STEEL PRODUCTION PROCESS

The modern methods of manufacturing steel are based on Bessemer process, which uses oxygen to lower
the carbon in iron.
Currently, steel production makes use of recycled materials as well as traditional raw materials, such as
iron ore coal and limestone. Two processes account for the virtual all steel production i.e. basic oxygen
steelmaking (BOS) and electric arc furnaces (EAF),
Steelmaking can be broken down into six steps:
FIRST STEP:
Raw inputs of iron core, coke and lime are melted in a blast furnace. The resulting molten iron contains 4-
4.5 percent carbon and other impurities that make it brittle.
SECOND STEP:
This stage has two primary methods:
- Basic oxygen furnace method (BOS)– recycled scrap steels are added to the molten iron in a
converter. At high temperatures, oxygen is blown through the metal, which reduces the carbon
content to between 0- 1.5 percent.
- Electric arc furnace method(EAF) – recycled scrap steels are added through the of high-power
electric arcs (temperatures up to 1650 c) to melt the metal and convert it into high-quality steel.
THIRD STEP:
The steel composition of the molten steel produced from BOS and EAF routes are adjusted. This is done
by adding or removing certain elements and /or manipulating the temperature and production
environment. Depending on the type of steel required, the following steelmaking processes can be use:
Stirring
Ladle furnace
Ladle injection
Degassing
CAS-OB (composition adjustment by sealed argon bubbling with oxygen blowing)
FOURTH STEP:
Continuous casting sees the molten steel cast into a cooled mold causing a thin steel shell to solidify. The
shell strand is withdraw using guided rolls and fully cooled and solidified. The strand is cut into desired
lengths depending on application; slab flat products (plate and strip), blooms for sections (beams), billets
for long products (wires) or thin strips.
FIFTH STEP:
The steel that is cast is then form into various shapes, often by hot rolling, a process that eliminates cast
defects and achieves the required shape and surface quality. Hot rolled products are divided into flat
products, long products, seamless tubes, and specialty products.
SIXTH STEP:
The last stage is manufacturing, fabrication and finishing. Secondary forming techniques give the steel its
final shape and properties. These techniques include:
Shaping (cold rolling), which is done below the metals recrystallization point, meaning mechanical stress-
not heat -affect changes.
Machining (drilling)
Joining(welding)
Coating (galvanizing)
Heat treatment (tempering)
Surface treatment (carburizing)