Ladle Furnace Power Consumption

Ladle Furnace Power Consumption, the actual power consumption is subject to the measurement of the active watt-hour meter on the primary side of the transformer.

The daily energy consumption of hydrogen, electromagnetic stirring, electricity, steam, and cooling water is not included in the total electricity consumption.

Ladle Furnace Power Consumption

Study on Temperature Variation of Refining Furnace and Power Consumption of LF Furnace.

Through the statistics of 102 sets of data, Hani Metallurgy found that the maximum power consumption of each LF furnace is 2500kWh, the minimum is 500kWh, and the average is 1306.9kWh.

The most likely power consumption is 1210.35kWh, the power consumption per furnace is extremely poor at 2000kWh, 

and the average power consumption per ton of steel is 27.5kWh/t, which is more than 5kWh/t difference compared with the advanced ones.

The distribution of power consumption per furnace is:

5 furnaces of 500~700kWh, accounting for 4.85% of the total;

8 furnaces with 700~900kWh, accounting for 7.77% of the total;

17 furnaces of 900~1100kWh, accounting for 21.36% of the total;

22 furnaces with 1100 ~ 1300kWh, accounting for 21.36% of the total;

16 furnaces with 1300 ~ 1500kWh, accounting for 15.53% of the total;

14 furnaces with 1500~1700kWh, accounting for 13.59% of the total;

8 furnaces with 1700 ~ 1900kWh, accounting for 7.77% of the total;

7 furnaces with 1900 ~ 2100kWh, accounting for 6.80% of the total;

2 furnaces with 2100 ~ 2300kWh , accounting for 1.94% of the total;

3 furnaces with 2300 ~ 2500kWh, accounting for 2.91% of the total;

1 furnace 2500 ~ 2700kWh, accounting for 0.97% of the total.

Among them, the number of furnaces with 900~1900kWh accounted for 74.75% of the total, accounting for the majority.

Temperature Drop During Ladle Furnace Treatment

The temperature drop of molten steel in the LF furnace process is asymmetrical with the electrode consumed by heating, and the temperature drop varies considerably.

The temperature drop of molten steel in the process of LF furnace is 35%C maximum, -31℃ minimum, 6.44℃ average, and 76℃ extreme.

Although it is heated by electricity, the temperature of some furnaces rises by 31°C, while others drop by 35°C, and the power consumption does not change much.

The maximum power consumption per ton of steel is 51.28kWh/t, and the minimum is 10.96kWh/t.

The difference is also very large, the extreme difference is 40.32kWh/t, which has a great relationship with the thermal efficiency of the arc and electricity consumption.

LF Furnace Heating Time

Through the statistics of the data, it is found that the maximum heating time of each LF furnace is 38 minutes, the minimum heating time is 9 minutes, and the most possible time is 12.48 minutes.

The average heating time is 16.15min, and the heating time of each furnace is very poor at 29min.

The distribution of heating time for each furnace is:

32 furnaces from 9 to 14 minutes, accounting for 31.07% of the total;

48 furnaces in 14~19min, accounting for 46.60% of the total;

14 furnaces from 19 to 24 minutes, accounting for 13.59% of the total;

8 furnaces in 24~29min, accounting for 7.77% of the total;

0 furnace in 29~34min;

1 furnace in 34 ~ 39min, accounting for 0.97% of the total;

Among them, the number of furnaces from 9 to 24 minutes accounted for 90.72% of the total, accounting for the majority.

Through the analysis of the data, it can be seen that the heating speed of the 5th gear of the transformer tap is the fastest, the 6th gear is the second, and the 2nd gear has the slowest heating speed.

The main reason is that the secondary current of the two gears is 24634A, while the voltage of the 5th gear is 849V, and the voltage of the 6th gear is 805V.

Due to the high voltage of the 5th gear, the high stability of the electrode arc is maintained, the thermal efficiency is high, the molten steel absorbs heat, and the heating rate is faster than the 6th gear.

For the 2nd gear, the voltage is 252.1V and the current is 22902A. 

Although the voltage is high, the secondary current is small, the heat generation is also small, and the heating speed is slow.

Combining the above data, the research shows that:

The only quantifiable factors that affect the power consumption of the ladle furnace are the temperature drop and the heating time during the treatment of the LF furnace.

Therefore, taking them as independent variables, the measured data of 102 furnaces of ML08AL steel were subjected to binary regression analysis, 

and the statistical mathematical model of the temperature change of molten steel during the tapping process was obtained as formula.

Power Consumption W= 32. 8506- 1. 5535△T (temperature drop in LF process)+79.6598t (heating time)

W--power consumption, kWh;

△T (temperature drop during LF process)--temperature drop during LF furnace treatment, ℃;

t (heating time)--LF furnace heating time, min.

The fitting degree coefficient 2 is 0.724925, which is much larger than 0.5 and has a good fitting degree.

In Conclusion

There is a certain linear relationship between the power consumption of the ladle furnace and its temperature drop and heating time during the treatment process.

Reducing the heating time and reducing the temperature rise of the LF furnace process can minimize the power consumption.

In normal production, the 5th and 6th gears of the transformer tap should be used as much as possible to shorten the heating time.

The whole process time is controlled within 50min, the whole heating time is controlled within 15min,

If the temperature drop control is close to zero, a furnace of steel can save 80kWh of electricity, and the energy saving effect is extremely obvious.

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