Zinc ash deposition pattern and structural optimization in the continuous hot-dip galvanizing vertical furnace

Abstract

In a continuous hot-dip galvanizing vertical furnace for strip steel, zinc vapor oxidizes in the snout of the furnace to form zinc ash. The zinc ash adheres and agglomerates on the inner walls of the snout. If the zinc ash falls off and adheres to the surface of the strip, zinc ash defects will be formed, thereby affecting the surface quality of the galvanized layer. Given that the snout connects the annealing furnace and the zinc pot, the zinc ash will be transported into the annealing furnace and form nodulation on the roller, affecting the normal operation of the equipment. To study the deposition pattern of zinc ash inside the snout, a model of particle movement and deposition is established in this work to predict the movement and deposition characteristics of zinc ash particles, and it is verified by literature. On this basis, the zinc ash deposition patterns of three improvement cases of snout structure are compared. Results show that all three improvement schemes can effectively reduce the deposition rate of the zinc ash particles in the annealing furnace. In the case of slotted-baffle-added-only, although adding slotted baffles reduces the deposition of zinc ash in the furnace, it also increases the deposition rate in the snout and entry sections. In the case of exhaust-duct-added-only, the addition of the exhaust duct not only reduces the overall deposition rate in the furnace, but also effectively reduces the deposition rate in the snout and the entry section. By contrast, the scheme with slotted baffles and exhaust ducts is the most effective in inhibiting the diffusion of zinc ash.