EAF Energy Optimization at

Nucor-Yamato Steel
THIS ARTICLE IS AVAILABLE ONLINE AT WWW.AIST.ORG

ucor-Yamato Steel, located in Blytheville,

Ark., has an annual capacity of 2.8 million
tons. The annual capacity includes the production of structural steel (hot rolled wideflange structural steel shapes, standard channel and miscellaneous channel shapes, angle,
car building shapes, H-piling and hot rolled
steel sheet piling sections). The meltshop

Nucor-Yamato Steel, Arkansas, has adopted various

cycle, operating at different stoichiometric

ratios, and varying the amount and rate of
injected carbon), varying scrap mixes and
steel chemistry analyses. Hence the effect of
an operational change and the impact on performance could be realized and quantified.
Table 1 defines the energy balance presented in this paper, which represents average
data from 1,000 heats of operation on EAF
No. 1 at Nucor-Yamato Steel.
The following assumptions were made:

technologies in order to increase the efficiency of

chemical energy used in its EAFs. A mass and energy
balance is presented, along with an overview of the
results.

operates two 150-ton (charge tons) AC EAFs.

The nominal diameter of the each furnace is
22 feet (6,700 mm), with a melting transformer rated 90 MVA having an average active
power input of 78 MW.

Energy and Mass Balance

A mass and energy balance was performed so as to enhance the knowledge of the following aspects:

Furnace energy flows.

Furnace mass flows.
Carbon-oxygen balance.
Chemical reactions and furnace
efficiency.
Total flue gas volume.
Volume of air ingress into the
furnace.
The exercise serves as an analytical tool for process analysis, optimization and evaluating benefits of
better energy efficiency versus operational costs. The energy balance
was calculated for varying conditions, such as different injection profiles (i.e., varying the intensity of firing at different stages of the melting

Tap temperature remains constant at

2,970F (1,632C) for all conditions.
Yield remains constant at 92.0 percent.
Tap carbon remains at 0.050 percent.
Carbon in scrap remains constant at
1,185 pounds/heat (538 kg/heat).
High-calcium lime and dolomitic lime
charged remains constant at 7,800
pounds/heat (3,538 kg/heat).
Power-on time remains constant at 29.0
minutes.
Offgas contains 350 pounds/hour (158
kg/hour) of carbon monoxide.

Table 1
Definition of Energy Balance
Tons

Metric tons

136 tons

123 metric tons

92.0

92.0

125 tons

113 metric tons

312 kWh/ton

343 kWh/metric ton

Charge coke

2,000 pounds/heat

907 kg/heat

Injected coke

3,500 pounds/heat

1,588 kg/heat

Slag volume

8.86 tons

8.04 metric tons

Slag FeO%

30.0

30.0

Natural gas

300 scf/ton

9.37 Nm3/metric ton

1,430 scf/ton

44.64 Nm3/metric ton

Charged scrap
Yield (%)
Steel
Electricity

Oxygen

Authors
Andr Pujadas and John McCauley, Nucor-Yamato Steel, Blytheville, Ark.; and Massimo Iacuzzi, MORE srl, Gemona del Friuli, Italy
104

Iron & Steel Technology

Table 2
Heat transfer to bath is at 100 percent
efficiency for slag formation and oxidation of carbon, silicon and manganese.
Electrode consumption is constant at
3.01 pounds/ton (1.37 kg/ton).
As input energy, the gross heating value
for the combustion of coke was used.

Slag Analysis and Scrap Mix Used in the Energy

Balance

Table 2 shows the scrap mix and slag analysis used in the energy balance.

EAF Reactions Considered

Table 3 shows the gross heating value for each
element. All reactions are exothermic; hence,
there is a release of heat during the reaction.
All require pure oxygen with minimum air
infiltration. Oxygen usage averages 1,430
scf/ton (44.64 Nm3/metric ton) on EAF No.
1. This oxygen permits an increased rate of
decarburization and improved utilization of
the heats of reaction due to the presence of
little nitrogen, which absorbs heat.

Energy Input
Electrical energy to each furnace is provided
via transformers rated at 90 MVA, 1,100 volts.
Depending on the scrap mix, the appropriate
power program is selected, thereby dictating
the voltage levels, impedance setpoints, stability ranges and electrical power input for the
different stages (bore-in, melting, refining,
end of heat) of the meltdown cycle. For the
data presented in this paper, operations were
at 980 volts with an additional 1.5 ohm series
reactor in the circuit for the first 6,000 kWh
(maximum) of both charges. Electrical energy
input averages 312 kWh/ton.
Table 4 shows the various energy inputs for
the EAFs. When calculating coke oxidation,
the 0.050 percent of carbon that remains in
the steel (152 pounds/heat or 69 kg/heat)
and the remaining 350 pounds/hour (158
kg/hour of CO in the offgas, 48 pounds/heat
or 22 kg/heat) for the tap-tap time (37.0 minutes) was treated as losses to the overall coke
oxidation.
About 2.0 percent of turnings oil burning
energy (10 kWh/ton) was accounted for as
energy input. Assuming that 80.0 percent of
the FeO is made in the furnace, the formation
of FeO from the oxidation of iron accounts
for 16 kWh/ton of the total 50 kWh/ton of
energy generated from the refining reactions
(metal oxidation) in the steel, the largest contributor. For the other metal oxidation reactions, data from the slag analysis presented in
Table 2 was used in conjunction with the
assumptions that 90.0 percent of the MnO
and Cr2O3 was made in the furnace, 60.0 percent of the Al2O3 was made in the furnace,
and scrap P reacts to produce P2O5. Reactions

Element

Scrap Mix

CaO

32

Shredded

36.9

SiO2

15

#2 HMS

27

FeO

30

#1 HMS

11.9

Cr2O3

Pig iron

5.8

MnO

Home scrap

6.8

MgO

11

Turning

5.5

Al2O3

#2 Bundle

3.4

P2O5

Pit scrap

2.7

Table 3
Gross Heating Values at 3,000F (1,648C)
Reaction

Energy

Unit

1.

C + O2 = CO2

4.13

kWh/C-lb

2.

Si + O2 = SIO2

3.93

kWh/Si-lb

3.

Al + O2 = Al2O3

3.91

kWh/Al-lb

4.

CO + O2 = CO2

3.02

kWh/C-lb

5.

C + O2 = CO

1.11

kWh/C-lb

6.

Mn + O2 = MnO

0.89

kWh/Mn-lb

3.06

kWh/P-lb

5/4

7.

P+

O2 = (P2O5)

8.

Cr + O2 = (Cr2O3)

1.42

kWh/Cr-lb

9.

Fe + O2 = FeO

0.61

kWh/Fe-lb

10.

CH4 + 2O2 = CO2 + 2H2O

0.29

kWh/CH4-cft

11.

2CaO + SiO2 = Ca2SiO4

0.26

kWh/CaO-lb

12.

3CaO + P2O5 = Ca3P2O8

6.02

kWh/P2O8-lb

Table 4
Energy Inputs
Energy input

kWh/ton

Description of coke

kWh/ton

Electricity

312

Charge coke

Coke oxidation

207

Inject coke

Gas oxidation

88

Electrode oxidation

12

Metal oxidation

50

Scrap carbon

39

Slag formation

11

Total

Turning oil burning

10

Total

58
104

214

678

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105

Figure 1

Electricity

Coke oxidation

Gas oxidation

Metal oxidation

Slag formation

Turning oil burning

Energy inputs by percentage. Total energy input is 678

kWh.

6 and 7 in Table 3 were considered for the

energy release associated with slag formation
(11 kWh/ton).
Figure 1 shows that 54.0 percent (366
kWh/ton) of the total energy input in this
case is chemical energy.

Energy Output
Energy output into the steel was calculated for
an average tap temperature of 2,970F
(1,632C). Energy retained in the slag was
approximately 51 kWh/metric ton, at a temperature of 3,070F (1,688C) and 8,036 kg
(8.86 tons) of slag generated per heat.
Losses to the offgas are highly dependent
on the efficiency of energy transfer to the steel
and the rate of energy input. Higher energy
input rates demand higher energy transfer
efficiency. As burner efficiencies and heat
transfer to scrap metal decrease over the meltdown period, the gases leaving the furnace
become hotter; hence, the sensible heat load
in the gases will increase. Of greater concern
should be the CO remaining in the offgas that
has not been oxidized in the furnace, as this

represents a relatively large potential energy

source (calorific heat) for the furnace. Table
5 shows that the heat of combustion of CO to
CO2 is three times greater than the heat of
combustion of C to CO. Provided that the CO
can be burned in the furnace, there will be a
significant reduction in the heat load to the
offgas.
Note, however, from the standpoint of heat
transfer efficiency, the combustion of C to CO
transfers a higher percentage of its reaction
heat to the scrap or bath than the combustion
of CO to CO2. In the case of C to CO, burning
occurs within the scrap pile or bath, so the
evolving CO gas has more intimate contact
with the steel, typical of a carbon boil. On the
other hand, the combustion of CO generally
occurs above the scrap pile.
Table 5 lists the energy outputs, and Figure
2 depicts the overall percentage each contributes.
Energy losses of the offgas at the fourth
hole (206 kWh/metric ton) are comprised of:
Gas energy at spark arrestor (107
kWh/metric ton).
Heat loss from duct (7.0 kWh/metric
ton).
Cooling water losses for duct (93.0
kWh/metric ton).
Energy output of the furnace shell (68.0
kWh/metric ton) is comprised of:
Cooling water for sidewall (19.0
kWh/metric ton).
Water for roof and fourth hole elbow
(46.0 kWh/metric ton).
Heat loss from furnace bottom (2.0
kWh/metric ton).
Heat losses that were not accounted for via
calculations were placed under the category,
Heat loss for other. Some of the contributing
factors include errors in calculations, cooling

Table 5
Energy Outputs at Nucor-Yamato Steel
Heat balance output

kWh/ton

Steel

320.2

Offgas at fourth hole

187

Furnace shell

61.4

Slag

46.5

Offgas for canopy

41.5

Heat loss for other

21.2

Total

678

Figure 2

Steel

Offgas at 4th hole

Furnace shell

Slag

Offgas for canopy

Heat loss (other)

Energy outputs by percentage.

106

Iron & Steel Technology

Figure 3
water for the More Modules that
were not considered, an oversimplified model of radiate heat losses and
radiation losses when the roof is
open.

Module Technology and

Oxy-fuel Burners
Figure 3 shows the injection equipment configuration on EAF No. 2.
Four MORE Modules (duct, sump,
lance north and lance south) and
two PTI oxy-fuel burners (sump and
lance) represent a total of 10 oxyfuel burners, with 0.282 MW of
burner rating per ton of furnace
capacity. During the melting cycle,
the MORE Modules cycle automatically between the burner mode and
the supersonic oxygen/carbon
injection mode.
Initially, oxy-fuel burners were MORE Modules and two burner positions.
used to provide heat to the cold
areas of the furnace, typically at the
Yamato Steel decided to install the technology
slag door, between the phases and around the
in EAF No. 1.
taphole for eccentric bottom tapping (EBT)
The Module injection technology basically
furnaces. They allowed more uniform melting
adds thermal energy over and above the elecof the scrap charge; hence, the melting time
trical energy. The thermal energy is obtained
to reach the flat bath stage decreased and so
by a chemical reaction that uses the foamy slag
productivity increased.
to transfer the heat into the lower liquid steel.
The majority of heat transfer arises from
The innovation is based on the principle of
chemical reactions that generate gases. The
obtaining thermal energy, created by the effimodes of heat transfer are via:
cient combustion of injected oxygen and car Forced convection from combustion
bon according to recipes suited to the tapping
products.
steel grade. Such energy is transferred effec Radiation from the combustion prodtively to the scrap, during melting, and then to
ucts. The amount of heat transfer to the
the liquid steel. The utilization of the thermal
scrap is a function of the temperature
controlled energy allows for optimization of
difference between the load and burnthe whole EAF metallurgical process, as the
er flames and the exposed surface area
thermal energy released is applied to the
of the scrap.
entire furnace, and the electric arc becomes
Conduction from metal oxidation, carmore stable and efficient.
bon oxidation. This type of heat transThe metallurgical process generated by the
fer takes place in the presence of excess
Module technology reduces the excessive turoxygen. Almost all of the heat generatbulence; does not require localized overoxied in the case of iron oxidation is transdation in the bath; and maintains composition
ferred to the scrap, since the iron
homogeneity during meltdown, especially for
oxides remain in the furnace. This,
large-sized furnaces.
however, is generally not a good practice, as it results in lower yields.

Module Technology Equipment

MORE Module Technology

The decision to install the Module technology
was justified by the increased productivity and
lower transformation costs provided by the
new oxygen and carbon injection generation
technology.
On EAF No. 2, a set of Module injectors
began operation in September 1999. Due to
the overwhelming positive results and performance achieved on EAF No. 2, Nucor-

Oxygen and Carbon Injectors Figure 4

illustrates oxygen and carbon injectors used in
the Module technology.
Oxygen and Natural Gas Valve Trains
Dedicated valve trains have been provided to
regulate and control independently injected
oxygen and natural gas. Both EAFs have an
independent train for the oxygen lines and
another for the natural gas.
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107

Figure 4

(a)

(b)

Oxygen and carbon injectors: (a) Module inside view, (b) Module
Module in burner mode.

Carbon Dispensers Both EAF No. 1 and

No. 2 are equipped with three new carbon dispensers supplied by MORE to satisfy the needs
of the Module technology.
Automation and Control System The operating and monitoring system for the Module
technology is user friendly and allows fully
automated operation of the process. The
working sequences are completely independent from the manual operation; subsequently,
the EAFs operators only supervise the
process.
Different working recipes (oxygen, natural
gas, carbon flowrates, setpoints, start/stop,
etc.) are programmed in relation to different
scrap mixes to optimize the entire melting
and refining process and to balance the different fix carbon scrap content.

Burner Energy
The furnace is charged twice, the first charge
being 90 tons at an average melting power of
79 MW; the second charge of 46 tons is at an
average melting power of 80 MW. Varying
burner profiles are employed depending on
Figure 5

scrap charge composition.

Each Module unit may
also have a different burner firing profile and oxygen-carbon injection rates.
The profiles are set up for
both charges on a heat.
The stoichiometric gasoxygen ratios, gas setpoints, and oxygen and
carbon flow setpoints can
be inputted for fixed kWh
ranges. This permits a
tremendous degree of
flexibility, in that burner
(c)
heat input, oxygen use
and carbon injection can
outside view and (c)
be controlled at all stages
of the melting cycle.
At Nucor-Yamatos present profiles, MORE Modules and PTI burners
consume an average of 300 scf/ton (9.37
Nm3/metric ton) of natural gas and 1,430
scf/ton (44.64 Nm3/ton) of oxygen, for an
average power-on time of 30.45 minutes
(39,000 kWh). This oxygen consumption
includes injection oxygen. Overall, each furnace generates 88 kWh/ton of burner power.
Comparative studies report the use of 32
kWh/ton of burner power to eliminate cold
spots in a UHP furnace and 5591 kWh/ton
of burner power for low-powered furnaces.
Actual performance data shows that there
was an average decrease of 28 kWh/ton in
electrical power consumption. The average
energy replacement amounts to 0.466
kWh/scf-O2 (16.4 kWh/Nm3-O2), as depicted in Figure 5. During production, lancing
operations cannot be isolated, so this number
also reflects oxygen from the MORE OxygenJets injectors. Power-on time dropped by 7.0
percent, causing the productivity rate per
hour to increase by 8.0 percent (200
tons/hour). There has also been a recordable
decrease in electrode breakage due to fewer
scrap cave-ins.
The benefits of using Modules when operating oxygen-carbon injection will be discussed in the following sections.

Oxygen Injection

Electrical energy replacement for burners.

108

Iron & Steel Technology

In the steelmaking process, oxygen usage

plays an integral role in various activities. It is
involved in scrap cutting, melting, foamy slag
practices, decarburization and postcombustion. Oxygen affects energy input and process
metallurgy (lower ppm levels of N2, temperature and composition homogeneity of the
bath); hence, it is important to overall process
optimization efforts.
Oxygen is injected via the MORE Modules.
Figure 3 shows the configuration of these

Figure 6
Modules. The Module injection units, excluding the two PTI burners, consumes 785 scfO2/ton (22.8 Nm3-O2/ton). This includes the
oxygen required for combustion of gas and
oxygen that is injected toward the end of each
charge. On average, 360 scf-O2/ton (10.1
Nm3-O2/ton) of the total 785 scf/ton (22.6
Nm3-O2/ton) of oxygen is used by the
Modules for injection oxygen.
The total oxygen usage over the entire heat
is 1,430 scf-O2/ton (44.6 Nm3-O2/ton). The
implementation of the Modules has allowed
multiple points of injection, much more effective penetration into the bath and uniform
distribution of lancing oxygen. With just a few
points of injection, potential problems
include limitations on the amount of oxygen
that can be injected, localized overoxidation
and splashing.
The installation of the MORE Modules has
permitted the complete removal of all lances
the BSE consumable lance manipulator at
the slag door, and more recently the Berry
lances. The Modules are designed with no
moving parts, consumable pipes or tips. The
maintenance costs are much lower, with the
availability and reliability higher when compared to the previous lance manipulator. The
slag door remains closed for the entire melting period, thereby reducing the amount of
ingress air and decreasing the offgas system
evacuation requirements. Other positive factors are the energy savings gained with less
ingress air and the possible reduction in NOx.
Ingress air contains 78.1 percent nitrogen;
therefore, the greater the volume of ingress
air, the greater the volume of nitrogen, which
will require a greater amount of energy to
heat up from ambient to offgas temperature.
Figure 6 shows the injectors section layout.
The OxygenJet injector is located above the
CarbonJet injector at 3 feet 6 inches above
the metal bath at an angle of inclination 43
below the horizontal. When operated in the
supersonic mode, it allows decarburization
and deals with any high carbon melt-ins. The
CarbonJet is at a much shallower angle of 27;
hence, during operation, the O2 stream
impinges the CarbonJet stream above the
steel bath, allowing complete combustion of
the injected carbon and providing a favorable environment for the conversion of CO
to CO2.
These angles of inclination affect bath penetration an important factor in ensuring
that reactions are taking place in the steel
bath. Lance flowrates and lane angles control
the position and magnitude of the splash.
Finding the optimum angle that is not too
steep and not too shallow is necessary to avoid
turbulent slag splashing, increased refractory
wear and clearing of the slag layer, which

Injectors section layout.

exposes the bath to oxidation and increases its

susceptibility to nitrogen (monatomic N dissolves) pickup.
In an effort to reduce the frequency of high
CO peaks in the offgas as well as to minimize
those peaks, oxygen is lanced throughout the
heat. A 710-ton hot heel is maintained in the
furnace. The intent is to achieve a lower, more
continuous flowrate of CO in the offgas, coupled with reducing the evacuation requirements of the direct evacuation control (DEC)
system.
The oxygen injection capabilities of the
MORE Modules gives the furnaces the ability
to achieve high melting rates. Higher melting
rates and decreased refining times have resulted in a reduction of heat losses, hence further
energy savings in the furnace.
Many challenges are presented when
attempting to optimize oxygen usage; some of
the more important issues are outlined below.
Attention must be paid to the oxygen-carbon
balance when attempting to increase oxygen
rates. Oxygen must also be balanced with
increased carbon; otherwise negative energy
benefits accompanied by low yields will result
as the slag becomes supersaturated in FeO.
Elevated concentrations of FeO also reduce
the viscosity of the slag, adversely affect foaming, decrease heat transfer efficiencies,
decrease basicity (which affects phosphorous
removal) and increase the demand of MgO as
the solubility of the MgO in the slag increases.
When increasing oxygen lancing rates, the
generation of additional gas volumes and heat
loads must be considered, as it affects the
loading and performance of the evacuation
systems. The amount of CO generated in the
gas is much higher; hence, the chance of fugitive CO emissions in the meltshop becomes
July 2004

109

Table 6
Comparison of Operational Results on EAFs at Nucor-Yamato Steel

Unit

Sept. 2000
Mar. 2001

EAF #1
Sept. 2002
Sept. 2003

Aug. 1999
Feb. 2000

Scrap buckets

no.

Charge weight

tons
mtons

142.4
129.2

136.0
123.4

142.4
129.2

136.0
123.4

Heat size

tons
mtons

123.6
112.1

125.4
113.8

124.3
112.8

125.1
113.4

86.7

92.2

90.1

92.0

Active power

MW

77.8

78.0

74.7

79.0

Power-on time

min.

32.3

30.9

33.8

30.0

Power-off time (no delays)

min.

7.6

7.0

8.3

7.0

Tap-to-tap time (no delays)

min.

39.9

37.9

42.1

37.0

Electrical energy (charge)

kWh/ton
kWh/mton

294
324

286.76
316.1

295.5
325.8

286.72
316.1

Electrical energy (cast)

kWh/ton
kWh/mton

339
373.8

311.0
342.9

338.5
373.2

311.7
343.6

lbs/ton
kg/mton

3.44
1.72

3.12
1.55

3.50
1.75

2.90
1.46

Total oxygen

scf/ton
Nm3/mton

1370
42.8

1430
44.64

1136
35.5

1480
46.2

Total natural gas

scf/ton
Nm3/mton

266
8.3

300
9.37

220
6.8

313
9.76

lbs/heat
kg/heat

1325
601

3511
1593

878
398

3502
1588

ton/hour
mton/hour

185.1
167.9

198.5
180.0

175.8
159.5

202.8
184.0

Yield

Electrode

Total injected carbon

Productivity

EAF #2
Sept. 2002
Sept. 2003

hence controlling its FeO content (the aim is

for 2030 percent). FeO, the major fluxing
component of the slag, greatly affects the viscosity. Elevated levels result in a fluid slag,
which is difficult to foam, as the retention
time of the gas bubbles is too short.
Other factors affecting slag foaming include
MgO content of slag and temperature. At a Vratio of 1.7, the target is 15.0 percent MgO
content, which provides the ability to foam
over a wider composition range of FeO. For a
better understanding of FeO and MgO on the
phase relationships, isothermal solubility diagrams (ISD), which are outside the scope of
this paper, should be consulted.
Increasing temperature adversely affects
foaming properties, as the viscosity of the slag
is greatly reduced. As the temperature increases, the liquidus curves on an MgO-FeO ISD
shifts, impacting the phase relations. There is
a decrease in second-phase particles, and the
slag becomes very fluid. This is usually accompanied by an increase in FeO content.
Consistency of operations is important in
achieving a good slag, i.e., frequent slag
analysis, maintaining carbon oxygen balances, melt-in carbon, V-ratios and constant
tap temperatures.

Operational Results
Table 6 shows some of the operational results
on both electric arc furnaces at NucorYamato. On EAF No. 1, the data compares the
period from September 2000 to March 2001
(without MORE Modules) to the period from
September 2002 to September 2003 (with
MORE Modules). On EAF No. 2, the data
compares the period from August 1999 to
February 2000 (without MORE Modules) to
the period from September 2002 to
September 2003 (with MORE Modules).

Conclusion
Optimizing energy utilization in the furnace
requires detailed analysis and understanding
of all the reactions taking place at every phase
of the steelmaking process. Only then can
operators achieve the right balance of electrical and chemical inputs in the right quantities
and at the right times.
A heat and mass balance is a necessary analytical tool that provides an overall view of
energy inputs and outputs. It has resulted in
improved operating efficiencies, more consistent practices, better results and enhanced
process knowledge. Nucor-Yamatos ability to

July 2004

111