Feature

Essar
C

Successfully Commissions Corex Module

orex process is new generation smeltreduction process for iron making. It is one of the commercially and technologically proven alternate routes of Iron making which is developed by Voest Alpine Industrianlagenbau (VAI), Austria.. While even today's world's most of the hot metal or liquid iron is produced through the giant Blast Furnace route, very small fraction of iron is produced through the alternate routes. Of the hot metal produced through alternate routes, COREX contribution is phenomenal and other process are still in pilot scale or not proven fully on commercial scale. COREX process gives advantage of power generation and makes integrated steel complex totally independent of petro based products due to availability of COREX gas as fuel. The blast furnace uses metallurgical coke as reductant as well as source of energy. The metallurgical coke is man-made product, prepared from naturally occurring coking coal. The sources of coking coal are dwindling worldwide; as a result coking coal is already becoming scarce and expensive commodity. With this in view, there was research in last 3 decades to invent a smelt-reduction process which can use abundantly available non-coking coals. The first Corex process based commercial plant started at Kehl in Germany with a capacity of 60,000 tpa capacity. After its success, the plant was scaled 5 times, and first C 1000 module of 300,000 tpa capacity was installed at Iscor in South Africa. After successful operation of this

The commissioning of Corex facility marks a major milestone in Essar's Steel's history. While this environment friendly facility gives us tremendous rawmaterial flexibility, it will also improve overall efficiency of operation

56 November 2011

Feature

plant, plant was further scaled up 2 times and first C2000 module was designed and put into operation at POSCO, in South Korea. Other C2000 modules were put into operation by JSW, India (2 nos) & Saldanha, South Africa (1 no) and installed at Hanbo (2 nos). A typical Corex iron making plant comprises of melter gasifier, reduction shaft and gas handling plant within the Corex proper area. The reduction shaft concerts the iron bearing materials such as ore / pellets into metallised iron or Direct reduced iron (DRI), which is smelted in bottom vessels called melter gasifier. The energy for melting of iron is derived from combustion of non-coking coal with pure Oxygen. The gases generated in the process are cleaned and used as reducing gases in the reduction shaft. A typical flow-sheet of Corex plant is shown on the next page. The surplus process gases from melter gasifier and used top gases from the shaft are energy rich and can be used for various applications such as power generation, DRI

(sponge iron) production etc. A typical Corex iron making plant will have following major facilities, among others: l tower comprising melter gasifier, Corex reduction shaft, gas handling plant including hot gas cyclones, scrubbers, etc and charging equipment such as charging bins, lock hoppers etc. l Cast-house for tapping of hot metal & slag. The cast house equipment includes drilling machine, mud gun, hot metal & slag runners. l Coal blending, coal drying and conveyors etc., l treatment plant including clarifiers, Water cooling tower and pump house. The water systems include process water system, machine cooling water system and staves cooling system. l Slag granulation plant is used to granulate the Corex slag. The equipment includes blowing box, granulation tank, chimney, dewatering drum, conveyor etc.

Role of Corex plant at Essar Steel Limited

Essar Steel Limited has installed two Corex units which is having the capacity of 1.7mtpa. The equipment for these plants is secondhand /unused equipment form Hanbo project, also called INI now after its acquisition by HyundaiHysco. ESTL have purchased Corex plant equipment, DR plant equipment and steel making equipment from INI. The Corex plant equipment include the equipment in Corex tower, casthouse, slag granulation plant, raw material handling equipment, water treatment plant equipment. The Corex gas will be used as fuel in various reheating furnaces & DRI modules. First time in the world history one Corex unit has been relocated & commissioned smoothly. First time in Corex history 100% hot metal has been taken directly to Steel Melt Shop since the very first tap. Normally it will be sent to Pig Casting Machine or Granulation plant.

57 November 2011