Relation Between Active Power of the Submerged Arc Furnace and the Electric Energy Consumption Indicator in the Process of Ferrosilicon Smelting

Higher active power of a submerged arc furnace is commonly believed to increase its capacity in the process of ferrosilicon smelting. This is a true statement but only to a limited extent. For a given electrode diameter d, there is a certain limit value of the submerged arc furnace active power. When this value is exceeded, the furnace capacity in the process of ferrosilicon smelting does not increase but the energy loss is higher and the technical and economic indicators become worse. Maximum output regarding the reaction zone volumes is one of parameters that characterize similarities of furnaces with various geometrical parameters. It is proportional to d³ and does not depend on the furnace size. The results of statistical analysis of the ferrosilicon smelting process in the 20 MVA furnace have been presented. In addition to basic electrical parameters, such as active power and electrical load of the electrodes, factors contributing to higher resistance of the furnace bath and resulting lower reactive power P_x demonstrate the most significant effect on the electrothermal process of ferrosilicon smelting. These parameters reflect metallurgical conditions of ferrosilicon smelting, such as the reducer fraction, position of the electrodes and temperature conditions of the reaction zones.