Fabrication of mineral fiber via melt spinning method from blast furnace slag

Abstract

Mineral fiber, or be called mineral wool when it assembles in large amounts, is a kind of wide applied man-made material with excellent thermal and acoustic insulation properties. In this work, mineral fiber was produced via melt spinning method by using iron blast furnace slag as raw material. Two critical experimental parameters for fabrication were investigated: melt pouring temperature and rotating speed of spinning wheels. The mineral fiber produced under the condition of melt pouring temperature <TEX>$1500^{\circ}C$</TEX> and spinning speed 4000 rpm, showed the smoother surface and most quality, while the others had rough surfaces or with heavy shots. In general, mineral fibers with the size in the range of <TEX>$12{\sim}49{\mu}m$</TEX> in diameter and 8~130 mm in length can be fabricated by this method, and the production rate is more than 34 wt.%, which could be up to 57 wt.% at maximum.