Effectiveness of using oxygen-gas burners in modern arc steelmaking furnaces

Oxygen-gas burners have become a standard component of modern electric-arc steelmaking furnaces worldwide as a means of increasing productivity and reducing electric power consumption. The use of such burners in these furnaces is expedient from both an economic and an energy standpoint. On the average, the use of 1 m³ of natural gas to heat the scrap in the furnace charge saves 0.6–0.8 m³ of natural gas for the refining operation. The amount of heat obtained from the combustion of natural gas can be increased significantly by equipping arc steelmaking furnaces with high-capacity rotary oxygen-gas burners that allow changes to be made to the direction of the flame.