Applications of numerical simulation for blast furnace

The blast furnace plays an important role in the steel making industry, and it is a good facility to reduce iron ore to liquid iron. Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD)—an inexpensive, efficient, and powerful tool—has been applied to improve operation efficiency and prolong its working life. The present thesis contains two parts. First, mathematical models are generated for a chemical reaction simulation. After validation of results, two essential parameters are calibrated and applied throughout the entire blast furnace simulation. Additionally, the grain model and un-reacted shrinking core model, two popular choices for single pellet models of gas-solid chemicalreaction simulation, are applied. The results of the previous two gas-solid chemical reaction models are compared with a focus on accuracy and efficiency. Second, based on industrial data and reference papers, a simple 2D axis-symmetric model is applied to study hot metal solidification in the hearth, or the impacts of design and operating parameters on skull formation in the hearth. The results provide industry a guideline to form and maintain the skull in the hearth so that the hearth can be protected by the skull, extending the blast furnace campaign life