High alumina cement is produced in a submerged combustion melter, cooled and ground.

A galvanizing furnace (1) with a galvanizing vat (6) and a furnace housing (2) surrounding the galvanizing vat (6), which furnace housing has a rectangular cross-section. The furnace housing (2) has two opposite longitudinal sidewalls (4) and two opposite end walls (5) and further comprises burners for heating molten zinc in the galvanizing vat (6). In the areas of two diagonally opposite corners of the furnace housing (2), at least one first receptacle (15) is provided for a burner. In the areas of the other two diagonally opposite corners of the furnace housing (2), a second receptacle (16) is provided for a burner. The burners are arranged optionally either in the first receptacles (15) or in the second receptacles (16). Flames produced by the burners are conducted in the area between a longitudinal sidewall (4) of the furnace housing (2) and the opposite wall of the galvanizing vat (6).

Processes for the production of platinum group metal (PGM)-enriched alloys are described. The PGM enriched-alloys can have 0 to 60 wt.-% of iron and 20 to 99 wt.-% of one or more PGMs selected from the group consisting of platinum, palladium and rhodium. The described processes exhibit remarkably low PGM losses during production of PGM-enriched alloys therefore yield alloys having considerably high PGM levels.

A continuous aluminum melting furnace with a porous spray pipe heat exchanger, comprising a furnace body, combustion nozzles, a smoke pipeline and a heat exchanger. The heat exchanger comprises a smoke channel and heat exchange cylinders, wherein each of the heat exchange cylinders comprises a head end, a tail end, and a porous spray pipe in at least one of the cylinders. The porous spray pipe comprises a closed end and a pipe body, with several air spray holes provided on a peripheral wall of the pipe body so that cold air entering the at least one heat exchange cylinder is sprayed to an inner wall of the cylinder so as to exchange heat with high-temperature smoke which flows through an outer wall of the cylinder, thus keeping the temperature of the cylinder lower than the rated tolerant temperature of the material from which the cylinder is made.

A process for the production of a PGM-enriched alloy comprising 0 to 60 wt.-% of iron and 20 to 99 wt.-% of one or more PGMs selected from the group consisting of platinum, palladium and rhodium, the process comprising the steps of (1) providing a PGM collector alloy comprising 30 to 95 wt.-% of iron, less than 1 wt.-% of sulfur and 2 to 15 wt.-% of one or more PGMs selected from the group consisting of platinum, palladium and rhodium, (2) providing a copper- and sulfur-free material capable of forming a slag-like composition when molten, wherein the molten slag-like composition comprises 40 to 90 wt.-% of magnesium oxide and/or calcium oxide and 10 to 60 wt.-% of silicon dioxide, (3) melting the PGM collector alloy and the material capable of forming a slag-like composition when molten in a weight ratio of 1:0.2 to 1 within a converter until a multi- or two-phase system of a lower high-density molten mass comprising the molten PGM collector alloy and one or more upper low-density molten masses comprising the molten slag-like composition has formed, (4) contacting an oxidizing gas comprising 0 to 80 vol.-% of inert gas and 20 to 100 vol.-% of oxygen with the lower high-density molten mass obtained in step (3) until it has been converted into a lower high-density molten mass of the PGM-enriched alloy, (5) separating an upper low-density molten slag formed in the course of step (4) from the lower high-density molten mass of the PGM-enriched alloy making use of the difference in density, (6) letting the molten masses separated from one another cool down and solidify, and (7) collecting the solidified PGM-enriched alloy.

A gas-coolable gas lance comprising an inner tube for a supply of a gas A, wherein the inner tube is surrounded by an outer tube, wherein the inner and the outer tube form a hollow space between themselves, wherein the inner tube has a bottom opening and a top opening, wherein the bottom opening comprises or is an exhaust for the gas A, wherein the hollow space is closed at its bottom and has a top opening, wherein the hollow space comprises an arrangement of tubes for a supply of a gas B to the bottom region of the hollow space, wherein the outer tube, the hollow space's bottom and the exhaust for the gas A are made of stainless steel. The gas lance can be used in a pyrometallurgical process for the production of a PGM-enriched alloy.

A gas lance which can be used in a process of any one of the preceding claims, said gas lance comprising or consisting of a rod having inner channels along its length axis, wherein the rod is made of a non-oxidizable ceramic material having a melting point above 1800 C. The gas lance can be used in a pyrometallurgical process for the production of a PGM-enriched alloy.

A gas-coolable gas lance comprising an inner tube for a supply of a gas A, wherein the inner tube is surrounded by an outer tube, wherein the inner and the outer tube form a hollow space between themselves, wherein the inner tube has a bottom opening and a top opening, wherein the bottom opening comprises or is an exhaust for the gas A, wherein the hollow space is open at its bottom and has at least one inlet for a gas B, wherein the outer tube and the oxidizing gas exhaust are made of stainless steel. The gas lance can be used in a pyrometallurgical process for the production of a PGM-enriched alloy.

A blast furnace operation method according to one aspect of the present invention includes: a process of acquiring a correlation between a carbon consumption in reducing gas and a reduction InputC in specific carbon consumption caused by blowing the reducing gas into the blast furnace per molar ratio C/H of carbon atoms to hydrogen atoms in the reducing gas; a process of determining a carbon consumption in the reducing gas where the reduction InputC in specific carbon consumption is a predetermined target value or higher on the basis of the correlation acquired per C/H; and a process of adjusting the amount of the reducing gas blown into the blast furnace on the basis of the determined carbon consumption in the reducing gas and the carbon proportion in the reducing gas.

An integral melter and pump assembly or system, and a method of making the same, is disclosed wherein the pump assembly comprises a melter housing having a melter container defined within the melter housing. A pump mounting plate is integrally mounted within a side wall portion of the melter container and an output dispensing supply pump is mounted directly upon an external surface portion of the pump mounting plate in a surface-to-surface manner such that heat generated internally within the melter container is effectively transferred by conduction from the melter container and through the pump mounting plate such that the temperature level of the output pump is elevated to, and maintained at, a predeterminedly desired level even when the pump, is not disposed in its output dispensing mode. In addition, since the output dispensing or material supply pump is disposed externally of the melter container and the melter housing, the output dispensing or material supply pump is easily and readily accessible in case maintenance becomes necessary. Optionally, an oil jacket or chamber can surround the melter container so as to more evenly or consistently provide heating of the melter container.