Steel production has improved in India over the years, from importing steel to being the second largest steel producer, which shows the rapid and significant growth in the steel industry. At BK Steel, our products are up to the mark because quality over quantity has always been our motto: to ensure that clients are satisfied.
What Are Steel Plants?
Steel Industries, often called steel mills, produce steel from scratch through iron ore or use finished products or scraps.
Types of Steel Plants
- Mini Plants-mini steel plants are almost the same as integrated steel plants, but mini steel plants typically work with finished products or scrap materials. They operate at a secondary/small scale.
- Integrated steel plants: An integrated steel plant is a large factory facilitating steel production from raw materials to finished products. They produce a variety of steel products.
Notable Differences Between Mini Plants And Integrated Steel Plants
- While integrated steel plants use raw materials for steel production, mini-plants do not, and this is quite visible due to the quality of raw materials.
- Small-scale businesses mostly prefer sourcing materials from mini plants because they are cheaper than integrated steel plants.
- Integrated steel plants are more efficient than mini plants because of their production, which includes large-scale equipment like blast furnaces for manufacturing raw materials into finished products. Mini plants only involve the refinement of scrap material.
- Integrated steel plants operate on a large scale and can produce tons of products while maintaining quality. In contrast, mini plants only produce quantities, specifically those requested by an individual or small company.
- Last but not least, as integrated steel plants produce quality and bulk products, so are the waste or pollutants produced compared to mini plants.
How Iron Is Produced
Iron production typically involves reducing iron ore using carbon in a blast furnace to draw out metallic iron. Iron production uses several raw materials, such as coke, limestone, and iron ore. These raw materials must undergo specific processes, such as the blast furnace process, to obtain iron.
How Iron Is Used For Steel Production
Steel is an alloy of iron and carbon with increased strength, durability and corrosion resistance. Iron goes through the blast furnace process, and this process includes:
- Loading is when pellets of iron ore, sinter, lime and dolomite are thrown into the furnace. It is a large vertical refractory furnace that converts iron ore into molten iron.
- Reduction is when hot air or gas is blasted into the furnace, which reacts with coke, producing carbon monoxide, a potent reducing agent.
- Smelting-carbon monoxide reacts with iron oxides in the iron ore, reducing it to molten metallic iron.
- Slag formation is an impurity formed from molten iron ore and limestone. It floats on the surface after the production of molten iron and is removed.
- Molten iron- Finally, when iron melts, the iron with a higher percentage of carbon is removed for steel production. Steel does not easily rust and has nickel and molybdenum elements, making it much more substantial during steel manufacturing, such as heat treatment. Heat treatment is done for various reasons, such as improving mechanical properties, enhancing ductility and hardness and increasing hardness and strength.
The steel industry has beams of hope due to its constant advancement in engineering, machinery, techniques and sustainability. A high rise of development in the iron and steel industry is being shown as we aim to improve our waste management techniques.
