NON-METALLIC INCLUSIONS CONTROLING AT THE LADLE FURNACE (LF) STATION

The article contains the results of research performed on the determination of the quantity and morphology of nonmetallic inclusions identified at the secondary metallurgy process during the cold-swelling steel production. Continuous improvement of steel quality standards, which today is primarily associated with the amount of inclusions contained in the steel product, enforces actions taken to remove the largest possible number of inclusions from steel and/or by their modification at the final stage of secondary metallurgy processing. Therefore, research was undertaken at the ladle furnace industrial stand, and the steel samples were subjected to metallographic testing. It was shown that the number and/or the size of inclusions identified in the samples taken at the beginning and end of the process decreased, and in addition they were modified.