A Material hopper, in particular for a blast furnace, includes a containing hollow shell for storing material, the shell having an upper shell part with an inlet portion and an asymmetric funnel-shaped lower shell part with an outlet portion, a wear plate arrangement covers at least part of an inner wall of the lower shell part, the wear plate arrangement having a plurality of wear plates arranged adjacent to one another in a plurality of rows stacked along the inner wall, the wear plates being arranged in rows that follow parallel mounting lines that are defined by the intersection of the lower shell part with planes perpendicular to the axis of a virtual right circular cone substantially matching the shape of the funnel-shaped lower shell part.

A Material hopper, in particular for a blast furnace, includes a containing hollow shell for storing material, the shell having an upper shell part with an inlet portion and an asymmetric funnel-shaped lower shell part with an outlet portion, a wear plate arrangement covers at least part of an inner wall of the lower shell part, the wear plate arrangement having a plurality of wear plates arranged adjacent to one another in a plurality of rows stacked along the inner wall, the wear plates being arranged in rows that follow parallel mounting lines that are defined by the intersection of the lower shell part with planes perpendicular to the axis of a virtual right circular cone substantially matching the shape of the funnel-shaped lower shell part.

A delivery device for delivering filler material into a blast furnace, comprising: a housing provided with a transition channel for the filler material which defines a first axis X; a chute for the filler material arranged underneath said transition channel; first actuating means, defining a respective second axis A parallel to the first axis X, to actuate a tilt of the chute with respect to the first axis X; second actuating means, defining a respective third axis B parallel to the first axis X, to actuate a rotation of the chute about said first axis X; a first annular body inside said housing and coaxial to the first axis X, adapted to translate along the first axis X by means of said first actuating means; a second annular body inside said housing and coaxial to said first axis X, adapted to translate along the first axis X being coupled to the first annular body and/or adapted to rotate about the first axis X by means of said second actuating means; a mechanism coupled to the second annular body and to the chute, adapted to convert a translational motion of the second annular body into a tilting movement of the chute with respect to the first axis X, and adapted to convert a rotation motion of the second annular body into a rotation movement of the chute with respect to the first axis X.

A delivery device for delivering filler material into a blast furnace, comprising: a housing provided with a transition channel for the filler material which defines a first axis X; a chute for the filler material arranged underneath said transition channel; first actuating means, defining a respective second axis A parallel to the first axis X, to actuate a tilt of the chute with respect to the first axis X; second actuating means, defining a respective third axis B parallel to the first axis X, to actuate a rotation of the chute about said first axis X; a first annular body inside said housing and coaxial to the first axis X, adapted to translate along the first axis X by means of said first actuating means; a second annular body inside said housing and coaxial to said first axis X, adapted to translate along the first axis X being coupled to the first annular body and/or adapted to rotate about the first axis X by means of said second actuating means; a mechanism coupled to the second annular body and to the chute, adapted to convert a translational motion of the second annular body into a tilting movement of the chute with respect to the first axis X, and adapted to convert a rotation motion of the second annular body into a rotation movement of the chute with respect to the first axis X.

A device for cooling the supporting trunnions of a distribution spout of a charging installation of a shaft furnace, wherein the spout is mounted pivotably about a horizontal axis on a shell coaxial with the furnace and the spout is attached rotatably to the trunnions driven in rotation by a drive component. The trunnions are directly attached for rotation by their ends to output shafts of reduction gears and include internal cooling channels. The cooling device includes feed and return ducts for the cooling water circulating in the internal channels. The feed and return ducts are connected to the trunnions by connectors fixed to the cylindrical surface of the trunnions. The feed and return ducts are arranged to permit rotational displacement of the connectors about the pivot axis of the spout during pivoting of the spout, in particular by passing through oblong slots extending circumferentially in the wall of bearings supporting the driving reduction gears.

A device for cooling the supporting trunnions of a distribution spout of a charging installation of a shaft furnace, wherein the spout is mounted pivotably about a horizontal axis on a shell coaxial with the furnace and the spout is attached rotatably to the trunnions driven in rotation by a drive component. The trunnions are directly attached for rotation by their ends to output shafts of reduction gears and include internal cooling channels. The cooling device includes feed and return ducts for the cooling water circulating in the internal channels. The feed and return ducts are connected to the trunnions by connectors fixed to the cylindrical surface of the trunnions. The feed and return ducts are arranged to permit rotational displacement of the connectors about the pivot axis of the spout during pivoting of the spout, in particular by passing through oblong slots extending circumferentially in the wall of bearings supporting the driving reduction gears.

Disclosed is a blast furnace apparatus includes: a rotating chute; a profile measurement device configured to measure surface profiles of a burden charged into the furnace; and a tilt angle controller configured to control a tilt angle of the chute, in which the device includes a radio wave distance meter installed on the furnace top and configured to measure the distance to the surface of the burden, derives the profiles on a basis of distance data for the entire furnace obtained by scanning a detection wave of the distance meter in the furnace in a circumferential direction, and includes at least one of arithmetic units configured to command during rotation, on a basis of the surface profiles obtained, the controller to change the tilt angle of the chute, or a controller to change a rotational speed of the chute or a feed speed of the burden fed to the chute.

A method for charging raw materials into a blast furnace is as follows. The blast furnace includes a bell-less charging device that includes a plurality of main hoppers and an auxiliary hopper. The auxiliary hopper has a smaller capacity than the main hoppers. The method includes discharging ore charged in at least one of the plurality of main hoppers, and then sequentially charging the ore from a furnace wall side toward a furnace center side by using a rotating chute. The discharging of low-reactivity ore charged in the auxiliary hopper is started simultaneously with a start of charging of the ore or at a point in time after the start of the charging; and then, the low-reactivity ore is charged together with the ore from the rotating chute. The charging of the low-reactivity ore is stopped at least before a point in time at which charging of 56 mass % of the ore is completed.

A method for charging raw materials into a blast furnace is as follows. The blast furnace includes a bell-less charging device that includes a plurality of main hoppers and an auxiliary hopper. The auxiliary hopper has a smaller capacity than the main hoppers. The method includes discharging ore charged in at least one of the plurality of main hoppers, and then sequentially charging the ore from a furnace wall side toward a furnace center side by using a rotating chute. The discharging of low-reactivity ore charged in the auxiliary hopper is started simultaneously with a start of charging of the ore or at a point in time after the start of the charging; and then, the low-reactivity ore is charged together with the ore from the rotating chute. The charging of the low-reactivity ore is stopped at least before a point in time at which charging of 56 mass % of the ore is completed.

A sealing valve arrangement for a shaft furnace charging installation, said arrangement comprising: a shutter arranged for cooperating with a valve seat; an integrated dual-motion shutter-actuating device for moving said shutter between a sealed closed position in sealing contact with the valve seat and an open position remote from the valve seat, said integrated dual-motion shutter-actuating device comprising: a primary motion assembly for moving said shutter from said sealed closed position to an undamped position wherein the shutter is released from the valve seat; a secondary motion assembly for tilting said shutter from said undamped position to said open position remote from the valve seat, said secondary motion assembly comprising a tilting arm carrying said shutter and connected to a tilting shaft that defines an axis of rotation and a tilting shaft actuator configured to impart an angular rotation about said axis to said tilting arm; wherein said integrated dual-motion shutter-actuating device further comprises a stationary outer cylindrical sleeve, wherein said primary motion assembly comprises an inner eccentric sleeve shaft rotationally mounted within said outer cylindrical sleeve and a primary motion actuator configured to impart angular rotation to said inner eccentric sleeve shaft, the primary motion being a function of the eccentricity and angular rotation of the inner eccentric sleeve shaft; and wherein said tilting shaft of said secondary motion assembly is rotationally mounted within said inner eccentric sleeve shaft of said primary motion assembly, the secondary motion being a function of the angular rotation of the tilting shaft.