Key strategies for exceptional Plant Productivity

Qatar Steel DR Modules

Durgesh R. Gupta
Head of Section
Direct Reduction Department.
 First Integrated Steel Manufacturing Facility in GCC

Well Equipped Jetty in close

proximity to production facility

World Class Direct The Billets Are Cut Automatically By Gas

Reduction Facility Cutting Equipment (Continuous Casting)

Steel Melting facilities

(Electric Arc Furnace)

2
The Rolling Mill Epitomises Quality & Productivity
Salient Features Qatar Steel facilities
Salient Features of the DR Modules
Salient Features DR1 Module DR2 Module

Process Midrex Based Midrex Based

Type Standard 400 Series COMBO Mega Module

Start-Up 1978 2007

Product 100% CDRI Option 1: 100% CDRI
Option 2: 70% HBI & 30% CDRI
Designed Capacity 0.4 MTPA 1.5 MTPA

Shaft Furnace
Diameter 5.15 m 6.65 m
Height 10.02 m 10.02 m

Reformer
Nos. of Tube 220 480
Diameter of Tube 250 mm 250 mm

Type of Process Gas Compressor Rotary Lobe Type Centrifugal Type

Best Achieved figures Year 2006 Year 2015

Annual Production 0.877 MTPA 1.887 MTPA
Metallization % 95.11 94.86
Carbon% 1.88 2.45
 Qatar Steel’s Key Strategies to boost Production
o Maximizing operational efficiencies to assure exceptional plant availability, reliability and
productivity in its Direct Reduction Module.

o De-bottleneck inherent equipment capacities.

o Hire, train, motivate, & retain people.

o Adopt and continually improve operational and maintenance practices through approaches such
as TPM, TQM, RCM, Quality Circles, Employee Suggestion Schemes and other grassroots
participation by workforce in our decision making process.

o Optimize supply chain of iron ore from selected pellet plants on long term contracts for assured
quantities and specifications.

o Technical collaboration with pellets suppliers to improve pellet properties like size distribution,
compression strength, sticking & clustering index etc.

o Sourcing and securing high methane feedstock (Tail gas from neighboring Petrochemical ERU
Units which has high methane content).

o Influence corporate culture in nurturing healthy work environment and dynamic work ethic in
order to maximize realization of human resources potential
HSE Excellence:Both DR Modules has excellent safety performance

o Proactive safety culture, involving and encouraging our staff to report potential near
misses incidents: reports which are acted upon to mitigate the risks of recurrence.

o In addition, various health and safety training programs and campaigns have been
developed to promote industry best practice and raise safety awareness.

o A comprehensive approach to identify hazards through analysis, risk assessment,

environmental audit, and regular site inspections.

o Risk-based safety management system has been put in place to provide a frame-work for
self-regulation and continuous performance improvement.
 DR1 Module Annual Production (1978~2013)
900,000
813,349

800,000

700,000 628,831
Annunal Production (MT)

600,000

500,000
400,000

400,000

Annual Production (MT)

300,000
Rating

200,000 39 yr-Avg

3 per. Mov. Avg. (Annual Production

(MT))
100,000

-
1978
1979
1980
1981
1982
1983
1984
1985
1986
1987
1988
1989
1990
1991
1992
1993
1994
1995
1996
1997
1998
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
No. of Years
1978
1979
1980
1981
1982
1983
1984
1985
1986
1987
1988
1989
1990

5,109,363 MT
1991
1992
1993
1994
1995
1996
1997
1998
10,553,483 MT

1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
15,132,244 MT

2005
2006
2007
DR1 Module Cumulative production (1978~2013)

2008
2009
2010
2011
20,502,690 MT

2012
2013
2014
2015
24,524,417 MT

2016
DR2 Module Annual Production (2007~2016)
1,886,825
1,782,893 1,762,534
1,667,854
1,627,315
1,500,000

1,415,473
1,355,047 1,342,836

1,045,064

431,081

2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016
Production (MT) Designed Capacity
DR2 Module Cumulative production (2007~2016)
14,316,922
14,000,000

12,000,000

10,667,563

10,000,000

8,000,000

6,000,000 5,589,501

4,000,000

2,000,000

-
2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016
Export quantities from DR2 Module from Year 2007~2016
CDRI Quality DR1 Module from 1994~2016
Metallization (%) Carbon (%)
96.50 2.80
96.32

96.15

96.00 95.89 2.60

95.74 95.75 95.71

95.62
95.55
95.50 2.412.40
95.35
95.31
95.39 95.28
95.18 2.31
95.15 95.14 95.12
95.11 95.11
95.02 95.01
95.00 2.20
2.18
2.13 94.71
2.08 94.61

94.50 94.4 2.00

1.93
1.90 1.89 1.89
1.88 1.88 1.88

94.00 1.80
1.74
1.72
1.68
1.64
93.50 1.61 1.60
1.57 1.56
1.54 1.54
1.51
1.45
93.00 1.40
1994

1995

1996

1997

1998

1999

2000

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016
CDRI Quality DR2 Module from 2007~2016 Met. (%) Carbon (%)
2.80 96.00
95.73 95.65
95.63
95.56
2.72 95.50
2.60 95.33
2.65
2.59
94.86
2.58
94.74 95.00
94.61
2.40
94.66 2.45
2.39
94.47 2.36 94.50

2.20 2.13

94.00

2.00

1.85 93.50

1.80 1.73
93.00

1.60
92.50

1.40 92.00
2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016
DR1 Module Plant Reliability & Availability data

Reliability: Operating time / Available time

* Available time: Calendar hours - total schedule down time

Availability : Operating time / Calendar hours

* Operating time: Calendar hour – Schedule down time – Unscheduled downtime

* Available time : Calendar hours - Schedule down time
DR2 Module Plant Reliability & Availability data

Reliability: Operating time / Available time

* Available time: Calendar hours - total schedule down time

Availability : Operating time / Calendar hours

* Operating time: Calendar hour – Schedule down time – Unscheduled downtime

* Available time : Calendar hours - Schedule down time
 Can we remain competitive in the high cost raw materials market?
Iron ore accounts for not less than 80% of production cost.
Quantity of OXIDE pellets required to be procured to produce one ton of CDRI???
1. Theoretical oxide/CDRI ratio for any Furnace with 1.356 1.376 1.41 1.446
94.5% Metallization & 2.4% Carbon is 1.356.

2. However the theoretical yield is unrealistic in

practice because it does not take into account fines
losses dealt during various stages i.e. during
handling, screening, losses to gas stream etc..

a. Typically losses to off gas stream accounts to

1~1.5% for any technology process.

b. Almost all DR plants carry out screening to

remove undersize less than 5 mm size.
(typically 2~2.5%)

c. However, most important thing during this

process is to understand contribution of
losses due to handling process? i.e.
disintegration of oxide caused during loading
of pellets at loading port, during unloading at
discharge port & while supply of pellets from Every 1% of material loss due to disintegration
Yard to Oxide day bins for consumption. during handling process contributes to 6 Million
Losses (i.e. at point no. 2) can go high up to US$ per year considering the plant producing
5%, if proper attention is not paid. 2.5 MTPA DRI Production.
 Raw Material Selection Criteria followed in Qatar Steel
• In Direct Reduction processes, the
characteristics & cost of available
iron ores plays a very important
role.
• The selection of suitable raw
material will not only help in
optimizing productivity, yield &
energy consumption but also the
overall economy of integrated
Steel plants with DRI Melting.
• QSC DR Modules has been
optimized through 39 years of
Industrial operations. All the
know-how obtained through
process evolution has given
maturity & flexibility in the use of
different raw materials.
Selection criteria
• Reduction Potential
• Carburizing Potential
• Size distribution
• Disintegration (in furnace & material
handling)
• Withstanding higher reduction
temperatures (without clustering &
sticking tendency)
• Porosity (reduction requires diffusion
of reductants into micro pores)
• CCS & SAR for control on disintegration
& fluidization/mass flow of solids
• Sulfur content & Sulfur liberation
• Reactivity & re-oxidation rate
 Value in Use inputs for techno economical benefits on Ore Selection
1. Performance of the direct reduction Shaft Furnace
2. Oxide consumption per ton of DRI produced.
3. Impact of resulting DRI Product in electric furnace steel making process.
4. The chemical properties are not only important in steelmaking , they play an equally important role in
DR Process. Chemical properties influences yield through liquid Steel.
5. The physical properties mainly relate to Reduction Furnace performance, DR yield and bi-
products/waste levels.
6. The metallurgical properties are important for DR shaft furnace in terms of Reducibility, SI & CI.

Key points to understands are:

– Optimum pellets chemical properties may not have optimum Physical properties for DR process.
– Highly reducible but poorly sized pellets will affect the permeability & gas-solid contacting
effectiveness which will minimize the benefit of inherent excellent pellet reducibility.
– Chips & fines negatively influence DR furnace performance.
– Screening can prevent the fines from entering the DR process, but what to do with the screened
fines?
– Metallurgical properties such as reducibility is important, but the physical characteristics will
dominate the behavior & performance of pellets.
– It is better to start with an Ore that can hold up to material handling, stocking & reclaiming
without significant fines generation.