Mathematical modeling of the argon-oxygen decarburization refining process of stainless steel: Part II. Application of the model to industrial practice

The mathematical model proposed and presented in Part I of the present work has been used to deal with and analyze the austenitic stainless steel making (including ultralow-carbon steel) and has been tested on data of 32 heats obtained in producing 18Cr9Ni-grade steel in an 18-t argon-oxygen decarburization (AOD) vessel. The results indicated that the carbon concentrations and bath temperatures at the endpoints of blowing periods, calculated by the model, are in excellent agreement with the determined data, and the Cr content after the predeoxidization, obtained from the model predictions, also agrees very well with the observed value. The Gibbs free energies of the oxidation reactions of elements can be used to characterize fully the competitive oxidation among the elements during the refining process and to determine reasonably the corresponding distribution ratios of oxygen. The critical carbon concentration of decarburization (after which the decarburization changes to become controlled by the mass transfer of carbon in molten steel) for the AOD refining process of austenitic stainless steel in an 18-t AOD vessel is in the range of 0.25 to 0.40 mass pct. The model can provide some very useful information and a reliable basis for optimization of the technology of the AOD refining process of stainless steel and control of the process in real time and online.