Development of on-line sensors for the analysis of liquid metal chemistry during iron and steel making

The application of acoustics for the analysis of liquid metal chemistry was studied in the laboratory environment, with primary interest in the hot metal system. Complex acoustic emissions emanating from the metallurgical reactor vessel during the gas-only injection process were analyzed for characteristic frequencies specific to the relative presence of the surface active element sulfur. The scope of this research was to classify bubble sound emissions and then correlate their spectral power levels, in the time domain, with surface tension variations due to the active S concentration in hot metal. Water model experiments were utilized to classify sensor signals from various acoustic and pressure transducers with video image correlation. A critical review of the use of acoustics in iron and steel making was also presented. In conclusion, an outline for the application of current acoustic and digital signal processing techniques were developed for potential use in process metallurgy.