Variability in Ferroalloy Furnace Tapping – Insights from Modelling

Abstract

During tapping of pyrometallurgical smelters, molten products from the furnace operation are periodically removed from the vessel. Variations in the quantities of alloy and slag obtained from each tap are undesirable and can cause disruption to upstream and downstream operations, resulting in economic losses and safety risks to plant personnel. In the present work an integrated reduced-order model of a ferroalloy furnace tapping system was used to assess the sensitivity of the process to various operating parameters, and describe the statistical impact of random changes in the system over a large number of tapping cycles. The effect of implementing simple control measures to determine the best point to stop a tap is also presented.

Keywords: pyrometallurgy, tapping, modelling