What impact does silicon metal have on the performance of blast furnace iron groove casting materials? What is the optimal amount to add? - Knowledge

silicon metal price per ton

Customized High Purity Si 2202 3303 411 551 553 Silicon Metal

High quality 553 411 3303 2202 1101 99 98 97 95 Silicon Metal

$High Pure Refractory Silicon Metal Industries Smelting Alloy Metallic Silicon$

High Purity Silicon Metal Silicon Metal 553 551 441 Grade

Metal silicon 331 and 441 smelting metal silicon low iron low calcium

China's export price of industrial silicon on July 7 // price silicon metal
Brand	Tax-inclusive quote	Rise and Fall	Remarks (US dollars/ton)
421	1300-1350	--	Huangpu Port, FOB
2202	2150-2250	--	Huangpu Port, FOB
3303	1360-1400	--	Huangpu Port, FOB
441	1190-1240	--	Huangpu Port, FOB
553	1140-1190	--	Huangpu Port, FOB

Industrial silicon futures spot basis quotes in major regions of China on July 7 // silicon metal price today
area	Brand	Low Basis	High Basis
Xinjiang	553	100	150
Xinjiang	99 Silicon	100	200
Inner Mongolia	553	450	500
Inner Mongolia	99 Silicon	400	450
Sichuan	553	450	500
	99 Silicon	400	500
	421	700	800
Yunnan	553	600	650
Yunnan	421	700	800
Guangzhou	553	500	600
Guangzhou	421	900	1000
East China	553	500	550
East China	421	650	700
Tianjin	553	500	600
	99 Silicon	500	600
	421	700	800
Note: The main contract of industrial silicon is used as the benchmark; the warehouse self-pickup price in each region (tax included)

What impact does silicon metal have on the performance of blast furnace iron groove casting materials? What is the optimal amount to add?

The steel industry is a pillar industry of the national economy and the material foundation for the development of the national economy and national defense construction. From large-scale engineering projects to the manufacturing of high-end tools, steel is indispensable.

Global sales of metal silicon at low prices, grade 441, 553, 3303 models complete delivery on time

Garde	Composition
	Si Content (%)	Impurities (%)
	Si Content (%)	Fe	Al	Ca	P
Silicon Metal 1501	99.69	0.15	0.15	0.01	≤0.004%
Silicon Metal 1502	99.68	0.15	0.15	0.02	≤0.004%
Silicon Metal 1101	99.79	0.1	0.1	0.01	≤0.004%
Silicon Metal 2202	99.58	0.2	0.2	0.02	≤0.004%
Silicon Metal 2502	99.48	0.25	0.25	0.02	≤0.004%
Silicon Metal 3303	99.37	0.3	0.3	0.03	≤0.005%
Silicon Metal 411	99.4	0.4	0.1	0.1	≤0.005%
Silicon Metal 421	99.3	0.4	0.2	0.1	–
Silicon Metal 441	99.1	0.4	0.4	0.1	–
Silicon Metal 551	98.9	0.5	0.5	0.1	–
Silicon Metal 553	98.7	0.5	0.5	0.3	–
Off-Grade Silicon Metal	96	2	1	1	–

Specification granularity: natural block, 10-100mm, 10-60mm, 3-10mm, 1-3mm, 0-1mm, or customized according to customer requirements.

Packaging: Ton bag packaging (1000kg/bag) or customized according to customer requirements.

The level of the metallurgical industry is also a benchmark for measuring a country's industrialization, and the updating and development of the steel industry can directly drive performance upgrades or technological reforms in other industries. Ironmaking is a crucial stage in steel production, with the molten iron produced directly used in subsequent steelmaking processes. Blast furnace ironmaking is currently the most mature and widely adopted ironmaking process globally. The iron groove is a key component of the blast furnace ironmaking system, serving as the channel through which high-temperature molten iron and slag flow out of the blast furnace and into the next process stage. Additionally, depending on the density difference between slag and iron, the iron groove also functions to separate molten slag from molten iron. Due to intermittent physical erosion and chemical corrosion caused by the interaction between slag and iron, the refractory materials on the iron groove must possess high-temperature strength and strong resistance to erosion. As blast furnace smelting technology has evolved toward larger scales, higher molten iron temperatures, increased iron flow rates, and longer iron flow durations have led to more severe erosion, wear, and corrosion of the iron trough by high-temperature molten iron and slag. This has imposed even stricter requirements on the refractory materials used in the iron trough.

Currently, the refractory materials commonly used in large blast furnace iron troughs are Al₂O₃-SiC-C castable refractories, which exhibit excellent high-temperature strength, erosion resistance, and resistance to slag and iron corrosion, resulting in a longer service life. Al₂O₃-SiC-C castable refractory materials primarily consist of raw materials such as corundum, silicon carbide, carbon materials, binders, and other additives like antioxidants. Larger-grained corundum and silicon carbide form the aggregate of the material, serving as a skeletal structure; Smaller-sized raw materials form the powder component, filling the voids between the aggregates. The binder is typically aluminate cement, which tightly binds the raw materials together, enhancing the strength of the castable. Antioxidants are often silicon powder or aluminum powder, which, along with other additives, are used to improve specific properties of the castable.

When micron-sized silicon metal is added to the castable, it oxidizes before the easily oxidizable carbon materials, forming stable metal oxides and carbides, thereby preventing the carbon materials from oxidizing. This allows the added carbon materials to function stably and effectively, enhancing the performance of the castable. Generally, the addition of metallic silicon in Al₂O₃-SiC-C castable refractory materials ranges from approximately 1% to 3%. Researchers have studied the influence of metallic silicon addition within this range on certain properties of the castable refractory material. However, excessive addition of metallic silicon will inevitably affect the high-temperature strength, linear change, and linear expansion coefficient of the castable refractory material, thereby impacting its thermal shock stability and resistance to slag.

Conclusions on the influence of metallic silicon on the performance of blast furnace iron groove castable materials

01.

As the addition of metallic silicon increases, the apparent porosity after drying at 110°C first rises, then decreases, and subsequently rises again. The trend in volume density shows an opposite pattern; after heat treatment at 1450°C, the trend in apparent porosity is similar to that after drying at 110°C, but the magnitude of change is much smaller, while volume density decreases with increasing metallic silicon content;

02.

The strength of the samples dried at 110°C decreases first, then increases, and finally decreases again with increasing silicon metal content, which is similar to the trend of volume density changes; the strength of the samples after 1450°C heat treatment generally increases with increasing silicon metal content, and with the formation of mullite and glass phases, their strength is generally higher than that of the samples dried at 110°C;

03.

After firing, the samples expand due to the formation of expansion phases. The linear expansion coefficient of samples with 1.9% silicon metal addition is greater than that of samples with 1.0% silicon metal addition at all temperatures;

04.

Based on the actual requirements and operating conditions of Al₂O₃-SiC-C-based iron groove castable materials, and through comprehensive experimental analysis of the physical properties of Al₂O₃-SiC-C-based iron groove castable materials with silicon metal addition ranging from 1.0% to 1.9%, it was found that when the silicon metal addition is 1.9%, the material exhibits optimal performance.