Role of coke quality in improving blast furnace performance

The coke situation in India, now-a-days has become a subject of serious concern, mainly because of the reasons like (a) the limited reserves of coking coal, (b) the continuing trend of deterioration of the properties with respect to all quality parameters and (c) the trend showing the increase in ash content. Coke requirement in blast furnace is necessary as it provides adequate voidages and support to the burden, sufficient heat for smelting and acts as a good reducing agent. Various measures are taken to reduce the coke consumption in blast furnace, which finally increases the life cycle of limited resources of prime coal. However, it is the quality of coke which can improve the blast furnace performance vis-cl-vis reduces its consumption. The knowledge on the properties of coke, physical or chemical and their effect on the performance of blast furnace are very much essential for further improvement.