Pouring Refractories for a quality Steelmaking shop

Abstract

The paper outlines the major refractory developments in steel pouring ladles in Europe during the 1970,s and attempts to indicate the trends and the underlying reasons for developing steelmaking areas in the 1980's. The major external influence in the iron and steel industry on the use of refractory materials has been the increasing cost in world markets of "ENERGY". This factor alone has been the strongest single influence to change old established practices replacing high energy bricks with low energy monolithic raw materials which are fired in oitu. This theme is clearly complained with the trend, particularly in Europe in major integrated melting shops, for the replacement of firebricked ladles by slung, or gunned monolithic materials.