Mass Media Overview
Severstal to refurbish “Severyanka” – the giant blast furnace in Cherepovets, Russia
22.05.2017 13:50
19 May 2017
https://www.stahleisen.de/mpt-international/
Russia-based Severstal, one of the world’s leading vertically integrated steel and mining companies, has signed contracts for the engineering and supply of equipment for the refurbishment of blast furnace No. 5 (called “Severyanka”) at the Cherepovets iron & steel works, Russia. Blast furnace No. 5 is currently one of Europe’s largest blast furnaces by volume. The design capacity of the furnace is more than 4 million tonnes per year. The plant provides about fifty per cent of the hot metal for the Cherepovets iron & steel works (CherMK).
Two companies, Danieli Corus and Paul Wurth, will provide state-of-the-art plant technology and supervise the commissioning and installation of the supplied equipment.
Netherlands-based engineering company, Danieli Corus B.V. will provide the furnace casing and the cooling system equipment including the copper coolers. The blast furnace shell, refractories and cooling system will be replaced and the scope of work for the majority of these items is based on design, supply and construction and commissioning supervision. Following the outstanding achievements with blast furnace No. 4, which was converted by Danieli Corus to a “Hoogovens” type cooling and lining system in 2005, Severstal has decided to apply this technology to their flagship blast furnace as well. This cooling and lining design is based on machined copper plate coolers in combination with high conductivity graphite, which is the only design with proven capability of achieving campaign lengths in excess of 20 years regardless of ironmaking process circumstances. In addition to copper staves installed in the taphole area, the furnace will be equipped with a full ring of copper stave coolers in the upper hearth.
Paul Wurth S.A., a Luxembourg-based company of SMS group, will provide various mechanical plant equipment and process automation. Severstal’s order to Paul Wurth comprises a completely new, parallel-hopper design Bell Less Top® charging system with a hopper volume of 80 cubic metres and a chute transmission gearbox with the most efficient and reliable pressurized cooling system.
The blast furnace top gas will be cleaned by a Paul Wurth two-stage top gas cleaning plant consisting of a new type axial cyclone for the dry separation of coarse particles and an annular gap scrubber with a demister for fine dust elimination and more accurate control of the top gas pressure compared to the use of septum valves. This configuration of the top gas cleaning system and its possible set points ensure a high cleaning efficiency (dust load on clean gas: less than 4 mg/m3 s.t.p.) and a significant reduction of sludge production and provide the possibility of higher metallics return rates into the main metallurgical cycle.
After a positive experience with Paul Wurth’s BFXpert Level-2 automation solution at the currently operating BF No. 5, Severstal ordered an upgrade and extension of this system, with new functionalities of the models for even more efficient process control.
Furthermore, Paul Wurth will supply four INBA® slag granulation plants with dynamic dewatering of the slag sand. With the cold water system and steam condensation, an officially recognized best available technology (BAT) will be applied for targeted emission control at lowest level.
Alexander Shevelev, chief executive officer of Severstal, said:
“The fifth blast furnace has been operating for over 14 years and this refurbishment project is expected to double its lifespan. This is an ambitious project which will require a variety of innovative technical solutions. Since the very first stages of design, we have been constrained by strict environmental regulation, which the engineering and equipment suppliers must also comply with. Industry leading technology will ensure that the refurbished blast furnace consistently performs at a high level, conserving resources and employing a fully automated and environmentally friendly process for the smelting of cast iron.”
As previously announced, this refurbishment will be the first in a series of large-scale renovations of the company’s fixed assets. Shevelev added: “Severstal’s investment programme is focused on the optimization of CherMK. Last year we modernized the 4-stand hot rolling mill. This year we have begun working on the galvanizing line No. 3. Now we are focusing our attention on the iron making site refurbishing blast furnace No. 5. With the project expected to require investment of approximately 30 billion rubles, this is the first large-scale renovation in this programme.”
The investment during 2017 will be about 2% of the total cost of the ironmaking complex reconstruction project. From 2018 to 2019, the plan is to build the auxiliary facilities at the complex. The main technological equipment and equipment for the automated control system will be installed in 2020. The work will be carried out by engineering and repair departments from specialist companies.
After completion of the project, at more than 6000 m³ useful volume, “Severyanka” will be again one of the largest blast furnaces in the world. The furnace has 40 tuyeres and 4 tapholes and is designed for an annual production of more than 4.7 million tons of hot metal. The reline is scheduled to commence in early 2020, with deliveries of materials to site taking place in 2019.