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Recycling Ladle Furnace Slag as Flux in Steelmaking: A Review

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Abstract

The use of synthetic fluxes in secondary steelmaking not only improves the properties of top slag and steel quality but also increases the production cost. Ladle furnace (LF) slag can be used as a replacement to synthetic fluxes owing to its chemical and mineralogical compositions. Valorization of LF slag helps in sustainable steelmaking and also reduces steel production cost. In spite of beneficial composition, valorization of LF slag is difficult due to its disintegration phenomenon. The present paper reviews on the importance of ladle flux usage, various methods available to prevent disintegration of LF slags, and possibilities to recycle LF slags as a flux in the steelmaking. The paper helps steel plant operators to select a suitable option for recycling LF slags as a flux in steelmaking.

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Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank Dr.A. Syamsundar for technical support and the management of RINL-Visakhapatnam Steel plant for administrative support.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Research and Development Centre, RINL-Visakhapatnam Steel Plant, Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh, 530031, India

    Suguna Soumya Varanasi & Venu Madhava Rao More

  2. Corporate Office, RINL-Visakhapatnam Steel Plant, Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh, 530031, India

    M. Bhaskar Venkata Rao

  3. Steel Melt Shop-2, RINL-Visakhapatnam Steel Plant, Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh, 530031, India

    Sankar Reddy Alli, Anil Kumar Tangudu & Dey Santanu

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  1. Suguna Soumya Varanasi
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Varanasi, S.S., More, V.M.R., Rao, M.B.V. et al. Recycling Ladle Furnace Slag as Flux in Steelmaking: A Review. J. Sustain. Metall. 5, 449–462 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40831-019-00243-9

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