The object of the present invention is to improve the efficiency when operating the melting/refining furnace of the cold iron source using a burners and a lance, or during refining, and the present invention provides a method for operating a melting/refining furnace comprising a through hole so as to penetrate a furnace wall, at least one burners provided in the through hole; and at least one lances installed in an oxidant gas supply hole provided above the through-hole for the burner, wherein an amount of oxygen introduced in the melting step is adjusted to a range calculated based on a the furnace volume.

A method for injecting a solid feed material through a solids injection lance includes creating flow conditions in an injection passageway of the lance so that at least a part of the feed material flowing along the passageway forms a buffer zone between a wall of a tube that defines the passageway and feed material flowing along a central section of the passageway.

A smelting apparatus that includes (a) a smelting vessel (4) that is adapted to contain a bath of molten metal and slag and (b) a smelt cyclone (2) for pre-treating a metalliferous feed material positioned above and communicating directly with the smelting vessel The apparatus also includes an oft-gas duct (9) extending from the smelt, cyclone for discharging an off-gas from the smelt cyclone. The off-gas duct has an inlet section (18) that extends upwardly from the smelt cyclone and is formed to cause off-gas to undergo a substantial change of direction as it flows through the inlet section of the off-gas duct.

A device for measuring a shape of a wall portion of a coke oven is provided. The device includes a box having a main part defining at least one opening and a closing system movable with respect to the main part between an open position and a closed position, an internal protective screen located within the box and defining at least one scanning window, the scanning window being narrower than the opening along a transverse direction (T) of the box and at least one 3D laser scanner located in the box for scanning the wall portion through the scanning window and through the opening when the closing system is in the open position.

A raw material supply apparatus that supplies a raw material into a flash smelting furnace and supplies a first gas contributing to a reaction of the raw material into the flash smelting furnace, includes: a raw material passage that is provided out of a lance through which the first gas passes, the raw material passing through the raw material passage; and an adjuster that adjusts a distribution of the raw material by blowing a second gas to the raw material passing through the raw material passage.

A top-blowing lance nozzle is configured to freely switch an adequate expansion condition so as to control an oxygen-blowing amount and a jetting velocity independently of each other without requiring a plurality of lance nozzles or a mechanically movable part. A lance nozzle is configured to blow refining oxygen to molten iron charged in a reaction vessel while a gas is blown from a top-blowing lance to the molten iron. One or more blowing holes for blowing a working gas are on an inner wall side surface of the nozzle, at a site where the lance nozzle has a minimum cross-sectional area in a nozzle axis direction or at a neighboring site of the site.

A raw material supply process that supplies a raw material into a flash smelting furnace and supplies a first gas contributing to a reaction of the raw material into the flash smelting furnace, includes: a raw material passage that is provided out of a lance through which the first gas passes, the raw material passing through the raw material passage; and an adjuster that adjusts a distribution of the raw material by blowing a second gas to the raw material passing through the raw material passage.

Disclosed is a flux injector assembly and method for refining a molten material, wherein at least a portion of the material is aluminum, as it flows through a trough. A dispensing rod having a hollow body and a dispensing rim is configured to allow a flux and/or inert gas to travel through the hollow body and be injected into the molten material through the dispensing rim as the molten material flows through the trough. A baffle plate is configured to be positioned within the molten material in the associated trough to allow the molten material to flow passed the baffle plate. The elongated dispensing rod is positioned at a downstream location relative to the baffle plate. The rate of flow of molten material is increased as it passes the dispensing rim of the elongated dispensing rod to inject and mix the flux within the molten aluminum alloy.

A device for measuring a shape of a wall portion of a coke oven is provided. The device includes a box having a main part defining at least one opening and a closing system movable with respect to the main part between an open position and a closed position, an internal protective screen located within the box and defining at least one scanning window, the scanning window being narrower than the opening along a transverse direction (T) of the box and at least one 3D laser scanner located in the box for scanning the wall portion through the scanning window and through the opening when the closing system is in the open position.

A shield for injection lances in metal production furnaces facilitates the adjustment of the contents of the melt in the metal production furnace. The shield has an outer shell joined to an inner shell by a face plate. The outer shell and inner shell define a fluid chamber between them and the face plate has an inlet aperture and an exit aperture for coolant flow through the fluid chamber. The shield is sized and shaped to fit into or around an aperture in the wall of the furnace. The shield has apertures through it to facilitate introduction of additives to the melt in the metal production furnace.