Indicators of the internal state of the blast furnace hearth

The hearth is a crucial region of the blast furnace, since the life of its refractory may be decisive for the campaign length of the furnace. Excessive growth of skull on the hearth wall and bottom, in turn, reduces the inner volume of the hearth, causes drainage and other problems that limit productivity, and has a negative effect on hot metal temperature and chemistry. A set of indicators that reflect the internal state of the hearth has been developed. The motivation for the indicators is outlined and their application to hearth state detection is illustrated with several examples from the operation of two Finnish blast furnaces.