9/2/2022

Course: Iron and Steel Industry: Operations

and equipment
Lecture #6
Coke making process, various operations, wet and dry quenching of hot coke
and properties of the coke

Department of Metallurgical and Materials Engineering

IIT Ropar

Course Instructor : Dr. Prince Kumar Singh

Coke Oven

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Functions of Coke Oven plant

The main function of Coke Ovens is to convert coal into coke
which is used as a fuel and reducing agent in the Blast
Furnace. Its secondary function is to recover Volatile Matter
and CO gas from coal and extract chemicals known as Coal
Chemicals.

The Coke Ovens and Coal Chemical Department has three

main sections:

1. Coke Ovens
2. Coal Chemicals
3. Maintenance and Repairs

Various sub-sections of Coke Ovens and their

functions
1. Coal Handling Plant : To prepare coal blend suitable for
carbonization in Coke Ovens Batteries to produce BF coke.

2. Partial Briquetting : To prepare briquettes of coal to charge along

with coal into the oven.

3. Coke Oven Batteries : To convert coal into coke by carbonizing

coal in absence of air and thereby distilling the volatile matter out
of coal. The resultant coke oven gas is treated in CCD for recovery
of chemicals

4. Coke Sorting Plant : To crush and screen coke to 25-80mm size

required by blast furnaces. The 0-10 mm fraction is used in sinter
making and 10-25 mm fraction (nut coke) is added along with
sinter supplied to Blast Furnace.

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Flow chart of Coke Oven Plant

Coke making process

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Coke making process

• The coal to be coked is charged through the charging
holes by charging cars.
• Heat is transferred from the heated brick-wall into
the coal charge in absence of air.
• At 375-475 ºC, coal decomposes to form plastic
layers near each wall.
• At 475-600 ºC, Tar & aromatic hydrocarbons evolve.
• Re-solidification of plastic mass into semi-coke near
the each wall.
• 600-1100 ºC, coke mass stabilization begins. This is
characterized by contraction of the coke-mass,
structure development of coke takes.

Coke making process

• Finally, plastic layer of coke starts moving away from each
wall-side and join at the center. Product is called as coke
mass.
• After 17-19 hrs., all VM in terms of benzene, Toluene, Tar
etc. comes out. (somewhere time reported varies between
24 – 36 hrs.)
• When the Central temp. of the oven is 950-1000 ºC,
coking is said to be complete followed by proper venting
of residual gases from the oven.
• Coke is pushed out through pusher. The coke mass at the
end of coking period has a volume shrinkage which leads
to detachment of mass from the walls ensuring easy
pushing.

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Coke making process

• Hot coke is wet or dry quenched (N2 or Ar) to bring
down coke- mass temperature below 300-400 ºC (to
avoid oxidation of carbon with atmosphere air/oxygen).

Note: Volatile materials are cracked into various organic

compounds and are recovered in a separate Bye-Product
Plant, this route is called By-Product Recovery Coke Oven
Plant

Typical Blend Composition and

Coal Charge
Blend composition
PCC 10 %
MCC 15 %
Imported 75 %

Coal blend analysis

Moisture 7–8%
Ash 12 – 13 %
Volatile materials 24 – 25 %
Fixed Carbon 58 – 60 %

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Pushing of coke from oven followed by

quenching

Pushed hot coke from oven

https://www.dreamstime.com/

Wet quenching of hot coke

Phenolic water is pumped @50

Cu.M./hr (quench time = 2.5 Min)
https://www.dreamstime.com/

Pushing of coke from oven followed

by quenching
Dry quenching of hot coke
• Quenching the coke-mass by inert gases like Ar or N2 gas in
a closed chamber.
• Quality of the dry quenched coke is better than we
quenched.
• Moisture content of coke in case of dry quenching is less
than 1% whereas it is 3-4% in case of wet quenching.
• Strength of coke (in terms of Micum Index) is better in
dryquenching as compared to wet quenching

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Quantitative analysis of product from coke

oven plant
1000 kg of coal

~750-800 kg of coke for BF (size -80+25 mm)

Coke oven
battery 45 - 90 kg of finer coke: -20 +10 mm: nut coke,
~ 10 kg: 10 mm size: coke breeze)
285-345 m3 of coke oven gas

27-34 Liter of Tar

By-product
plant 55-135 Liter of ammonium liquor

8-12.5 Liter of light oil

Characteristics of product from Coke oven

plant
Constituents Corresponding weight
%
Moisture 3.5 %
Chemical analysis of Ash 15.5
coke Volatile matter <1
Sulphur 0.65 max
Fixed Carbon 79 – 81
Constituents Volume %
H2 56.5
CO 8.5
Chemical analysis of CH4 26.0
coke oven gas C2H6 2.3
N2 3.3
CO2 3.0
Density 0.482 kg/cubic m
NCV 4300 k Cal/cubic m

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Metallurgical coke
The most important raw material in BF; 50% of cost of
production is due to coke.
Roles of Coke:
1. As main fuel and as a reductant.
2. Additional purpose of coke
• It is physically stronger than raw coal, hence provide support
to iron bearing charge material ( iron ore, sinter & pellets etc.)
in Blast Furnace.
• It retains its shape; and hence allows the smooth passage to
the flow of hot gases (voidage is uniform).

3. Why not coal: coal does not fulfill these objectives as it softens
and becomes impermeable under smelting conditions in BF.

Coke oven Battery at a glance

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Line diagram of Coke oven Battery

Coal charging Car

Coal can be charged in

the form of fines and
briquet.

For example, at Bhilai Steel plant partial coal briquets are charged along with
fines to increase the bulk density of coal charged into the oven and to improve the
micum index and crushing strength of coke.

So the charging burden consisting the ratio of 25:75 for briquets and fines.

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Coke oven Battery

Coke oven batteries or chambers are generally 4 m to 7.5 m tall and
having 60 – 70 ovens in each.

1. A very nice demonstration of coke making process is in the video on the following
link.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oysum8XCM54

2. Coke pushing video from battery.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KUqB5vXbiFY

3. Real appearance of Coke oven batteries.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x7YLBHb8RSA

4. A full video of coke oven battery from Arcelor Mittal Plant.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VvNtsUpQBAA

Coke oven: Processing & equipment

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Coke oven: Pushing of coke from oven

Coke oven: old vs new charging car

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Thank You

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