Optimization study of steelmaking under novel blast furnace operation combined with methanol production

Hamid Ghanbari Toudeshki, Mikko Helle, Frank Pettersson, Henrik Saxén

    Research output: Contribution to journalArticleScientificpeer-review

    23 Citations (Scopus)

    Abstract

    The opportunities to improve the performance of an existing production concept by plant retrofit are largely dependent on the available knowledge of the best operational state of the plant and its parameters and conditions. In this paper, nonlinear programming was used to analyze the economic potential of the use of large volumes of gases in a steel plant to produce methanol as a valuable byproduct in steelmaking. Conventional blast furnace operation was compared with the option of operating the blast furnace with top gas recycling after carbon dioxide stripping. The optimal integration of the processes was investigated by minimizing the cost of liquid steel production, considering the cost of raw materials and fuels, CO2 emission, and stripping, as well as credits for power, district heat, and methanol production. It was found that the novel way of operating the blast furnace with cold oxygen blowing and top gas recycling was well suited for combination with a polygeneration system using the residual gases of the steel plant.
    Original languageUndefined/Unknown
    Pages (from-to)12103–12112
    Number of pages10
    JournalIndustrial & Engineering Chemistry Research
    Volume50
    Issue number21
    DOIs
    Publication statusPublished - 2011
    MoE publication typeA1 Journal article-refereed

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