Non-metallic inclusions are pivotal in shaping steel’s fatigue, impact, and tensile properties, highlighting the need to manage them effectively in steel production. Enhancing steel quality is a top priority in the industry, driving innovations in inclusion removal and modification. The choice of deoxidizers and modifiers for inclusions is a crucial aspect of this endeavour. Current industry practice predominantly employs calcium treatment for steel, utilizing various calcium alloys. However, traditional calcium alloys exhibit inconsistent results due to their high reactivity and low recovery rates. To address these issues, this study explores the application of barium-bearing alloys, specifically calcium barium silicon (CaSiBa), as an alternative inclusion modifier. Barium has the unique ability to reduce the vapour pressure of calcium while increasing its solubility in steel, thereby enhancing calcium recovery and its effectiveness in inclusion modification. A comprehensive approach involving trials with CaSiBa cored wire, metallographic and mechanical evaluations was undertaken. The results demonstrated a remarkable improvement in calcium recovery, cleaner steel with better mechanical properties. The findings suggest that the use of CaSiBa cored wire can significantly enhance steel quality, making it a promising advancement in steelmaking technology, leading to higher-quality steel products with enhanced mechanical properties.

Non-metallic inclusions are pivotal in shaping steel's mechanical properties, thus necessitating the need to manage them effectively in steel production. Enhancing steel cleanliness is a top priority, driving innovations in inclusion removal and modification techniques. The choice of modifiers for inclusions is a critical aspect of this effort. While conventional calcium alloys are commonly used in the industry, they often yield inconsistent results due to their high reactivity and low recovery rates. To address these challenges, this study explores the use of barium-bearing alloys, specifically calcium barium silicon (CaSiBa), as an alternative inclusion modifier. Barium uniquely lowers calcium's vapour pressure and enhances its solubility in steel, thereby improving calcium recovery and its effectiveness in modifying inclusions. The findings show a substantial enhancement in calcium recovery, resulting in cleaner steel with superior mechanical properties. Using CaSiBa alloy shows promise for improving steel quality, resulting in steel products with enhanced mechanical properties.

Clogging of sub entry nozzle is a recurrent problem during continuous casting of low carbon aluminum deoxidized steel. Newly modernized SMS shop, producing mainly low carbon aluminum deoxidized steel through BOF-Twin LF-CC route was facing a major issue of nozzle clogging leading to abrupt abortion of sequence casting. The incidences of SEN clogging were very high leading to loss of shop productivity. Within a span of one month around 28 cases of casting abortion were reported due SEN clogging. Casting was getting stopped in 3–4 heat sequence even after calcium treatment practice was adopted in each heat. The process of steelmaking was studied in detail to find out the root cause of nozzle clogging. It was found that dendritic clusters of alumina originating as a result of deoxidation of steel and reoxidation of aluminum during secondary refining was probably causing SEN clogging. It was also found that optimization of Ca treatment practice was required for successful continuous casting of an aluminum-killed steel. The paper elaborates the technical issues faced related to clogging of SEN in a newly installed high speed single strand slab caster during continuous casting of low carbon steel deoxidized with aluminum. The paper covers the essential steps required to identify the root cause of nozzle clogging and various process interventions essential to eliminate the SEN clogging issues and streamline the production of low carbon aluminum-killed steel in higher sequence lengths.

Quality requirement of customers are becoming more stringent w.r.t low level of sulphur in final product for better mechanical property of steel. High sulphur in steel leads to poor internal quality in the form of cracks and sometimes causes breakout during continuous casting of steel. In past, various studies have been carried out to investigate the desulphurisation process in steelmaking. But most of the work has been focused on desulphurisation of steel with high-basicity slag and in steels killed by aluminium. However, many steel grades which are silicon killed are having low slag basicity. Very few studies are available on desulphurisation of steels deoxidised with Si–Mn and having a low basicity slag comprising of system CaO–SiO2–MgO–Al2O3. Durgapur Steel Plant, a unit of Steel Authority of India Limited was facing problems of high sulphur in steels which were subjected to silicon killing. Final sulphur in Si-killed steels at Durgapur Steel Plant (DSP) was 0.028% average. High sulphur in steel was one of the bottlenecks in improving the quality of steel as well as one of the reasons of low throughput of continuous casters at DSP. De-Sulphurisation of silicon killed steel is a difficult task owing to inherent nature of steel melt as well as ladle top slag. In case of Si killed steel, the ladle top slag which is basically siliceous in nature has a lower sulphide capacity, lower sulphur partition ratio, and adverse physio-chemical characteristics. Also the oxygen potential of both the bath as well as slag is higher as compared to normal Al killed steels. The present work was carried out in improving the desulphurisation level in steels subjected to silicon killing. Slag engineering was done in a novel way to make conditions more conducive for desulphurisation of steels. Deoxidation and flux addition practice was modified in an innovative way to decrease the SiO2 generation and also to reduce the oxygen potential of slag. Plant scale trials were conducted with modified deoxidation and flux addition practice. 60% De-S was achieved in heats i.e. sulphur reduction from 0.039% (S in hot metal) to 0.015% (S in final product). Morphology and composition of inclusions were also investigated by SEM–EDS to compare the effects in modified practice. A process technology was established for production of low sulphur steels at DSP, SAIL.

Sticking of alumina as well as spinel inclusions inside the sub-entry nozzles as well as tundish nozzle is a perennial problem during continuous casting of aluminum-killed steel through billet casters. This results in restriction or complete blockage of flow of liquid steel through the nozzles eventually leading to abortion of sequence in billet casters and stopping of continuous casting machine. Nozzle clogging not only restricts the productivity by restraining the casting sequence, intermittent extrication of clogged alumina particles or dislodged refractory materials which are a significant source of non-metallic macro-inclusions in the cast sections of billet casters. If these inclusions are not removed completely during secondary refining of steel, they cause excessive clogging mainly in low-carbon Al-killed steels. In other grades of Al-killed steel, clogging is also very prominent if the deoxidation and secondary refining is not carried out properly. IISCO Steel Plant (ISP), Burnpur, a new, modernized unit of Steel Authority of India Limited, was facing problems of nozzle clogging in low-carbon, low-Si, Al-killed grade (EWNR—electrode quality grade) resulting in premature abortion of casting sequence leading to huge productivity loss. To solve the problem of nozzle clogging in low-carbon Al-killed grades and other grades at ISP, optimization of various steelmaking parameters, viz., amount of Al addition and its sequence, purging regime in ladle furnace, optimization of Ca treatment process, etc. has been carried out which has resulted in improvement in castability of Al-killed steel in billet caster of ISP.

Iron & Steel industry has been notified under one of 17 highly polluting industries in India by Ministry of Environment & Forest. In an integrated steel plant, 1-1.2 tons of solid wastes are generated for every ton of steel produced. Though conventionally being dumped, sustainability of Indian Steel Industry critically depends on management of these wastes. This paper enumerates the waste management practice, starting with emphasizing on continual reduction of waste generation, recycling and reuse, and thereby ultimately minimizing adverse impact of steel plant solid waste on mother earth.

Visually impaired people are always deprived of reading the conventional printed text. Available solutions so far suggest the conventional text to be converted into Braille or audio. However this is a very tedious & costly process. Moreover, these solutions are available to limited languages, and not all the conventional books can straightaway be converted into these special forms at the time of release. The proposed design, Universal Reader for Blind is addressing this concern. The OPT101 optical sensor array is used to sense the black text on white paper. TIs C2000 Delfino TMS320F28335 microcontroller will accept the sensed data through the 16 analog channels for further processing. The embedded firmware using CCS IDE is implemented which will retrieve the logic of pattern regeneration using preprogrammed static database mapping with adjustable ambient threshold. The character is regenerated using a solenoid array in combination with ULN2803 producing mechanical motion on corresponding black dot being sensed. This language independent, standalone, portable, low-cost device helps the visually impaired to read printed text directly by feeling the text while moving their hand. This will provide the complete freedom for blind people to read like a normal person does without any special training such as Braille or audio.