IMPROVEMENT OF ELECTROCHEMICAL DEVICES FOR MEASURING THE SILICON CONTENT OF HOT METAL

摘要

The present-day tendency towards the production of extra-clean steels has led to initiatives for developing treatments which remove undesirable elements (especially sulphur and phosphorus) from hot metal before the latter is fed into the converter. One effective practice which has been developed and tested by some of the above-mentioned inventors refers to the continuous treatment of hot metal while it flows through the blast-furnace trough; this requires continuous monitoring of the hot metal composition, and in particular of the silicon content which has a strong influence on the dephosphorization reaction. The improved electrochemical cell according to this invention permits measuring, on a continuous basis and for extended periods of time, the silicon content of the outflowing hot metal and therefore enables the operator to apply immediately the necessary corrective action for preventing undesired swings of the impurities content.