Magnitogorsk Iron and Steel Works (MMK) Group has been implementing a series of water protection initiatives aimed at decreasing the ecological impact on water facilities.
The company’s short-term plans include completely eliminating the disposal of wastewater into Magnitogorsk Reservoir. To this end, MMK is completing a key stage in the reconstruction of the circulating water supply system, with an expansion of the cooling tank. This project includes the construction of a dam that separates the reservoir from the impact of MMK’s circulating water system, which will stop the disposal of wastewater from the cooling tank into Magnitogorsk Reservoir. Construction and assembly work is expected to have been completed by the end of October. Simultaneously, work is ongoing to complete the edge of the dam, while plans to landscape the dam and stock the reservoir with fish are being negotiated.
At the same time, MMK is comprehensively addressing the issue of decreasing the amount of pollutants discharged into the cooling tank, in order to improve the quality of the water in the tank, as well as the quality of the circulating technical water. Modern requirements for the quality of circulating water supply systems are often more stringent than requirements for natural water and drinking water. Water treatment and demineralization as well as on-site closed-loop water supply systems, will ensure the desired water quality.
Currently 41 on-site closed-loop water supply systems operate at the mill. 10 of them are “clean” systems, where only water is heated with a capacity of 450 to 16,500 cubic meter per hour; and 31 are “dirty” (loop systems for the gas-cleaning units of the oxygen converter shop, electric-furnace melting shop, sintering shop, blast furnace shop; loop systems of scale flushing at the hot-rolling shops of the sheet rolling shop, sheet rolling shop No. 10, long products shop, Mill 5000) with a capacity of 60 to 21,500 cubic meters per hour. Also, MMK’s water protection facilities include six neutralization and cleaning units at the coke and by-product production floor, coated steel production floor, sheet rolling shop and sheet rolling shop No. 10.
MMK is continuously working to improve the technical and ecological nature of these units. To this effect, the following water protection activities have either already been implemented or in the process of being implemented in 2017-2018:
- Changeover of the dust suppression system of electric filters at TPP’s boiling units from wet-type to dry-type, which allows to for a significant decrease in the pollutant emissions into the ash-disposal area and further into Magnitogorsk Reservoir.
- Construction of an aeration system at the left-bank sediment tank of industrial and rainwater drains with the reconstruction of oil-capture unit No. 1.
- Decommissioning of two wet-type gas-cleaning units at the electric-furnace melting shop and the construction of dry-type gas-cleaning units behind the two-hearth furnace and ladle metallurgy facility. Termination of the discharge of slime water into the circulation water supply system.
- Construction of a wastewater neutralization unit at the continuous hot dip galvanizing line No. 3, eliminating the discharge of untreated water into the cooling tank.
- Construction of water systems for sintering plant No. 5, department No. 2 of sinter burden preparation department and the new section of slurry processing (currently underway).
- Construction of two closed-loop systems of circulated water supply of absorbing sulfur-capture units of sintering units with the statutory dehydration of gypsum (currently underway).
- Reconstruction of the closed-loop local system of dirty cycle of circulating water supply of sheet rolling shop No. 4 with the construction of pumping and filter station and commissioning of slime dehydration section and termination of pollutants discharge into the cooling tank (currently underway).
- Decommissioning of the wet-type gas cleaning units by the Ogneupor company calcinating shop and construction of a dry-type aspiration system, and termination of pollutant discharge into the cooling tank.
- Construction of horizontal tanks of dirty-cycles of circulation water system at the steel billet continuous casting machines and decrease in discharge of polluted drains into slurry storage No. 2.
- Construction of local circulation water supply systems for cooling the equipment at continuous hot dip galvanizing line No. 3, sheet rolling shop No. 4, oxygen unit No. 5, blast furnace No. 1 and sintering plant No. 5.
MMK also plans to pay due attention to environmental questions during the decommissioning of sintering plant No. 4, which will be replaced by the new plant No. 5. This requires carrying out special activities aimed at decreasing the discharge of polluted drains from liquid dust-suppression systems and capture systems of sulfur-capture units of the sintering plant to be decommissioned. Besides, the construction of circulating water supply systems is planned for the new facilities at the coke and by-product production floor and blast furnace facilities. (MMK/Ukrainian metal)
