LAUSR

In recent years, many studies have been carried out to extend the campaign life of blast furnace (BF).1,2) The hearth sidewall which is considered as the key area of BF has attracted more and more concerns.3,4) The direct contact between carbon refractory and carbon-unsaturated molten iron is regarded as the main reason for the hearth sidewall erosion. The erosion is inevitable due to the carbon is easily dissolved into molten iron.5–7) Therefore, the dissolution of carbon refractory into molten iron is an important reaction for the ironmaking process. Many papers have been reported to describe the dissolution of carbon into molten iron. The dissolution rate of carbon into molten iron was investigated by Dahlke.8) The effects of carbon structure and extent of porosity on the dissolution were studied in some literature.9–11) Cham et al.12) calculated the activation energy for the dissolution of carbon from graphite. Shigeno et al.13) supposed that the dissolution rate of carbon from coke is lower than that of pure graphite. Mourao et al.14) asserted that a viscous layer formed by ash in carbon source was found around the interface. Orsten et al.15) observed that a gas film around the interface formed by volatile matter from carbon source will hinder the dissolution process. Kayama et al.16) assumed a high rate of dissolution can be obtained when the coke with low porosity. Wright and Badlock17) investigated the increase of sulfur content in molten iron decreases the graphite dissolution Dissolution Mechanism of Carbon Brick into Molten Iron