Improvement of refractory life and performance

Improve your Refractory Life and Performance by following 3 steps

Nothing counts like the 'performance'. Getting or giving a better performance is one thing which everyone tries to do. Reasons obvious! For getting better performance of refractories from an installation (lining) i.e. an improved refractory life, one must take care of the following three simple but very important things:

1. Proper Selection of Refractories.
2. Proper Installation - Laying of Refractory Bricks.
3. Proper Operation Practice.

Selection of Refractories

Though there are specific refractories for different applications, operation practices lead to certain criteria on which, depends the refractory life. As such these need to be properly considered. Customers should disclose the actual operating practices and conditions so that some important properties, required to such conditions can be taken care during the selection of refractories as well as during the manufacturing stage of such refractory bricks, castables, and mortars. Among various physical, chemical, thermo-chemical and thermo-mechanical properties of Refractories, there are a few properties which can change significantly performance of refractories. These are called Key Properties. For ensuring better performance, quality and of course, refractory life these key properties should be tested.

Installation - Laying of Refractory Bricks

Depending on the method of application or installation there has to be a set of guidelines in respect to laying of refractory bricks, their dimensions, selection of mortars, expansion joints and many other minute but very important things. So from case to case basis the supplier of refractories should specify this properly and also ensure that the methods are actually being followed. Transportation, handling, timely arrival of refractory bricks, mortars, skill of masonry work, proper equipment for application e.g. mixer machine for castable, vibrator for installation, forma etc. are very important. Maintaining proper expansion gaps, correct dimension (size) of bricks and monolithics, fixing anchors etc. all are very important to achieve better life of refractories. Once the laying job and other installation of refractories are over, the initial heating of the lining before starting the actual operation is of prime importance. Customers should demand the initial heating schedule from the refractory supplier.

Operational Practices

Proper operation is not only important for getting right quality output but also, help in getting the optimum refractory life, less downtime, maximum availability of the furnace and thus, the benefit of lower cost of refractories per tone of finished product. Customers must be aware of the reasons which can damage the refractories arising because of improper operations. During the training of the furnace operators, apart from the method of the furnace operation etc. they must be given some knowledge regarding the proper usage and importance of refractories also.

how to minimize/stop the erosion in high alumina bottom pouring sets, without much cost increase.

One can try magnesia - carbon refractory coating over the high alumina bottom pouring sets. The coating can be applied using carbonaceous adhesives.

Using BP set manufactured by small companies then probable cause of this erosion can be lower alumina content than specified or using a low melting clay as binder to reduce firing temperature. Total alumina can be checked by sending sample to any reputed lab for chemical testing. However for checking low melting matrix, you have to test hot MOR or RUL property of the sample. In case of low melting matrix, it will fuse at steel temperature and will not hold the grains, so more erosion. So buy only from manufacturers who have high temperature kilns to make fire proper grade of BP sets.

 Reduced oxygen content in the steel will be better for the refractories. I recall a case where the customer "killed" the steel in the ladle with some aluminum prior to casting. It is costly to measure oxygen but will give good information if you can do this.

how Manganese cause Magcarbon refractory erosion?

1) Rich MnO slags can lead to Mn-rich metallic particles and solid solution with Mg (and, indeed, carbon oxydation) at the interface between slag and lining. 
Anyway, this is seldom the first cause of erosion: it generally occurs after the lining has been weared for some other reason (i.e. slags unsaturated in MgO or rich in FeO).


2) Mn presence in converter causes erosion faster, as it behaves acidic, makes the liquid less viscous, penetrates the pores and joints and reacts with MgO at the contact point. For Mn steel, different of configuration of MgC brick is used.


3) it is observed that after a low grade ore(high impurity i.e Mn,Si) converter life is almost reduced and high erosion profile is being observed. 
as my observation high Mn slag is very fluid and do not cover the converter lining after slag splashing. reducing use of iron ore as coolant may help.


MnO + SiO2 = very low melting and corrosive liquid. 

I suppose primary wear area limiiting converter life will be the trunnions. Trunnions can be zoned with higher quality MgO containing bricks - MgO purity should be 97.5 minimum and of largest MgO crystal size available. Graphite should be 10-20% and have coarse flaked quality -- exact amount of graphite is function of sracp charge; hot metal chemistry; gunning practice; slag viscosity etc. A good start would be 15% C. Metal additions should be aluminum and silicon metal which will form carbides for added strength and corrosion resistance. 

Turkish fused MgO is superior to Chinese fused MgO especially for corrision resistance - crystal size is larger and grain chemistry is more homogeneous. 

Some other thoughts: 

The operator should be adding enough lime/limestone/dolomitic lime to maintain slag basciity at a > 3:1 lime:silca ratio and some MgO is helpful to reduce slag liquidity and reactability. 

Reblows will be especialy harmful as added FeO can result and FeO+MnO+SiO2 is a refractory solvent that is very aggressive. So effort should be taken to control reblowing to minimum. 

Overblowing such that temperature is overheated should be controlled. 

Corriosive slag should be slagged off shortly after tap. 

A high purity MgO gun mix and laser readings to identify low spots for added gunning maintenance will extend service life. 

Do practice slag splashing; a special lance is used to inject nitrogen after tap - the slag is made more refractory prior to the nitrogen splasing by addition of dolomitic lime. 

A good strategy would be to plan for Continuous Improvement over several linings rather than thinking that one design change can be a silver bullet. Key is to study the wear profile, identify the wear mechanism and develop new lining design that addresses the wear area and wear meachanism; this should be repeated in several iterations over several linings as in "chaisng the hole". As one area is upgraded the weak link might move to another area of the vessel. EX: An upgrade of trunnions might shift the limiting zone to the cone or the slagline or the charge pad or the tap pad...

Refractory anchoring systems

 How important are anchoring systems on your refractory linings? 
- How does your company engineers this systems? 
- Can you trust on your suppliers for technical advice? Wich alloy suits best your lining, your equipment, etc.
- Is anchoring systems a matter of price, do you look at it as a commodity?


the anchor system is critical to the success of the Furnace Lining. 

Indeed, you get what you pay for but anchoring will be a fraction of your build spend so to 'pinch pennies' in this area is a false economy, resulting in premature failure perhaps. 

Key points which determine the engineering of you anchor system: 

* Lining thickness & construction - What material(s) are you retaining? 
* Operating Conditions - Temperature, thermal cycling, atmosphere, mechanical stress 
* Plane of Refractory - Roof, wall, bull-nose? 
* Openings within the refractory body - flue opening 

This determines the type of anchor (material) & quality (grade) you should be expecting to use. 

I would suggest that the anchoring design is based on experience and good practice. 


Additional to what has been said already. Your total lining needs to be designed for its purpose. Thermal expansion can destroy a lining regardless of the anchors system while it may appear to be anchor failure. Consideration of refractory load on any give area is also a consideration for anchoring design. If the vertical load is not transferred back to the shell with shelf supports, you may see failures that look like and anchor failure, when reality is improper anchor application. Shelf supports are also used to isolate areas which may be exposed to thermal expansion from two walls. Bull noses and corner are examples that one would isolate. 

It is difficult to find installation companies that will offer anchor design because they do not want to be exposed to any liability. Some do. 

We have improved the performance of one of our client calciners to operate continuously for 3-4 years. Improved from have outages every 6 months. A huge factor in the improved performance was changing the anchor design.


 a change from standard 310s to 253MA in many industries. This could be for several reasons. Having worked at Rolled Alloys and knowing the differences between each alloy I think one needs to have a good understanding of metals and their behaviour and to know when and where to apply which alloy. One furnace is not the same as another. I have seen anchor failures in 253MA and 310s in similar applications but all for very different reasons that the applicator thought they would survive. I don't always understand why suddenly an alloy is 'in' but it could well be because of lack of understanding of the alloy or just 'everybody is going that way' or some sort of hype, so "lets follow". My experience is that the life time of an alloy actually depends on the alloy chemistry AND the condition in which it is furnished. Both play about a 50-50 part as opposed to just the chemistry. Alloy content determines strength as well as the corrosion resistance of the elements it is endowed with but the surface tension determines the rate at which corrosion takes place. A rough surface will be more susceptible to attack than a smooth surface and a black solution annealed surface wll be attacked/corroded faster than a bright annealed surface. Bright Solution Annealing od a cold drawn or rolled surface is usually the way to go. What people also forget is that each alloy needs to be solution annealed at different temperatures for different lengths of time. If the recepie for all the above is not correct one will not have the full benefit out of any alloy and remain in the dark as to why it worked one time and not the next. One usually forgets he paid the cheapest supplier to get him something he thought was the same as anothers. 

There is also lot of misunderstanding about Sigma forming in stainless steel alloys and very little written about it. I have seen write ups and theories that are totally incorrect and others usually prior to 1970 that would be closer to the truth. One such belief is that 253MA is immune to Sigma formation. This is not true. I have seen annealing bells crack like glass in cold swedish winters after only months of service. Immunity to Sigma is only offered by sufficient Nickel or Cobalt content. There are a few other elements but due to the commercial nature of these alloys it is usually shyed away. I think the industry may reconsider 253MA as an anchoring alloy unless it is used for the purpose for which it was designed. This was to offer better sulphadation and oxidation resistance against 310 and 310s. Not to offer better sigma formation resistance as many believe with such certainty. It would be a great alloy for incinerators and SO2 containing gasses. One must consiously know one has selected the right alloy. If one has not, that will be the time it bites back at him.


When deciding which alloy to go for, it is absolutely critical to know the how each alloy will behave under the various conditions it is exposed to. It not just a matter of price. We have noticed that certain markets prefer to use Grade 304 because it is cheaper yet most don't realise that is grade is not suitable for excessive temperature exposure or aggressive corroding atmosphere therefore increasing their maintenance and labor cost in the long run. 


 the Sigma phase formation and susceptibility as well as the lack of sufficient publications to support the arguments. 253MA is not immune but it is less susceptible than 310. Incoloy DS and Inconel 601 are better alternative but at premium price due to the higher Ni content. 
Special alloys such as Haynes 160 and 120 can offer even better solutions however they do come at relatively higher prices. 

As far as I know, using traditional V-anchors really can do a good job if you don't need a lifespan of more than a year in very harsh conditions. If one wants a long life time and the temperature is too high for anchors to survive (in my opinion above furnace temp of 1200 degrees C or more), then one should consider ceramic anchor systems. If the chemicals are the problem, then one can look at exotic anchor materials. Another solution is changing the geometry and make a self load bearing brick solution.
Another aspect that goes wrong many times, in my opinion, is the amount of used anchors. Rule of thumb for me is the anchor distance should be the same as the lining thickness with anchor length being 2 cm shorter than the lining thickness.
Sigma phase cannot be tackled other than assuring the anchor is either not susceptible to that or not used in the wrong temperature range or replaced before the anchor went too many time through the sigma phase related temperature.

the anchoring system you choose will determine the life of the monolithic lining. You must also take care about anchoring if you are gunniting, or shotcreting, as long as ceramic anchors do not retain the gunned material as well as V-shaped metallic anchors. Generally, the V-shaped corrugated free-moving system is a very good option, provided your welders will not close the movable parts with a strong weld seam. 
You should also take care about the environment in which you are installing the monolithic linings. At temperatures below 600-700 °C, I don't see a mechanical problem in installing 310S or 310, but at higher temperatures you should really consider a better alloy, such as Inconel, or 253MA. From the discussion, I believe your major concern are cement kilns. In this case, you should check if there is sulfate or chlorine gas attack in the anchor. Against chlorine very little can be done, thus I recommend a mix of ceramic and metallic anchors (guarantee the clips are of 310S or superior quality and that the anchors do not have their movement restricted. Good wedging is essential!). In this case, you may also consider the change from the V-Shaped anchors to the flat bar concept. I agree 100% that this concept is old-fashioned and lead to higher stresses in the lining, but if an expansion joint is carefully prepared, you have a much larger corrosion area. This concept should be tried if corrosion of the V-shaped 10 or 12 mm anchors is excessive. 
For sulfate, the information from Wouter Garot is perfect. You should avoid nickel in the alloy, thus 253MA is far better than 310 or supperalloys. 
Anyway, wherever corrosion is an issue, the mix of ceramic and metallic anchors is geneally advantageous. 

Ladle Slide Gate

 refractory slide gate plates used, in pair, as a valve at the bottom of the ladle in order to control molten metal flow during casting. Highly sliding surfaces of these plates are necessary for easily opening and closing operation as they slides on each other. 
My question is whether these refractory plates required tar impregnation treatment, because i found this treatment in most of the articles regarding refractory slide gate plates, or it also not necessary require tar impregnation likewise magnesia carbon bricks and can be use directly after curing.


 There are mainly four types of commonly used slide gate plates.These are:

1) Cured Alumina carbon plates
2) Fired alumina carbon plates
3) Cured magnesia carbon plates
4) Fired magnesia carbon plates

Fired plates have better erosion resistance as well as better mechanical properties at high temperature.

Cured plates give 1 heat life and after polishing/coating the plate by repair may give one more extra heat life.

Fired plates can give around 4-6 heats life.

There are also zirconia based plates which are very expensive and used by reputed steel plants who targets to achieve 8-10 heats per pair of plates.

Magnesia based plates are preferable where slag corrosion rate is very high.

Tar impregnation is effective on fired products.After firing,the plates can have a porosity of about 13-14%.After tar impregnation,the porosity is reduced to around 3 %.

Tar impregnation is not much effective on cured products,as cured products already show a porositiy of about 5 %.

Purpose of tar impregnation are to lower the porosity and increase the carbon content.This results in better thermal conductivity and oxidation resistance.In case of Alumina carbon plates,tar impregnation also protects the aluminium carbide from hydration.

So,I will say,although environmentally hazardous,tar impregnation is necessary for fired slide gate plates.

Ladle Preheaters

The ladle refractory lining temperature, during the production cycle, especially for basic linings, must be constantly reset and maintained at convenient temperature values higher than 1.000°C-1.200°C. A correct management of ladle heating and temperature keeping, allows to improve the main steel making parameters:

* Low liquid steel temperture changings before and after tapping

* Tapping temperature decrease at E.A.F. (5-10°C)

* Consumption reduction of expensive energy (i.e. reduction electrical energy of the E.A.F.)

* Electrode consumption reduction of the E.A.F.

* Reduction of Tap to Tap time at E.A.F.

* Increase of E.A.F. productivity

* Guarantee of casting start in the C.C.M.

* Low ladle refractory lining consumption

* Increase of safety refractory lining performances

* Elimination of liquid steel infiltrations trough / behind the working lining

Ladle Preheaters Combustion Technology Should be :

* High efficiency gas – air burners

* High velocity and long flame burners

* Pulse firing burners or modulating burners

* Low NOx emissions of burners

* Burnes designed and manufactured with special refractory steel parts for long life time of operation

* Micro / PLC Automatic control of burners combustion ratio

* Automatic and efficient control of ladle temperature

* High preheating performances

* Extraordinary uniformity of ladle lining temperature

* Low gas consumption

* Shorter drying – preheating time

* Significant energy saving compared to usual technology

* High efficiency thermal recuperators (additonal energy saving 30%)

* Burners available for natural gas, L.P.G., Diesel oil, Coke oven gas

* Emission rates according to E.C.C. standards

* Exhaust fumes system and post-combustion system for dangerous and smoking emissions

Crude steel production (million tonnes):

Crude steel production (million tonnes):

Rank	Country/Region	2007	2008	2009	2010	2011
—	World	1,351.3	1326.5	1,219.7	1,413.6	1,490.1
1	People's Republic of China	494.9	500.3	573.6	626.7	683.3
2	Japan	120.2	118.7	87.5	109.6	107.6
3	United States	98.1	91.4	58.2	80.6	86.2
4	India	53.5	57.8	62.8	68.3	72.2
5	Russia	72.4	68.5	60.0	66.9	68.7
6	South Korea	51.5	53.6	48.6	58.5	68.5
7	Germany	48.6	45.8	32.7	43.8	44.3
8	Ukraine	42.8	37.3	29.9	33.6	35.3
9	Brazil	33.8	33.7	26.5	32.8	35.2
10	Turkey	25.8	26.8	25.3	29.0	34.1
11	Italy	31.6	30.6	19.7	25.8	28.7
12	Taiwan	20.9	19.9	15.7	19.6	22.7
13	Mexico	17.6	17.2	14.2	17.0	18.1
14	France	19.3	17.9	12.8	15.4	15.8
15	Spain	19.0	18.6	14.3	16.3	15.6
16	Canada	15.6	14.8	9.0	13.0	13.1
17	Iran	10.1	10.0	10.9	12.0	13.0
18	United Kingdom	14.3	13.5	10.1	9.7	9.5
19	Poland	10.6	9.7	7.2	8.0	8.8
20	Belgium	10.7	10.7	5.6	8.1	8.1
21	Austria	7.6	7.6	5.7	7.2	7.5
22	Netherlands	7.4	6.8	5.2	6.7	6.9
23	South Africa	9.1	8.3	7.5	8.5	6.7
24	Egypt	6.2	6.2	5.5	6.7	6.5
25	Australia	7.9	7.6	5.2	7.3	6.4
26	Argentina	5.4	5.5	4.0	5.1	5.7
27	Czech Republic	7.1	6.4	4.6	5.2	5.6
28	Saudi Arabia	4.6	4.7	4.7	5.0	5.3
29	Sweden	5.7	5.2	2.8	4.8	4.9
30	Kazakhstan	4.8	4.3	4.1	4.3	4.7
31	Slovakia	5.1	4.5	3.7	4.6	4.2
-	Malaysia	6.9	6.4	4.0	4.1	N/A
32	Finland	4.4	4.4	3.1	4.0	4.0
—	Others[4]	29.8 (est.)	28.3 (est.)	23.3 (est.)	25.6 (est.)