CHAPTER 6

ANALYSIS OF ENERGY CONSUMPTION IN MELTING

FURNACES

6.1 Introduction

The energy use analysis was performed on some melting furnaces. It is found

that the actual energy consumption in electrical induction furnaces is

influenced by electrical efficiency and thermal loss. This thermal loss results in

reduction of overall efficiency. The present study focuses on thermal losses

and efficiency in induction furnaces. This chapter also deals with cupola

furnace where the controlling of metal composition is very important.

Composition and control depend on charging the metal of known analysis and

consistent composition during melting. Producing iron to a certain composition

or mechanical specification is more difficult in cupola. The present work

formulates charge model, which offers a rapid and simple solution to the

problem.

6.2 Factors Influencing Energy Efficiency of Induction Furnaces

Energy efficiency is strongly influenced by the manner in which the equipment

is used. In many cases excess energy is used in melting. The different

operational practices employed resulted in significant variation in energy

consumption. The factors influencing the energy use are furnace capacity,

thermal loss and lining performance.

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6.2.1 Effect of furnace capacity

The theoretical energy requirement to obtain a molten metal at the given

temperatures varies according to the thermal properties, analysis and the final

temperature of the metal. It normally ranges between 370 kWh/ton and 390

kWh/ton of different iron grades [87], This value is useful in determining the

efficiency in induction furnaces.

The present work evaluates the performance of melting furnaces by

their efficiency. Thermal efficiency can be calculated using the equation 2.3

and the results are shown in Table 6.1. The theoretical energy estimated for

selected furnaces is 390kwh/ton

Table 6.1 Efficiency of induction furnace

S.No Capacity of the Total Energy Thermal

furnace consumption Efficiency
kWh/ton in %
1 0.8 ton 860 45.3

2 1 ton 648 60.1

3 1.5 638 61.1

4 3.5 ton 625 62.5

Table 6.1 reveals that the energy consumption is decreases with the

increase in furnace capacity and the thermal efficiency of the furnace

increases.

6.2.2 Effect of thermal loss on induction furnaces

The thermal loss varies according to the size, specific power level and time of

utilisation. The thermal losses in induction furnaces reported in the literature

[91] are conductive losses through lining, heat losses associated with slag

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and radiation losses when the furnace lid is open. Due to high thermal losses,

the percent power utilisation decreases.

The equation 2.4 is rewritten for thermal loss as

TL=((AE x E) -(ER x (1/MY) xP)/(Cx TM) (6.1)

where TL: Thermal loss, AE: Actual energy used / ton during the furnace

operation, ER: Energy requirement of metal and slag kWh/ton E: Electrical

efficiency for furnace, transformer and capacitor system, Tm: Total production

time in hr, P: production in tons, MY: Melting yield, C: Furnace capacity in

tons

For an induction furnace with specific energy consumption of 640

kWh/ton, average melt loss of 3%, average electrical efficiency of 76%,

average production 32 tons and working 22 hours, the thermal losses is

TL: ((640 * 0.76) - (385 * 1/0.97)) *32 / (3.5 * 22) kW

A thermal loss for other values is obtained by using similar procedure

and this is shown in Figure 6.1. It is observed that the size of the furnace and

production rate are the factors influencing thermal loss. Further, the

conduction loss and radiation loss for 750kW furnace at the tapping

temperature of 1500 0 C were observed to be 50 kW and 35 kW respectively.

However, the required tapping temperature for gray cast iron should be

around 1350°C -1400°C. If this temperature range can be maintained, these

thermal losses can be reduced by 10 kW.

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 Thermal loss (kW)

CM

co
Capacity(tons)

Fig 6.1 Effect of furnace size on thermal loss

6.2.3 Effect of lining performance on induction furnace

It is observed that there is a relationship between electric efficiency, thermal

loss factor and the lining thickness. In many furnaces thick refractory lining is

used to reduce heat losses and this provides adequate protection against

metal break out. It is observed in the study that while thicker lining reduces

heat transmission, it adversely affects the coupling between the metallic

charge and the coil.

Table 6.2 Furnace lining

Description Power input Energy

kW consumption in
kWh/ton
New lining 615 656
After 1 st week 650 622
After 2 nd week 750 598

The refractory lining erodes away during its operational life as it becomes

thinner and thinner. Due to this, induction coil draws higher power with

consequent improvement in both the melting rate and specific energy

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consumption. Table 6.2 illustrates the life of lining in 3.5-ton induction furnace

rated 750 kW.

6.3 Study of Composition Analysis in Cupola Furnace Operation

Some of the important factors affect energy efficiency are carbon pickup by

the metal, temperature of molten metal, combustion and consistency in input,

raw material and composition. Basically composition and property control

depend on metal charges. A study of composition analysis and its effect is

investigated in this section.

Charge make up is calculated by the availability of material and

composition requirement of the product [36]. Traditionally, in India most of the

small and medium scale foundries follow the rule of thumb or best guess. The

rule of thumb is based solely on the foundrymen’s personal experience. There

are alternative combinations of raw materials for a given heat and the

foundrymen were not able to compare the various alternatives. Also when

one’s experience is relied on, often some inefficient method can be repeated

over and over again. This causes variations in melting temperature, analysis,

melting rate and of course, the whole economics of the process

6.3.1 Charging system

The charge calculation is given here as the charge mix specifying a target

amount of pig iron, returns and fixed number of silicon briquettes. It is

essential to make calculations necessary for adjustments to the charge

composition on the basis of actual weights being added, thereby reducing

charge variations and thus minimising fluctuations in melt analysis and

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performance. This will ensure that the proper composition is obtained for all

heats produced.

6.3.2 Charge composition model

The initial charge calculation is based on material balance. Summing up the

contributions of each element in each composition in the charge and dividing

it by the total weight of the charge determine the average content of each

element. To facilitate the entry of the charge composition, a program is

developed for charge material evaluation including various grades of material

and their constituents. The calculation of composition changes in the cupola is

restricted to a consideration of the behaviour of the major elements such as

carbon, silicon, manganese, sulphur and phosphorus.

A model has been developed keeping in mind the Indian foundry

conditions and this is illustrated in Figure 6.2. The model on cupola charging

operation is based on the following steps:

• Data regarding material quantity and material composition are

to be obtained.

• The amount of metal weighed is the input data to the program.

• The model facilitates the initial charge calculation; it accounts for

the influence of both charge composition and cupola practice on

spout composition.

• The model calculates the properties of resultant metal and offers

corrective action, if required, and gives a printout with accurate

details of the charge.

The Values of aggregate charge were calculated using the equations given

below

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 n,m
ac- ^(Wjxc^nooo
7=1,*=1
(6.1)

n,m
ASi = £(W5fx&*)/1000 (6.2)
7=1,*=1

n,m
AMn = £(^xM?A;)/1000 (6.3)
y=l,*=1

nym
AP = ^(WjxPk)/1000 (6.4)
7=1,*=1

n,m
AS = J^iWjxSk)/1000 (6.5)
j=i,*=i

Loss or gain of a metal and its constituents is calculated using the following

equations.

LCO=(AC+L1) (6.6)

LSiO=(ASi*L2) (6.7)

LmnO=(AMn*L3) (6.8)

LFO = (AP*L4) (6.9)

LSO=(AS+L5) (6.10)

The estimated value of different constituents at spout is given by

Carbon =LCO (6.11)

Silicon =(ASi+LsiO) (6.12)

Manganese =(AMn+LmnO) (6.13)

Phosphorous =(AP+LPO) (6.14)

Sulphur =LSO (6.15)

The desired Ferro-Silicon adjustment calculation is given by:

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 The adjustment value of silicon = Diff* 12.24 (6.16)

And Diff is calculated as

Diff =(Desired Silicon content - Silicon content at spout) (6.17)

From the above equations, the total of carbon, silicon, phosphorous,

manganese and sulphur is found out at spout (molten metal). The values of

carbon, silicon and phosphorous are substituted in Levi’s equation (6.18a)

and they are modified to account for the value of K .This is given as

TC sPout=K+0.5 TC charge-0.25 (Si+P) spouf (6.18a)

and it is rewritten for K value and is given as

K=TC - (0.5 TC charge-0.25 (Si+P) spout) (6.18b)

And further, K value is substituted in the given equation by BCIRA, (6.19b),

which gives the relationship between K and spout temperature as

K=0.00451T-4.30 (6.19a)

The above equation is rewritten for T and given as

T=(K+4.30)/0.00451 (6.19b)

where AC: Amount of total carbon in charge%, ASi: Amount of total silicon in

charge %, AMn: Amount of total manganese in charge%, AP: Amount of total

phosphorous in charge%, AS: Amount of total sulphur in charge% , Wj:

Weight of the metals of j th metal, Ck, Sik, Mnk, Pk, Sk: k th constituents

percentage value, LCO : Result of loss or gain of carbon in charge%, LSiO

: Result of loss or gain of silicon in charge%, LMnO: Result of loss or gain of

manganese in charge%, LPO : Result of loss or gain of phosphorous in

charge%, LSO : Result of loss or gain of Sulphur in charge%, L1..L5: The

losses, K: Constant depends upon temperature, T: Temperature at spout

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 Start

Enter the type Quantity, and its composition

Metall: Wt, Carbon, Silicon, Mn, P and S
i
Metal n: Wt, Carbon, Silicon, Mn, P and S
---------- n-------------
Print aggregate charge

u
Enter loss or gain during melting from
the previous records

--------------------- 3-------------------
Print Estimated analysis

sx

-IJ~
End

6.2 The logical approach to do the computerised charging operation

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6.3.3 Case study

The foundry selected for study is a medium scale foundry, which

manufactures mainly grey cast iron castings. The basic inputs required for the

furnace are coke, pig iron and foundry returns. Many foundries have different

scrap grades, each with different composition. A certain percentage of heat

poured is returned to the melting facility and it is termed as in-house scrap or

returns. Some of the important parameters identified for the melting operation

of computational charging process are: availability of charge materials, status

of charging system and charging mixtures. The composition of charge

material as shown in Table 6.3. The data of average loss or gain in the

composition during melting is given in Table 6.4.Material usage data of this

foundry are listed in Table 6.5.

Table 6.3 Charge material composition

Input type Carbon % Silicon % Manganese Phosphorous % Sulph

(Cj) (Sij) %(Mnj) (Pj) ur %
(Sj)
Pig Iron 3.5 2.5 0.4 0.4 0.01

Returns 3.4 2.10 0.7 0.1 0.2

Cl scrap 3.0 1.9 0.7 0.12 0.25

Table 6.4 Losses

L1 L2 L3 L4 L5
(carbon (Silicon (Manganese Phosphorous loss %) (Sulphur loss
loss or gain loss in %) loss or gain or gain %)
in %) %)
15% gain 10-20% 25 % loss No loss or gain 5% gain
loss

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 Table 6.5 Material usage

Day Pig iron Return (kg) Cl Scrap (Kg) Coke (kg) Ferreisilico
n kg)
Kg % wt Kg % wt kg % wt kg % wt of kg % Wt
(Wj) of (Wj) of (Wj) of (Wj) charge (Wj) of
charg charge charge char
e -ge
1 291 29.05 417 41.76 292 29.17 171 17.1 4 0.4
2 291 29.12 419 41.87 290 29.00 175 17.5 4 0.4
3 327 32.70 345 34.47 328 32.87 171 17.1 4 0.4
4 327 32.70 345 34.47 328 32.87 171 17.1 4 0.4
5 328 32.77 347 34.70 325 32.50 177 17.7 3 0.30
6 303 30.34 407 40.68 290 29.00 169 16.9 4.4 0.44
7 290 28.97 343 34.27 367 36.75 168 16.8 1.9 0.19
8 266 26.58 354 35.36 380 38.04 171 17.1 3.14 0.31
9 221 22.14 421 42.14 358 35.71 182 18.2 1.5 0.15
10 193 19.30 414 41.37 393 39.30 168 16.8 2 0.20
11 217 21.66 417 41.67 366 36.66 169 16.9 1.4 0.14
12 260 26.07 361 36.13 379 37.80 162 16.2 3.8 0.38
13 217 21.70 418 41.80 365 36.50 171 17.1 2.2 0.22
14 234 23.40 438 43.80 328 32.80 160 16.0 3 0.30
15 208 20.78 466 46.63 326 32.50 163 16.3 2.5 0.25
16 214 21.35 414 41.35 372 37.28 168 16.8 2.3 0.23
17 223 22.30 423 42.30 354 35.38 189 18.9 3.2 0.32
18 201 20.10 519 51.90 280 28.01 154 15.4 1 0.10
19 181 18.13 488 48.80 331 33.06 160 16.0 1.2 0.12
20 208 20.85 327 32.73 465 46.41 181 18.1 1.3 0.13
21 216 21.64 398 39.77 386 38.58 168 16.8 1.2 0.12
22 287 28.66 336 33.55 377 37.77 176 17.6 2 0.20
23 253 25.29 379 37.94 368 36.75 183 18.3 2 0.20
24 326 32.58 303 30.34 371 37.07 175 17.5 2 0.20

It was observed from Table 6.5 that the large variation in coke

consumption from charge to charge is due to the variation in weight and

composition of pig iron, return and Cl scrap. The weight composition is to be

maintained consistently to have constant and reduced coke consumption.

The cupola furnace burns coke with an air blast to melt scrap, cast iron and

alloying materials into consistent grade iron for casting purpose. The random

variation in charge composition leads to the degree of variability in cupola

output. Controlling this phenomenon is desirable for efficient energy use to get

iron of acceptable quality.

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 Table 6.6 Charge mixing variation of existing practice and the resultant
cupola output composition
Day Carbon at Silicon % at Tapping temperature UC Phosphorous
spout spout % at spout

1(10%) 2(20%) 1 2
1 3.46 1.72 1.91 1457 1470 0.193
2 3.46 1.73 1.92 1458 1470 0.193
3 3.45 1.73 1.92 1459 1469 0.205
4 3.45 1.73 1.92 1459 1469 0.205
5 3.45 1.73 1.92 1459 1469 0.197
6 3.46 1.74 1.93 1460 1471 0.194
7 3.43 1.71 1.89 1455 1465 0.193
8 3.42 1.70 1.89 1454 1464 0.193
9 3.42 1.69 1.88 1452 1462 0.205
10 3.41 1.68 1.86 1450 1460 0.205
11 3.42 1.69 1.88 1452 1462 0.197
12 3.42 1.70 1.89 1453 1477 0.194
13 3.42 1.69 1.88 1452 1462 0.193
14 3.55 1.70 1.89 1467 1477 0.168
15 3.59 1.69 1.88 1470 1480 0.172
16 3.52 1.68 1.86 1462 1472 0.163
17 3.54 1.69 1.88 1464 1474 0.166
18 3.55 1.69 1.88 1465 1475 0.172
19 3.54 1.67 1.85 1464 1474 0.172
20 3.48 1.67 1.85 1457 1467 0.172
21 3.54 1.67 1.85 1464 1474 0.171
22 3.57 1.71 1.89 1471 1481 0.193
23 3.55 1.69 1.88 1465 1475 0.166
24 3.59 1.72 1.91 1475 1485 0.205

The charge mixing variation from the existing practice and the resultant

cupola output composition is given in Table 6.6. The composition of the

charge metal is the major input variable influencing the tapped metal

composition.

6.3.4 Effect of carbon and silicon on metal temperature

The factors affecting cupola furnaces are percentages of carbon and silicon.

The details of these factors are given in this chapter. The carbon and silicon

content in the molten metal depends on the temperature, which in turn

depends on the charge composition. These variations measured in this case

study is given in Figures 6.3 and 6.4. It is observed that around 1460°C there

87
is a sudden increase in the percentage of carbon and silicon (oxidation) due

to the input charge composition.

Temperature in C at spout

Fig 6.3 Variation of Carbon content in the molten metal with

temperature
Silicon content at spout

Tapping Temperature 0 C

Fig 6.4 Variation of Silicon content in the molten metal with

temperature

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 This study helps to monitor and control a wide range of foundry

process variables and material properties efficiently. It was observed from the

case study that changes in the levels of carbon and silicon are related to

tapping temperature and also the spout temperature influences the casting

defects which resulted in extra energy or fuel requirement.

6.3.5 Predicting temperature through multiple regression analysis

The principal objective of cupola control should be to ensure that the metal of

suitable composition is tapped at the correct temperature. In any industrial

process, if sufficient data concerning the mode of operation and the

corresponding performance of the plant are available, then it is possible, by

using statistical procedures, to describe the effect of changing one or more of

the operating variables on the plant performance [31]. The well-established

statistical methods of linear, curvilinear and multiple regression analyses were

used to relate each cupola variables, for example, metal temperature and

metal composition. Having calculated the composition of the base iron at the

cupola spout, the multiple regression model predicts the temperature based

on the composition of carbon, silicon and phosphorous. The parameters were

categorised into carbon, silicon, phosphorous and temperature. The general

form of equation is given as

T= Carbon + Silicon + Phosphorous +K (6.20)

where K: Regression constant

The data in Table 6.3 is used to formulate the regression model.

In this work the SPSS software is used for statistical analysis and following

relationship was identified

T =134.f60C + 45.46 Si - 5.168p + 917.807 (6.21)

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where T: Temperature °C, C: Carbon, Si: Silicon P: Phosphorous

The model provides an opportunity to study the influence of any one or

a number of factors on temperature. The equation can be used to predict the

effect of composition parameters on the temperature of molten metal,

provided the value of the parameters lies within the concerned ranges.

Regression model testing

The sample correlation coefficient (R2 ) between C, Si, P and T computed

using the data is 0.942 or 94.95 % and the factors like carbon, silicon and

phosphorus are correlated well by the linear relationship with temperature.

The analysis of variance and statistical analysis are summarised in Tables 6.5

and 6.6 and they show that the relationship between the temperature and the

composition could be represented fairly well. The normal probability confirms

the best fit. An analysis of residuals is a powerful tool to confirm the nature of

relationship.

Table 6.7 The analysis of variance

Sources of Degrees Sum of Mean F-Test t-test

variation of Square Square Estimated F 0 95(3.6) Estimated to.95(3)
freedom
Regression 3 862.88 287.629 32.740 19 15.11 2.353

Residual 6 52.712 8.785

Total 9 915.600

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 Table 6.8 Summary of statistical analysis

S. No Test type Hypothesis statement Remarks

1 F-test H0: no significance between F032.40>190.05(2,2).
carbon, silicon and phosphorus H0: will be rejected
and temperature value(means are and will conclude that
equal) there is carbon,
H,: Alternatively, there is silicon and
significance among carbon, silicon phosphorus and
and phosphorus and temperature temperature value.
value(mean values are not equal)

2 t-test Variability (p) in actual excess t0=15.11>2.352t0.05,02

energy utilisation value is H0 will be rejected
explained by the linear relation and will conclude that
ship with Temperature. correlation coefficient
H0:p=0, H1(p* 0 ,p* 0
[45]
3 Residuals The standardised residuals are randomly distributed about
zero between -2 and +2, which evidently show that the
relationship between the final yield of good castings and
energy value could be represented fairly well

6.4 Concluding Remarks

As heat losses are dependent on the size of induction furnace, it is particularly

important that furnaces of small and medium capacity should be operated with

high utilisation factor. The operations of cold blast cupola can be represented

by a mathematical model constructed by using the statistical methods and

regression analysis. The model helps to obtain the metal temperature from

the knowledge of metal composition, operating conditions and the constitution

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of the metal charged. It is observed from this study that the production of

liquid iron with closely controlled composition^, Mn, Si, S) is the major

objective of cupola operation. The manual selection of the best composition

for the desired output with the least energy consumption is very difficult. So in

this study an attempt has been made to improve the cupola charging system

using a computational modelling procedure.

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