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Minimising Particulate Emissions From Sintering Operations / MATTHEW THOMAS

Swansea University Author: MATTHEW THOMAS

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DOI (Published version): 10.23889/SUthesis.63582

Abstract

With the drive for manufacturing and foundation industries to move towards a circular economy, the steel industry is making step changes to its processes that aim to produce greener and cleaner products. The current work is focused on sintering, which can account for almost half of all particulate m...

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Published: Swansea, Wales, UK 2023
Institution: Swansea University
Degree level: Doctoral
Degree name: EngD
Supervisor: Cockings, Hollie.
URI: https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa63582
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Abstract: With the drive for manufacturing and foundation industries to move towards a circular economy, the steel industry is making step changes to its processes that aim to produce greener and cleaner products. The current work is focused on sintering, which can account for almost half of all particulate matter (PM) emissions produced during integrated steelmaking. Historic sintering data has been explored to understand the formation of particulate matter and has informed experimental trials, simulating the sintering process. It has shown that it is feasible to reduce PM emissions without incurring significant capital expenditures for a new end-of-line abatement. Prioritising trials was supported by an understanding of the main key levers from the historical data analysis of the sinter plant and a pilot-scale sinter rig that had been modified to capture PM emissions was commissioned and validated. To promote a more circular economy within the steel industry, experimental work showed that the use of new micropellets made from recycled materials would enhance sintering performance and reduce PM emissions. It was determined that the amount of chloride content emitted from PM emissions increased in the waste gas stream as well as decreasing the electrostatic precipitator (ESP) abatement efficiency and this influence can be reduced by washing recycled materials to remove undesirable volatile elements before sintering. It was also established that by manipulating the ratio of nuclei, adhering, and non-adhering particles in the sinter blend by controlling the size fractions, along with partially replacing raw materials, the particle size distribution can be optimised to reduce PM emissions.
Item Description: A selection of third party content is redacted or is partially redacted from this thesis due to copyright restrictions.
Keywords: Particulate Emissions, Sinter Plant, Ironmaking, circular economy, Dust Monitoring
College: Faculty of Science and Engineering