CFD modelling of dry slag granulation using a novel spinning disc process

Slags generated in metallurgical industry are high volume by-products or wastes containing a large amount of heat. In blast furnace ironmaking, for example, for every tonne of hot metal produced, about 300 kg of slag is generated. The cooling of molten slag to ambient temperature can release up to 1.8 GJ/t of thermal energy. Blast furnace slags are currently either water granulated or air cooled. Water granulation is commonly adopted to produce glassy granules that can be used for cement production. However, such slag treatment methods have some obvious shortcomings: ie, no heat recovery, air pollution, and consumption of a large amount of fresh water. Therefore, there has been an increasing interest in processing molten slags without using water quenching, so-called dry slag granulation (DSG).