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PROJECT PARTNERS South Carolina Research Authority Charleston, SC South Carolina Institute for Energy Studies Clemson, SC MacAlloy Corporation North Charleston, SC Massachusetts Institute of Technology Cambridge, MA
PROJECT
PLASMA ARC SMELTING SCIES
DEMONSTRATION OF PLASMA ARC FERROCHROMIUM SMELTING - A SIGNIFICANT DEVELOPMENT Project Background
Ferrochromium is of vital importance to the United States. It is essential to stainless steel and super alloy production and, therefore vital to the defense, aerospace, chemical power generation and transportation industry. Approximately 90% of the ferrochromium consumed in the United States is imported -- with 62% imported from South Africa. Only one commercial producer of ferrochromium remains in the U.S. and this plant (MacAlloy) is threatened by the more advanced technology used in other countries. The smelting technology currently used in the U.S. is the submerged arc process. This process requires large electrical currents to pass through carbon electrodes into the materials within the smelting furnace. Domestic plants using this technology have been forced to shut down due to the high cost of energy and labor along with obsolescence and inefficiencies of production facilities. U.S. production capacity has declined, demand for the product is growing, and other countries are supplying our need.
PROJECT SPONSOR Defense Logistics Agency Washington, DC
Plasma Arc
The advantages of the new plasma arc furnace smelting technology are significant. Plasma arc technology offers opportunities to reduce overall cost of smelting, improved recovery efficiency of chromium, and use of fine-grained domestic ores. Technical advantages of the plasma arc process include less critical requirements for ore and carbon reductions, a relatively large range of suitable slag compositions, continuous feeding of the smelting furnace materials, reduced environment problems, and high recovery of chromium.

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