To clarify the temperature distribution and slag flow in the NKK electric resistance ash melting furnace, experiments were carried out using a small-scale furnace as well as computational analysis of the electromagnetic field and thermal fluid dynamics of the slag. The results obtained by the experiment and computational analysis were in good agreement. Ash charged into the furnace is heated by the Joule heat generated near the electrode, and heated slag rises along the electrode due to reduced density and resultant buoyancy. When the slag reaches the surface of the slag bath, it flows in the radial direction away from the electrode. The buoyancy was found to be the major driving force of the slag flow in the bath.

Electric resistance furnace, Dynamics analysis, Ash melting furnace, Electro-magnetic field, Thermal fluid, Incineration, Sintered ash layer, Electric current density, Joule heat