The steelmaking process is not complete without petroleum coke, which provides carbon. Its use results in higher reduction temperatures which are important for improving the quality of the direct reduced iron produced. Also, it provides high levels of CO-reducing gases which reduces the amount of clustering in the iron during sintering. It is crucial to reduce the costs of iron-making.
The solid fuel petroleum coke, which is created as a result of the oil refinery process, is an by-product. This solid fuel is made by heating heavy fractions in crude oil at high temperatures using a coaling unit. During the process of coking, crude oil molecules break down into smaller hydrocarbon particles. They are also purified to make fuel-grade petcoke.
In refineries, fuel-grade petcoke generates power. Fuel grade petcoke is a more affordable fuel than gas, and it reduces the energy cost for refineries. The fuel-grade petcoke also has a high gross calorific value of over 8000 Kcal/kg which is nearly double that of coal which is commonly burned in coal fired power plants. The reformed or calcined petcoke has a lower volatile content and sulfur content which makes it an excellent feedstock for petrochemical production. It is used in the production of chemicals, such as acetone, methanol and phenol.
Steel industry reforms petroleum coke to calcined Petcoke. This is used as an intermediate in the manufacture of steel. It is also used in the production of electrodes and coke for use by aluminum, steel and other industries. This fuel is ideal for pulverized-coal injection furnaces (PCI), which are used in coal-fired plants to generate electricity. This fuel is also substituted for traditional petroleum-based fuel oils in cement kilns because of their high sulfur content.
In the process of blast furnace ironmaking, reformed petroleum coke or calcined oil is used. It is possible to make blast furnace iron using petroleum coke. The molten metal can then be processed more efficiently in an HIspex(r) reduction reaction to produce COREX (r) or Blast Furnace Iron (BF). The slag can also be used to desulfurize refractory within the blast furnace, in a system known as COREX (r)/BF. The slag has a base-to-alumina ratio of 1:1 to 2:1 and a sulphur solubility of up to 7%. The slag can be further refined to create a more pure type of calcium aluminate slag for use in the BF/HISpex circuit.
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