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Steelmaking—the jet age

  • The 1980 Howe Memorial Lecture The Iron and Steel Society of AIME
  • Published:
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Abstract

The origins of pneumatic steelmaking are traced from early operating practices based on the beginning concepts of this steelmaking technique put forth by Sir Henry Bessemer. Development of oxygen jet steelmaking in both its top and bottom blown forms is reviewed. The fundamentals of gas jet behavior are emphasized including the importance of physics, mechanics and chemistry and their role in steelmaking reactions involving slag, gas and metal. The vital combination and the continuing interaction of fundamental science and engineering development in the evolution of pneumatic steelmaking technology are emphasized. The frontiers of knowledge and the areas for further study of jet steelmaking processes are outlined. Future evolution of the application of jets in steelmaking are considered from the perspective of past and present.

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  1. Robert D. Pehlke
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Pehlke, R.D. Steelmaking—the jet age. Metall Trans B 11, 539–562 (1980). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02670135

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