Luxembourg-based Paul Wurth, part of the German SMS group, has been contracted by JSW Steel to upgrade the steelmaker’s existing (and largest) blast furnace number 3 in Toranagallu, Karnataka, India.
The scope of the contract includes all the engineering work associated with the upgrade and selected auxiliary plants, including procurement, supply and technical services.
For cooling and lining, Paul Wurth foresees new carbon blocks, copper and cast iron staves and a new shell. The existing furnace tower will be modified and reinforced to match increased furnace volume and erection loads, and an existing Bell Less Top, supplied by Paul Wurth, will be fitted with new 110m3 hoppers and a new weighing system.
A one-dome design hot blast stove will be supplied and two existing internal combustion chamber stoves will be relined. There will also be a new hot blast main and bustle pipe and new tuyere stocks to ensure a reliable supply of ‘hot blast’ at the required temperature.
TMT probes will be installed along with a Tuyere Phenomena Detection System and, says Paul Wurth, a 3D Topscan Profile Recorder and TPDS, representing the first applications of their kind in India.
Casthouse safety will be improved, claims Paul Wurth, by four new TMT runner cover manipulators. Blast furnace top gas cleaning will be ensured by a new axial cyclone and a modified wet gas cleaning system. Capacity extensions to stockhouse and cooling systems will also be necessary.
The modernised blast furnace will have an inner volume of roughly 5,300m3, up 32%, an increased hearth diameter (from 13.2m to 15m) and 46 tuyeres (up from 36). According to Paul Wurth, ‘these parameters will result in an average daily hot metal production of 12,676 tonnes and a total annual figure of approximately 4.5Mt.
The upgraded blast furnace, claims Paul Wurth, will become one of the biggest blast furnaces in India.
