Optimisation of Metal Charge Material for Electric Arc Furnace

Steel has remained the most crucial of all structural materials. However, the steel production processes have changed over the years. Currently, due to the tendency of eliminating high energy consuming technologies, in both the international and domestic steel industry, liquid steel is manufactured in two basic aggregates: oxygen-blown converters and electric arc furnaces 1 . The development of technique and technology in the scope of steel production in an arc furnace is aimed at improving the efficiency of the installations used, increasing the quality of steel and reducing the production costs. The basic iron-bearing medium for EAF is steel scrap. Strong competition requires efficient utilisation of raw materials, especially secondary raw materials like steel scrap. Bearing in mind the contemporary tendencies to implement and develop technologies contributing to protection of natural resources and environment, including those reducing the carbon dioxide emission, an EAF as a scrap-based steel smelting aggregate is a particularly attractive solution. Steel smelting in an electric furnace enables steel recycling, which can be stressed as its great environmental advantage 2 . In light of the market economy requirements and strong competition in the global market, the fact of undertaking various subjects in the field of economic optimisation of steel production seems completely justified. The presented paper constitutes an analysis of the example of application of two criteria optimisation solution where one of the criteria is the cost of the charge scrap and the second one is the yield of crude steel smelting in EAF.