbothermic reduction have brought favourable information that is useful for the treatment of lower-grade ores with higher contents of SiO2, while Rudomain iron ore exhibited a rather good potential for effective metallisation. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recent Advances in Metallurgical Process Engineering)
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14 pages, 6792 KiB  
Article
Thermodynamic Behavior of As, Pb, and As during the Vacuum Carbothermal Reduction of Copper Anode Slime
by Juhai Deng, Guozheng Zha, Dachun Liu, Jilin He and Wenlong Jiang
Appl. Sci. 2023, 13(10), 5878; https://doi.org/10.3390/app13105878 - 10 May 2023
Viewed by 1313
Abstract
The use of copper anode slime (CAS) for the removal of lead, bismuth, and arsenic is the key to recovering precious metals. In this paper, vacuum differential gravimetry experiments combined with thermodynamic equilibrium calculations reveal the effects of the temperature, system pressure, and [...] Read more.
The use of copper anode slime (CAS) for the removal of lead, bismuth, and arsenic is the key to recovering precious metals. In this paper, vacuum differential gravimetry experiments combined with thermodynamic equilibrium calculations reveal the effects of the temperature, system pressure, and carbon concentration on the interactions among Pb, Bi, and As during reduction. The carbon content is a direct factor limiting the reduction reactions of sulfate and arsenate phases, and affects the presence of arsenate reduction products. When the carbon content of the system is insufficient, As mainly exists as oxides in the reduction products, and the form of arsenic gradually converts to monomers with increasing carbon content. The reduction product Bi2S3 gradually converts to Bi and BiS as the temperature increases. The effect of temperature on arsenate is mainly related to the phase of the Pb- and Bi-containing reduction products. Moreover, vacuum differential gravimetry experiments were performed to verify the phase transformation of As, Pb, and Bi in CAS during vacuum carbon thermal reduction. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recent Advances in Metallurgical Process Engineering)
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