A novel estimation of electrical and cooling losses in electric arc furnaces

A method to calculate electrical losses and a heat transfer model of a conventional Electric Arc Furnace (EAF) are presented. The application of a novel power theory for the EAF was used to compute electrical losses and it was compared with conventional power calculations. The electrical losses and electrical variables were used as input parameters to the proposed heat transfer model. Chemical energy sources were included as energy inputs to estimate the overall heat transferred including the heat losses in the cooling system. In the heat transfer model the furnace was divided in 11 inner surfaces and the radiation view factors between them were estimated by a commercial finite element software. Variations of the view factors for different arc coverage were evaluated. Different scenarios for cooling panels losses, with respect to arc coverage and thickness of slag layers adhered to cooling system panels, were analyzed. The approach presented in this work allows calculation of energy balances in electrical arc furnaces with low computational resources. Finally, the contribution of this research work is to define a framework for further research oriented to improve both the electrical and thermal energy efficiencies to increase productivity and reduce energy consumption in steel plants.