Desulfurization ability of refining slag with medium basicity

The desulfurization ability of refining slag with relative lower basicity (B) and Al2O3 content (B = 3.5-5.0; 20wt%-25wt% Al2O3) was studied. Firstly, the component activities and sulfide capacity (C (S)) of the slag were calculated. Then slag-metal equilibrium experiments were carried out to measure the equilibrium sulfur distribution (L (S)). Based on the laboratorial experiments, slag composition was optimized for a better desulfurization ability, which was verified by industrial trials in a steel plant. The obtained results indicated that an MgO-saturated CaO-Al2O3-SiO2-MgO system with the basicity of about 3.5-5.0 and the Al2O3 content in the range of 20wt%-25wt% has high activity of CaO (a (CaO)), with no deterioration of C (S) compared with conventional desulfurization slag. The measured L (S) between high-strength low-alloyed (HSLA) steel and slag with a basicity of about 3.5 and an Al2O3 content of about 20wt% and between HSLA steel and slag with a basicity of about 5.0 and an Al2O3 content of about 25wt% is 350 and 275, respectively. The new slag with a basicity of about 3.5-5.0 and an Al2O3 content of about 20wt% has strong desulfurization ability. In particular, the key for high-efficiency desulfurization is to keep oxygen potential in the reaction system as low as possible, which was also verified by industrial trials.