NLMK Group, an international steel company with operations in Russia, the USA and the European Union, received a gold medal at Metal-Expo’2017, the 23rd international industry awards, for its integrated dust emission control project at the Lipetsk site. The project enabled a 6% reduction in gross dust emissions.
The project covers 12 initiatives executed across various units of the plant between 2015 and 2017. Key emission sources at sintering, blast furnace, and refractory operations were equipped with advanced electric filters and high-efficiency bag filters. Residual dust content after dedusting for these units is in line with the best indicators for dedusting systems in leading edge steelmaking (less than 10 mg/Nm3). All captured dust is returned to the production process as feedstock.
Specialists from Ecotech and NLMK Engineering, one of leading design institutes in the Russian steel sector, also received a mention for their contribution to the project.
Galina Khristoforova, NLMK Group Director for the Environment, said: “We are honored to receive this well-deserved award in such a prestigious international competition. NLMK Group has in fact achieved the best indicators for dedusting systems in leading-edge steelmaking. A set of initiatives aimed at reducing dust levels at the Lipetsk plant, for instance, enabled a radical improvement in air conditions in Lipetsk, which has been officially recognized as the most environmentally friendly steelmaking city.”
Project execution at the sintering plant included the reconstruction of existing dedusting units and the construction of a new dedusting system for receiving limestone bunkers. At the refractory shop, dust-cleaning units at four rotary furnaces were modernized, and a new centralized gas cleaning system was built for three shaft furnaces. The dust suppression system in the open-air section of the bulk material storage facility was revamped, and dedusting units in the bulk material loading and feed area were upgraded. Other initiatives included the construction of a modular aspiration system for BF-4 at Blast Furnace Shop No. 1, and a set of dust suppression systems in the cast yard raw material and captured dust loading area.
Investment into the integrated dust emission control project totaled around 1.7 billion rubles. (NLMK/Ukrainian metal)