Compressed air 💨 plays an important role in metal production as it delivers certified clean air for every application in metal plants. Here are some of the applications.
Blast furnaces
Iron ore, coke and limestone are combined in a blast furnace to produce iron. In order to reach the melting temperatures, hot air is blasted into the furnace.
Oxygen furnace
Iron, steel scrap and flux are combined in the oxygen furnace to produce steel. 99% pure oxygen is then blown into the vessel with an oxygen lance. This makes the temperature rise to melt the scrap, which eventually results in liquid steel.
Bag houses
Dust collection systems that intake air through a duct system and bags catch the dust. The bags clean themselves periodically by pulsing compressed air through the bags. The dust then goes into a hopper and is removed.
Air mixture
Cooling down the slabs and/or billets after they have been shaped is done by mixing medium pressure air with water and then spraying this water onto the hot slab or billet. This makes for a uniform and fast cooling.
Instrument air
Many applications in the production process of metals need compressed air for instrumentation purposes. Crust breaking, air nozzles, pneumatic conveying are just a few of the operations that are dependent on compressed air.
WWT
Water used during the production process of metals must be treated before it can be reused or released.
Heat treatment of metals with nitrogen
Nitrogen has many applications on the metallurgy. It can be used to accelerate the absorption of carbon in the treated metal, it prevents oxydation during the cooling stage of steel and is used for annealing processes to prevent exothermic reactions and dangerously overheated furnaces.
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