Acciaieria Arvedi chose Tenova Consteel® EAF for the second time in 2018, strengthening the plant supplied in 2008. The new installation, built to comply with the higher productivity of the recently improved continuous casting and rolling line, takes into account the requirement for increased productivity and operational flexibility, particularly in relation to the metallic charge mix that is of strategic importance in the EAF process.
The careful design of the equipment and the operational results achieved demonstrate the reliability of the technology involved and the validity of this approach for the safe production of steel with minimal environmental impact. The new electric arc furnace has a diameter of 9.1 meters and is continuously fed by a Consteel® conveyor and the latest generation of Tenova injection system. A plant of advanced and innovative technology, as demonstrated by the integration, since the beginning of the project, of the Consteerrer® system designed in collaboration between ABB, Arvedi and Tenova.
At the core of Consteerrer® is a unique, patented, non-contact electromagnetic stirring technology that has repeatedly been shown to deliver a wide range of metallurgical improvements. Site results confirm that the Consteerrer® electromagnetic stirring system has delivered a range of process improvements, thereby increasing EAF productivity, energy and resource efficiency at Acciaieria Arvedi. These include an 18 degrees Celcius lower tapping temperature and a 3.6 percent reduction in electrical energy consumption resulting in a 38,000-tonne annual reduction in CO₂ emissions at the plant. EAF productivity has increased by 5 percent and final oxygen content in the EAF steel has decreased by 17 percent. Other benefits can be seen in increased scrap yield, reduced electrode use, lowered refractory wearing, reduced carry-over slag while processing is more stable and final tapping conditions more easily controlled.