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TOKYO - JFE Steel Corporation
has completed a revamping of the No. 2 Blast
Furnace (BF) at the West Japan Works (Kurashiki)
and performed the BF's blowing-in for the
fourth campaign today.
For the revamping, JFE Steel
used the large-block ring construction method,
an ultra-fast revamping technology that significantly
shortens the work period from the approximately
120 days conventionally required for BFs of
this size. The entire project, including the
reinforcement of the furnace foundation and
the full renewal of the circular bustle piping,
was accomplished in just 75 days.
This is the third time that
JFE Steel has used the large-block ring construction
method. In 1998 it employed the technology
for revamp for the second campaign of the
No. 6 BF at the East Japan Works (Chiba) and
in 2001, for the third revamping of the No.
4 BF at the West Japan Works (Kurashiki).
The revamping included a
full upgrade of the BF control room and control
system and the full switch-over from a bell-type
to a three-parallel bunker bell-less top for
the raw material charging equipment, which
will improve control over the distribution
of burdens. To extend the life of the furnace
beyond conventional estimates, highly corrosion-resistant
refractories were installed, and the furnace
body cooling system was reinforced.
Below is a summary of the
project.
| Revamping period: |
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August 30 to November 12 (75
days) |
| Cost: |
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Approx. ¥19.5 billion |
| Inner volume: |
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4,100 m3
(prior to revamping: 2,857 m3) |
The revamping was expected
to result in a shortage of steel materials
at Kurashiki. In the past, this would have
been covered by restarting the Kurashiki No.
1 BF, which serves as a backup, but with the
West Japan Works under integrated operation
after the merger, the plan instead called
for the shortage to be covered by shipping
slabs from Fukuyama. In actual practice, however,
JFE Steel was able to significantly reduce
shipping volumes, because the Kurashiki No.
3 and No. 4 BF achieved productivity of 2.42
t/m3/day
for the past two consecutive months1).
1)
New domestic record for steelworks
operating multiple large-scale BFs (inner
volume of 4,000 m3
or greater).
Blowing-in ceremony for
Kurashiki No.2 blast furnace
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