TK Stainless
TK Stainless
TK Stainless
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76 MaGaZine stainless steel<br />
inDusTriaL pLanTs<br />
provide applications for the<br />
new superferritic steels.<br />
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neW VoD ConVerTer aLLoWs proDuCTion oF<br />
hiGh-sTrenGTh speCiaL GraDes<br />
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As well as developing innovative materials, ThyssenKrupp <strong>Stainless</strong> also<br />
attaches great importance to using the very latest plant technology. As part of<br />
this strategy, a VOD (Vacuum Oxygen Decarburization) converter was put into<br />
operation at ThyssenKrupp Acciai Speciali Terni in the past fiscal year. This<br />
latest-generation unit, which in contrast to conventional AOD (Argon Oxygen<br />
Decarburization) converters operates in a vacuum for greater efficiency,<br />
constitutes a quantum leap in terms of technology and in many ways represents<br />
a global milestone for this type of equipment. For example, in the interests<br />
of the environment the converter in the Terni meltshop is fitted among other<br />
things with an additional burner which burns the CO gas created during the<br />
decarburization process into CO 2 – which is far less hazardous – before it enters<br />
the atmosphere.<br />
In the vacuum oxygen decarburization process, the carbon/hydrogen<br />
and nitrogen content of high-alloy molten metals is reduced to a minimum<br />
under vacuum. That’s why this technology is also used to improve the quality<br />
of large ingots for Società delle Fucine, a subsidiary of ThyssenKrupp Acciai<br />
Speciali Terni. Forgings up to 500 tons in weight are processed in the VOD<br />
converter to minimize their hydrogen content.