To increase utilization of sulfur dioxide generated during blowing of copper-nickel matte in horizontal converters, a system of automatic control of gas mode of converter process was developed. The system consists of three hierarchy levels: at the lower level, the tasks of stabilization of technological parameters of matte conversion process determining gas mode of the unit are solved; at the middle level, the optimization of gas mode of individual converters is carried out in order to reduce gas emissions into the shop; at the upper, level the control of redistribution of gas flows of converters of the smelting shop in order to supply gases with maximum sulfur dioxide content to sulfuric acid production, the method of fuzzy system parameter identification is presented.
Automated control system of horizontal converter gas mode developed by the author for BOF Shop of Pechenganickel Smelting Shop is described. The task of BOF vessel gas regime control is to maintain rarefaction in its gas path ensuring, on the one hand, maximization of sulfur dioxide content in BOF gases supplied to sulfuric acid production and, on the other hand, minimization of BOF gas emissions into the atmosphere of the shop. The difficulty of solving this task within the framework of the automated control system consists in lack of technical means enabling to control both sulphur dioxide content in the flow of hot dusty gases and gas emissions into the atmosphere of the shop floor through the gaps of the gas path. The Company developed a mathematical model that makes it possible to calculate sulphur dioxide content in BOF gases by indirect indicators (blast flow rate, rarefaction in the dust chamber of converter and temperature of converter gases). To eliminate emissions of BOF gases into the atmosphere of the shop the fuzzy control algorithm is used that allows to formalize and use in the automated system the production experience of operator-technologist, currently manually controlling the gas mode of the converter.
A brief summary of the research and engineering work performed by professors, graduate students, and students of the Department of Furnaces, Control and Automation of Metallurgical Processes in 2000 is given. Two main directions of research activities were modeling of technological equipment for metal production and modeling of control systems for industrial metallurgical furnaces. In the first direction of research the following mathematical models were developed: converter conversion of smelting shop of Pechenganickel metallurgical plant; ore thermal smelting process; dissolution and liquation processes; waste water treatment using calcium hydrocarboaluminate. The technology of zinc-tin iron dust processing in a rotary kiln was also developed. A method of separating suspensions using LAROX PF press-filters was introduced. The second area of research includes works on development of spectral density method for synthesis of control systems with intermittent lag and on improvement of efficiency of manipulation of gas regimes in converters.
