Modernization of blast furnace No. 3 at the Azovstal steel plant has reached the finish line
At the Mariupol Metallurgical Plant "Azovstal" of the Metinvest Group, commissioning is being carried out at a new pumping station of the reverse cycle for cooling the modernized blast furnace No. 3. This was reported on Metinvest Group's official page Facebook.
As the company said, the station includes 22 modern pumping units, which will be able to provide a circulating cycle without additional water intake and discharge of pollution into the sea.
Construction of the water recycling cycle began in November last year. To date, all construction and installation work has been completed. The equipment operating modes are being tested.
“Modernization of blast furnace cooling with the introduction of modern technical solutions is an important part of a large-scale reconstruction, which will make the industrial process more environmentally friendly,” Metinvest said.
The company's investments in the modernization of blast furnace No. 3 of the Azovstal metallurgical plant amounted to more than USD 145 million.
The repair will double the blast furnace capacity - up to 1.3-1.6 million tons per year and reduce production costs by reducing coke consumption. Construction of a pulverized coal injection unit (PFC) will make it possible to reduce the consumption of natural gas. After the reconstruction of the aspiration system and the transition to a closed cooling circuit of the furnace, dust emissions will be reduced by 64%.
Earlier, Azovstal completed the installation of a modern aspiration system for a ferroalloy crusher, as well as new aspiration systems for ladle furnaces of the converter shop.