Investigation on the Tap-Hole Clay under Thermal Processing

Abstract

Taking the waterless tap-hole clay in the 1750m3 blast furnace of Jinan Steel Corporation for example, thermal processing at temperatures ranging from 200°C to 1400°C has been performed. The authors systematically investigated the main features of the clay such as bending strength, compressive strength, porosity and density after thermal processing, the microstructure evolution of the clay with increasing temperature were also studied in brief. Research results provide theoretical information for the practical application of tap-hole clay in the blast furnace and are also helpful for understanding the possible property transition of the tap-hole clay in the tap-hole.