v

INDUSTRIAL TRAINING REPORT

Tan Yu Teik

Bachelor of Engineering (Hons) of Mechanical Engineering

Lee Kong Chian Faculty of Engineering and Science

Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman

January 2016

ii

DECLARATION

I sincerely declare that:

1. I am the sole writer of this report
2. The details of training and experience contained in this report describe my
involvement as a trainee in the field of Mechanical engineering
3. All the information contained in this report is certain and correct to the
knowledge of the author

Signature :

_________________________

Name

_________________________

ID No.

_________________________

Date

_________________________

iii

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The author would like to express his utmost gratitude to UTAR for providing
opportunity to the author to pursue the engineering training as a partial fulfillment of
the requirement for the degree of Bachelor of Engineering.
Throughout this training, the author is very fortunate to be blessed with the
guidance and encouragement from his mentor, Mr. XXXX. In addition,
(This acknowledgements page is optional)......

iv

ABSTRACT

Steelmaking plant no.1 (SMP1) is one of the plants that located in Southern
Steel Rod Sdn. Bhd.. It is a very large plant that responsible in transforming the
collected scrap metals into the steel billets. These steel billets are used as the raw
materials for making wire rods, bolt&nut products and welding rods, depending on
the grade and quality of steel billets.
Inside the SMP1 there is a huge scrap yard that collects and keeps all the
scrap metals. Scraps metals are then transferred by the magnetic crane from the scrap
yard into a big furnace called Electric Arc Furnace (EAF). At this stage EAF will
melt down the metal scraps into molten steel. After refining, the molten steel in EAF
will then tapped into another furnace called Ladle Furnace (LF) for further burning
and treatment in accordance with the desired grade of steel. Within these processes,
samples will be sent to the section of quality assurance (QA) for composition testing
to ensure good quality and the desired grade of steel being produced. Then the
molten steel will further passed down from LF to a storage tank called tundish as the
preparation to enter the continuous casting machine (CCM). So at the end of the
process of CCM, molten steels are casted, drawn and cooled to form steel billet.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

DECLARATION

ii

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

iii

ABSTRACT

iv

TABLE OF CONTENTS

LIST OF TABLES

vii

LIST OF FIGURES

viii

LIST OF SYMBOLS / ABBREVIATIONS

ix

CHAPTER

INTRODUCTION

1.1

Background

1.2

Learning Outcomes

TITLE
2.1

Subsection Title 1

2.2

Subsection Title 2

2.3

Subsection Title 3

2.3.1

Sub-subsection Title 1

2.3.2

Sub-subsection Title 2

2.4

Subsection Title 4

TITLE

3.1

Subsection Title 1

3.2

Subsection Title 2

vi
3.3

Sub-subsection Title 1

3.3.1

Sub-sub-subsection Title 1

TITLE

4.1

Subsection Title 1

4.2

Subsection Title 2

4.3

Sub-subsection Title 1

4.3.1

Sub-sub-subsection Title 1

CONCLUSION

10

5.1

Subsection Title 1

10

5.2

Subsection Title 2

10

5.3

Sub-subsection Title 1

11

5.3.1

11

Sub-sub-subsection Title 1

REFERENCES

12

APPENDICES

13

vii

LIST OF TABLES

TABLE

TITLE

2.1

Processing Time (in hours) of Bread for Different

Production Line in ABC Company

2.2

Processing Time for Different Production Line

3.1

Processing Time (in hours) of Bread for Different

Production Line

4.1

Processing Time (in hours) of Bread for Different

Production Line

PAGE

viii

LIST OF FIGURES

FIGURE

TITLE

2.1

Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman Logo

3.1

Reflection from Smooth Surface

4.1

UTAR Logo

PAGE

ix

LIST OF SYMBOLS / ABBREVIATIONS

SSB

Southern Steel Berhad

SMP1

Steel Making Plant No.1

SOP

Standard Operation Procedure

EAF

Electric Arc Furnace

RM2

Rolling Mill No.2

QA

Quality Assurance

ACS

Alloy charging system

INTRODUCTION

Background
Southern Steel Berhad (SSB) is one of the member of the Southern Steel
Group(SSG), a leading Malaysian Steel Group with 50 years of experience and
expertise in steel products manufacturing. Its strong shareholder line-ups include
Hong Leong Manufacturing Group Sdn Bhd and Signaland Sdn Bhd which are
members of Hong Leong Group Malaysia, and the founding business families based
in Penang. Hong Leong Group Malaysia is among the top ten diversified
conglomerate in Malaysia.
SSG is an established producer of a wide range of high quality steel products
including billets, steel bars, wire rods, wire mesh, PC strand and wires, and steel
pipes. It is also currently the biggest producer of wire mesh in South East Asia.
SSG's drawn wire, tyre bead, rope and galvanized wires are housed under a joint
venture company with NV Bekaert SA, a global technological and market leader in
advanced solutions based on metal transformation and coating.
Over the years, SSG has been emphasizing on technological advancement,
pioneering the commercialization of some new equipment and processes with
suppliers. The hot roll coil is the latest such endeavor. SSG also places great
importance in consistency by ensuring quality product supplies are provided to its
business partners. SSG has been awarded many accolades, both locally and
internationally, in recognition of its achievements in ensuring high quality throughout
the its operations.
Today, SSG have been formed of Southern Steel Berhad (SSB), Southern
Steel Mesh Sdn. Bhd.(SSM), Southern Steel Rod Sdn. Bhd.(SSR), Southern PC Steel
Sdn. Bhd., Southern Pipe Industry Sdn. Bhd., Southern Steel Pipe Sdn. Bhd.,
Southern HRC Sdn. Bhd.

Industrial training
At the beginning of my industrial training progress, I had been allocated to
the Department of Research and Development (R&D) of Southern Steel Berhad as a
trainee. Mr, Kong Ern Hun, a senior manager of the R&D department, had acted as
my industrial supervisor and guided me through these three months of training.
I was then assigned to a training programme by Mr. Kong in order to
familiarise the manufacturing processes and the working environment at the plants
and mills. This training programme had lasted about six weeks, which held at the
Steelmaking plant no. 1 (SMP1) and Rolling mill no.2 (RM2). Both plants are
located at Southern Steel Rod Sdn Bhd. The first part of the training was located at
SMP1 while the second part of the training was held at RM2.
Through this training period, I have learnt

3
Part I: SMP1
Chapter 1

SMP1 Plant Familiarization

Guided by Mr.Tan Tee Hiang
1.1

Working environment and ethnics of SMP1

On the first day of the learning process in SSB, I was guided by Mr.Tan Tee

Hiang, who is from the Department of Quality Assurance (QA) of the company, to
familiarise the working environment and ethics of the SMP1, which is one of the
main plants located in Southern Steel Berhad.
I have learnt that this company is operating under an integrated management
system (IMS), which combines all related components of a business into one system
for easier management and operations: ISO 9001:2008, ISO 14000 and OHSAS
18000.
Management system
ISO 9001:2008

Definition
Quality Management

System

(QMS)

which

gives

organizations a systematic approach for meeting customer

ISO 14000

objectives.
Environmental Management System (EMS) which provides
a system for measuring and improving an organization's

OHSAS 18000

environmental impact.
Occupational Health and Safety Management System
(OHSMS) which provides a system for measuring and
improving an organization's health and safety impact.

These are not separate systems joined together, rather they are an integrated
management system with linkages so that similar processes are seamlessly managed
and executed without duplication. IMS components common to all the systems
include the resources (people, facilities & equipment, etc.) and processes
(documented in the QMS/EMS/OHSMS and applied throughout the organization).

4
For example, regarding the implementation of the ISO 9001:2008 in Southern
Steel Berhad, I can found that there are many standard operation procedures(SOP)
for various processes pasted on the notice boards, in order to guide the employees to
carry out the specific process in accordance with its SOP to deliver the desired
result. This will help generates the result which is accurate and consistent with each
other of the particular process, regardless of whoever is carrying out the specific
process on a different occasion. In case of any mishap and technical casualty
happened on a process, operators are also required to act according to its particular
SOP.

1.2

5S Culture in SSB
5S is the name of a workplace organization method that uses a list of five

Japanese words:
Japanese word
Seiri
Seiton
Seiso
Seiketsu
Shitsuke

Brief definition
Arrangement. Sort out and eliminate unnecessary items.
Organization. To arrange items systemically.
Neatness. Sweep and clean.
Cleanliness. To maintain cleanliness.
Self-disciplined. Have a positive working attitude.

The list describes how to organize a work space for efficiency and
effectiveness by identifying and storing the items used, maintaining the area and
items, and sustaining the new order.
It is required that every employees of the Southern Steel Berhad must
possesses five of these elements. This company has taken this 5S culture so
seriously as you can find the description of this 5S at almost every corner of the
company, with most of it at the plant site. There is even internal and external audit of
5S to judge the level of the 5S in this company, with a maximum point of 5. At this
moment, Southern Steel Berhad had achieved a point of 3, and it is now aiming for
the next target which is 3.5 point.

Figure 2.1: The difference before and after the 5S culture is being implemented

CHAPTER 1

Scap Management
Guided by Mr. Abdul Harris
(need open and closed scrap yard picture)
(charging crane to EAF maybe?)
2.1

Types of scrap
The first step in the production of any heat (one whole melting process) is to

select the grade of steel to be made. Usually a schedule is developed prior to each
production shift. Thus the melter will know in advance the schedule for his shift. The
scrap yard operator will prepare buckets of scrap according to the needs of the
melter. Preparation of the charge bucket is an important operation, not only to ensure
proper melt-in chemistry but also to ensure good melting conditions.
There are lots of types of available scrap metals that have been used as the
raw materials for steel making. To be more specifically, there are around 35 or more
types of scrap metal that have been used in the steel making, depending of the
desired grade of steel produced.
Example of some of the types of scrap metal:

Types of scrap
1. Heavy Metal Scraps (HMS)

Characteristic
-Scraps of railway industries
like wheels, tracks and from
big structures like demolished
industrial plants
-Consist of local HMS and
imported HMS.
-Local HMS: Lower density,
Higher impurities like sulphur.

-Imported HMS: Better quality

than HMS, higher content of
copper.
Shredded

-Imported
-High density
-Good electrical and thermal
conductor
-Easy to melt

Plate and structural steel

-Consist of steel plates,

structural shapes, columns and
beams, crop ends, sheared
automotive and construction
scrap
-Phosphorus and Sulphur not
more than 0.05 percent.

Skull
-Solidified steel in tundish of
CCM
-Big in size and high density
-Difficult to melt down

Pig iron
-Imported from overseas
-Used to improve the quality
and yield of steel produced.
-Uniform in shape
-High density

Direct Reduced Iron (DRI)

-Imported from overseas
-Consist of 1~2% of carbon
-Reactive against water(burnt
once react with water)
-need to
-High surface area (easy to
melt)
-As diluting agent.

Hot Briquetting Iron (HBI)

-About the same characteristic
as DRI

-Lower surface area compared

to DRI

Bundle
-Usually scrap from Proton
-Scrap is compressed into
bundle size.
-High quality
-Lower impurities
-High density

New-cutting
-Mostly scraps from electrical
and electronics company.
-High amount of chromium

Wire rod
Wasted billet
-Cut ends of the billets and
rejected billets.
-High density

2.2

Scrap Blending

Crapper crane will lift and transfer the scrap metals into a huge charging
bucket. The scrap must be layered in the bucket according to size and density to
promote the rapid formation of a liquid pool of steel in the hearth while providing
protection for the sidewalls and roof from electric arc radiation. This process is
known as scrap blending as shown in Figure 3.2.1

Figure 3.2.1: The arrangement of scrap metals for lower grade steel in the
first bucket of two-bucket system.
Other considerations include minimization of scrap cave-ins which can break
electrodes and ensuring that large heavy pieces of scrap do not lie directly in front of
burner ports which would result in blow-back of the flame onto the water cooled
panels. Ultimately, the scrap blending will improve the quality of the molten steel.
The arrangement of the layers of scraps is depending on the grade of steel produced
as well as the the bucket system that used for.
2.3

Scrap bucket system

There are 3 types of bucket system being used:

2-Bucket System
-Usually
for

3-Bucket System
the -Usually
for

4- Bucket System
the -Only used during hot

production of the high production of the lower repair.

carbon steel

grade of steel

-Has a shorter time/ heat

-Use all types of scrap

metals

2.4

Some disturbing elements of the scrap metals

We know that scrap metals are not 100% ferrous elements, they contain some

impurities like non-ferrous elements too.

For example, a car wheel is made up of rim and tyre. Tyre, which is made up
of rubber, contain high number of sulphur element that will ultimately corrode the
refractory lining of the furnace in the heating process, due to its acidic effect.
S + 2[O] = SO2 (acidic)
Bricks and sands that are found in the scrap metals will also carry the same acidic
effect as they contain Si.
Si + 2[O] = SiO2 (acidic)
High number of lead, Pb in scrap metals will affect the the process of automatic
mould level control system (AMLC) of the continuous casting machines.

AMLC system is used to control and maintain the molten steel level in the
mould at a certain preset level, whereby the molten steel level is controlled by the
casting speed. AMLC uses the concept of radiator source (Co60) and radiator
detector to control the casting speed.

Impurities like lead will deposited on the surface of mold, and it will
ultimately interrupt the detection of gamma ray emitted from Co60. Thus, the
detector will receive the wrong information and give the false feedback to the roller
speed. As a results, breakout of the steel billet occurs (explained in chapter 6).
There are other non-ferrous elements too like wood, plastic, copper and many
more. So, it is important to control the composition of the various elements found in
scrap metals to ensure a smooth process flow and obtain desired steels grade and
quality.

13
2.5

Furnace Charging

As the beginning of the melting process, the roof and electrodes of the electric arc
furnace (EAF) are raised and are swung to the side of the furnace to allow the scrap
charging crane to move a full bucket of scrap into place over the furnace. The bucket
bottom is usually a clam shell design, for example the bucket opens up by retracting
two segments on the bottom of the bucket. The scrap falls into the furnace and the
scrap crane removes the scrap bucket. The roof and electrodes swing back into place
over the furnace by the control of turret. The roof is lowered and then the electrodes
are lowered to strike an arc on the scrap. This commences the melting portion of the
cycle. The number of charge buckets of scrap required to produce a heat of steel is
dependent primarily on the volume of the furnace and the scrap density. Most
operations aim for 2 to 3 buckets of scrap per heat and will attempt to blend their
scrap to meet this requirement. Some operations achieve a single bucket charge.

14

CHAPTER 2

Electric Arc Furnace (EAF)

Guided by Mr. Zulhisham & Mr. Adli
4.0.Electric Arc Furnace and its operations

Figure 4.0.1: Electric Arc Furnace

Figure 4.0.2: Basic parts of EAF

15
The Electric arc furnace (EAF) that used in the SMP1 is a DC-type furnace,
which uses only one electrode for arcing during melting process. Figure 4.0.1 shows
some of the basic parts of the EAF.
The EAF operates as a batch melting process producing batches of molten steel
known "heats". The electric arc furnace operating cycle is called the tap-to-tap cycle
and is made up of the following operations:

4.1

Melting

Refining

De-slagging

Tapping

Melting
The melting period is the heart of EAF operations. The EAF has evolved into a

highly efficient melting apparatus. Melting is accomplished by supplying energy to

the furnace interior. This energy can be electrical or chemical. Electrical energy is
supplied via the graphite electrodes and is usually the largest contributor in melting
operations. Initially, an intermediate voltage tap is selected until the electrodes bore
into the scrap. Light scrap is placed on top of the charge to accelerate bore-in.
Approximately 15 % of the scrap is melted during the initial bore-in period. After a
few minutes, the electrodes will have penetrated the scrap sufficiently so that a long
arc (high voltage) tap can be used without fear of radiation damage to the roof. The
long arc maximizes the transfer of power to the scrap and a liquid pool of metal will
form in the furnace hearth. At the start of melting the arc is erratic and unstable.
Wide swings in current are observed accompanied by rapid movement of the
electrodes(up and down). As the furnace atmosphere heats up the arc stabilizes and
once the molten pool is formed, the arc becomes quite stable and the average power
input increases.

16

Chemical energy is be supplied via several sources including oxy-fuel burners

and oxygen lances. For the EAF located at SMP1, there are five oxygen lances(KT1
KT5) and one oxy-fuel burner(BSE burner).

Figure 4.1.1: Temperature of the six burners and other parts located at EAF.
Oxy-fuel burners burn natural gas using oxygen or a blend of oxygen and air.
Heat is transferred to the scrap by flame radiation and convection by the hot products
of combustion. Heat is transferred within the scrap by conduction. Large pieces of
scrap take longer to melt into the bath than smaller pieces.
Oxygen is also injected via lance manipulators to "cut" the scrap. The oxygen
reacts with the hot scrap and burns iron to produce intense heat for cutting the scrap.
Once a molten pool of steel is generated in the furnace, oxygen can be lanced
directly into the bath. This oxygen will react with several components in the bath
including, aluminum, silicon, manganese, phosphorus, carbon and iron. All of these
reactions are exothermic (i.e. they generate heat) and supply additional energy to aid
in the melting of the scrap. The metallic oxides that are formed will end up in the
slag.
Coke(Carbon) will be charged through three pumps(KTC1-KTC3) into the

17
furnace and the reaction of oxygen with carbon in the bath produces carbon
monoxide, which either burns in the furnace if there is sufficient oxygen, and is
exhausted through the fume extractor(into a sliding duct) and conveyed to the
pollution control system.
Once enough scrap has been melted to accommodate the second charge, the
charging process is repeated(second bucket and so on). Once the final scrap charge is
melted, the furnace sidewalls are exposed to intense radiation from the arc. As a
result, the voltage must be reduced. Alternatively, creation of a foamy slag will allow
the arc to be buried and it will lessen the sound pollution(lower the big-bang sound)
and protect the furnace shell. In addition, a greater amount of energy will be retained
in the slag and is transferred to the bath resulting in greater energy efficiency.
Once the final scrap charge is fully melted, flat bath conditions are reached. At
this point, a bath temperature and sample will be taken and sent to QA. The analysis
of the bath chemistry will allow the melter to determine the amount of oxygen to be
blown during refining. At this point, the melter can also start to arrange for the bulk
tap alloy additions to be made and send them to the furnace through ACS. These
quantities are finalized after the refining period.

4.2

Refining
Refining operations in the electric arc furnace have involved the removal of

phosphorus, sulphur, aluminium, silicon, manganese and carbon from the steel.
These refining reactions are all dependent on the availability of oxygen. Oxygen was
lanced at the end of meltdown to lower the bath carbon content to the desired level
for tapping. Most of the compounds which are to be removed during refining have a
higher affinity for oxygen that the carbon. Thus the oxygen will preferentially react
with these elements to form oxides which float out of the steel and into the slag.
There are so many processes occur during refining, like decarburization,
desiliconing, dechromiumnization, dephosphorization and manymore, and therefore I
have selected some of the process to discuss.
Dephosphorization

18
By taking phosphorus as the reference, phosphorus occur normally in the
furnace charge in higher concentrations than are generally permitted in steel and
must be removed. Unfortunately the conditions favourable for removing phosphorus
are the opposite of those promoting the removal of sulphur. Therefore once these
materials are pushed into the slag phase they may revert back into the steel.
Phosphorus retention in the slag is a function of the bath temperature, the slag
basicity and FeO levels in the slag. At higher temperature or low FeO levels, the
phosphorus will revert from the slag back into the bath. Phosphorus removal is
usually carried out as early as possible in the heat. Hot heel practice is very
beneficial for phosphorus removal because oxygen can be lanced into the bath while
its temperature is quite low. Early in the heat the slag will contain high FeO levels
carried over from the previous heat thus aiding in my phosphorus removal.
High slag basicity (high lime content) is also beneficial for dephosphorization but
care must be taken not to saturate the slag with lime.
5FeO +2P = P2O5+5Fe
P2O5+ 3CaO= P2O5(CaO)3 (a slag component)

This will lead to an increase in slag viscosity, which will make the slag less effective.
Sometimes fluorspar is added to help fluidize the slag
In general, if low phosphorus levels are a requirement for a particular steel grade, the
scrap is selected to give a low level at melt-in. The partition of phosphorus in the slag
to phosphorus in the bath ranges from 5 to 15. Usually the phosphorus is reduced by
20 to 50 % in the EAF.

Control of the metallic constituents

Control of the metallic constituents in the bath is important as it determines the
properties of the final product. Usually, the melter will aim at lower levels in the bath
than are specified for the final product. Oxygen reacts with aluminum, silicon and
manganese to form metallic oxides, which are slag components.
2Al+3[O]= Al2O3

19
Si+2[O]= SiO2
Mg+ [O] = MgO
These metallics tend to react with oxygen before the carbon. They will also react
with FeO resulting in a recovery of iron units to the bath. For example:
Mn + FeO = MnO + Fe
Manganese will typically be lowered to about 0.06 % in the bath.
Effect of Oxygen
We dont want too much oxygen in our molten steel as it will react with some
element to form some particular oxides which are very acidic. These acidic oxides
will speed up the corrosion of the refractory lining of the EAF, for example:
Si+O2=SiO2 (acidic)

effect of desiliconing

S+O2=SO2 (acidic)

effect of desulphurisation

Thus, we need to increase the amount of carbon to reduce the amount of

oxygen found in the molten steel by adding some DRI, HBI and coke, depending on
the grade of steel.

Carbon content and oxygen content in molten steel is inversely proportional with
each other.
The higher the oxygen indicates that the lower of the carbon inside the molten steel

20

Decarburisation
The reaction of carbon with oxygen in the bath to produce carbon monoxide,
CO is important as it supplies a less expensive form of energy to the bath, and
performs several important refining reactions. In modern EAF operations, the
combination of oxygen with carbon can supply between 30 and 40 % of the net heat
input to the furnace.
Evolution of carbon monoxide is very important for slag foaming. Coupled
with a basic slag, CO bubbles are tapped in the slag causing it to "foam" and helping
to bury the arc (See 4.3).
Decarburization is also beneficial for the removal of hydrogen. It has been
demonstrated that decarburizing at a rate of 1 % per hour can lower hydrogen levels
in the steel from 8 ppm down to 2 ppm in 10 minutes.
At the end of refining, a bath temperature measurement and a bath sample are taken.
If the temperature is too low, power may be applied to the bath. This is not a big
concern though because temperature adjustment is carried out in the ladle furnace.

4.3

De-Slagging and slag foaming

De-slagging operations are carried out to remove impurities from the furnace.

During melting and refining operations, some of the undesirable materials within the
bath are oxidized and enter the slag phase.
It is advantageous to remove as much phosphorus into the slag as early in the
heat as possible (while the bath temperature is still low). By unlocking the platform
lock slagging side, the furnace is tilted backwards and slag is poured out of the
furnace through the slag door. Removal of the slag eliminates the possibility of
phosphorus reversion.

21

During slag foaming operations, carbon may be injected using a lance

manipulator into the slag where it process will reduce FeO to metallic iron
FeO+C=Fe+CO
and in the produce carbon monoxide which helps foam the slag. This foam will
help bury the arc. Burying the arc gives greatly improved thermal efficiency and
allows the furnace to operate at high arc voltages even after a flat bath has been
achieved. Burying the arc also helps to prevent nitrogen from being exposed to the
arc where it can dissociate and enter into the steel.
During slag foaming, slag may overflow the sill level in the EAF and flow
out of the slag door by tilting the EAF. After that, slag door is to be cleaned by a
forklift equipped with a long scoop to remove the remaining slag around the slag
door area by frontward and backward motions repeatedly. After

cleaning,

the

eroded part around the slag door is patched using dolomite sands.
4.4

Eccentric Bottom Tapping

Once the desired steel composition and temperature are achieved at this stage,

the tap-hole is opened, the furnace is tilted, and the steel pours into a ladle for
transfer to the next batch operation (ladle furnace). During the tapping process bulk
alloy additions are made based on the bath analysis and the desired steel grade. Deoxidizers may be added to the steel to lower the oxygen content prior to further
processing. Common de-oxidizers are aluminum or silicon in the form of ferrosilicon
or silicomanganese. Most carbon steel operations aim for minimal slag carry-over. A
new slag cover is "built" during tapping in order to isolate molten steel from
atmospheric gases and prevent heat loss. For ladle furnace operations, a calcium
aluminate slag is a good choice for sulphur control. Slag forming compounds are
added in the ladle at tap so that a slag cover is formed prior to transfer to the ladle
furnace. Additional slag materials may be added at the ladle furnace if the slag cover
is insufficient.

22

4.5

Electric power
To melt steel scrap, it takes a theoretical minimum of 300 kWh/ton. So in

order to melt approximately 90 tons of the steel scrap it take a minimum power of
about 2700kWh to arc and melt down the scrap metals, and thus this process
consumes incredibly high amount of power. Reliable operation of the EAF is totally
dependent on reliable operation of the EAF transformer. Thus, the large furnace
transformers are rated 100MVA or greater.
4.6

Mechanical system of EAF

Mechanical systems are integral to the operation of the EAF and many are

inter-related. For example, scrap containment can only be properly carried out if the
furnace shell is properly maintained. Transfer of the liquid steel to the ladle is
accomplished by tilting the furnace and opening either a tapping spout or a bottom
tap-hole to allow the steel to flow from the furnace.
There are three systems that are dependent of each other so that the furnace is
able to function properly:
1. Hydraulic system
The hydraulic system provides motive power for almost all EAF movements
including roof (lower/raise), roof swing, electrode arms (up/down/regulation/swing),
furnace tilt (forward/backward), slag door (raise/lower) and movement of any
auxiliary systems such as the burner lance.
2. Cooling water system
Another system that is integral to EAF operation is the cooling water system.
Typically, there are several cooling systems. Some operations require extremely
clean, high quality cooling water. Transformer cooling, delta closure cooling and
electrode holder cooling are all such applications. Typically, these systems will
consist of a closed loop circuit, which conducts water through these sensitive pieces
of equipment. The water in the closed loop circuit passes through a heat exchanger to
remove heat. The circuit on the open loop side of the heat exchanger typically flows

23
to a cooling tower for energy dissipation. Other water cooled elements such as
furnace side panels, roof panels, ducting, furnace cage etc. will typically receive
cooling water from a cooling tower. Sensitive pieces of equipment normally have
instrumentation installed to monitor the cooling water flow rate and temperature. For
most water-cooled equipment, interruption of the flow or inadequate water quantities
can lead to severe thermal over loading and in some cases catastrophic failure.
3. Lubrication System
Some parts are lubricated every three roof swings, following tapping, etc. Some
components such as roller bearings are critical to furnace operation and are
lubricated periodically by hand. Some hard to reach locations are serviced using
tubing and remote block.

The graphite electrode of the EAF is about 2.8m long and weight abouot 1.9 ton.
The graphite electrode of the EAF is required to change once after about 20 to 24
time of heat. As the EAF in SMP1 is a DC Furnace, there is only electrode has to be
changed.
4.7

Maintainence
The lining of the furnace will certainly eroded gradually as it is running in a

heavily extreme condition which is heated up to 1600 degree or above at every single
heat. Therefore, we need to make sure that the furnace is in a well condition at every
heat and thus maintenance is required.
There are basically three types of maintenance for the electric arc furnace:
1. Gunning
-is a process where the refractory materials, which is called dolofite, is pasted
on the linings defect spots by using a pumping machine thru a hose. This
process has to be done once after a heat is finished.
2. Hot repair
-like the gunning process, a type of conductive materials, known as MB50 is
patched on the eroded part of the conductive bottom lining of the furnace. It
is to ensure good conductivity between the electrode and the bottom lining of

24
the furnace so that the high efficiency can be obtained during arcing process.
Usually this process is to be carried out twice a week.
3. Cold repair
-is a process which involves the relining of furnace side walls. The content of
the furnace, for example the remaining molten steel, need to be completely
emptied before this process can be carried out. This process is timeconsuming and will decrease the productivity of the plant. Thus, this
maintenance will only carried out once at the period of every two or three
months, depending on the situations.

25
CHAPTER 3

Ladle furnace (LF)

Guided by Mr. Praba
5.0

Ladle furnace and its operation

Figure 5.0.1: Ladle furnace(LF)

Figure 5.0.2: Ladle furnaces parts and operation flow

26

First and foremost, the molten steel is tapped from EAF into LF through
eccentric bottom tapping. Once the molten steel is fully transferred into LF (about 78
ton), LF is then moved to the LFs section by travelling on track. LF is an AC-type
furnace, which is to be inserted with 3 electrodes for further arcing. Ladle refining
takes place throughout the whole ladle process, while there is also a porous plug
which supply argon gas to stir the molten steel.
The main objective of the ladle furnace is that it is required to deliver a ladle
of homogeneous liquid steel to the continuous casting machine (CCM) on time, at
the right temperature, and meeting total chemical specifications.
Time
If there is any delay at the ladle furnace, it can cause a disruption in the sequence and
result in a bottleneck down the line, ultimately resulting in less heats being cast and a
subsequent decrease in profitability.
Temperature
With ladle reheating furnaces, temperature can be controlled to within 5 F of the
target temperature.
Chemical Specifications
If the slag is well deoxidized, the carbon and alloy aims can be met within very tight
tolerances.

27
5.1

Ladle refining

Ladle refining is probably the most important part of steelmaking since it is here
where the hot iron units from the furnace are changed into a saleable high quality
steel product.
Ladle refining implies the following:
Deoxidation and alloying of the steel
Temperature and composition homogenization
Desulphurization or resulphurization of the steel
Improved steel cleanliness (remove the inclusions)

5.2

Creation of slag

Ladle refining begins during tapping from EAF to LF. While tapping, suitable
amount of fluxes like lime, CaF2, or sand are added to create a volume of slag with a
good fluidity (creamy). Besides, addition of alloy such as ferrosilicon and aluminium
during tapping are help to reduce the oxide in slag and form inclusions (to be
absorbed by slag layer).
Benefits of the creation of slag:
1. Cover the arcs in the EAF and LF and protect the refractories from arc-flare
2. Improve the quality of the steel by absorbing deoxidation products (SiO2, Al2O3)
and inclusion products.
3. Dephosphorize in the furnace and desulfurize in the ladle
4. Protect the metal from oxidation
5. Protect the metal from nitrogen and hydrogen absorption
6. Insulate the steel to minimize heat loss
7. Be fully compatible with the refractory lining

Benefits of the good fluidity of slag:

1. To insure minimum penetration and speed up the reaction.
2. Improve thermal efficiency
3. To absorb inclusions effectively make the steel cleaner.

28
4. Improved desulphurization.
Carryover Slag
Although most of the slag formed at the EAF are being removed, but there
are still some portion of slag being tapped together with the molten steel from EAF
to LF. This carryover slag will have some different element composition compared to
the ladle slag and thus it has to be controlled and manipulated.

The extent to which oxidized carryover slag from the EAF can be tolerated in
the ladle depends largely on the type and quality of steel produced. For example, for
some grades of steel, such as rebar, the slag in the ladle plays a limited metallurgical
role because of the fairly high P and S specifications of the steel. Here the carryover
slag has an advantage as it provides the necessary slag volume required for arc-flare
protection. A major benefit of utilizing and optimizing furnace carryover slag is that
the carryover slag is already hot, and mostly liquid, so that it can act as a fluxing
precursor, enhancing the dissolution kinetics of other flux additions. A suitable
amount of lime is usually added to neutralize the slag to improve refractory
compatibility. One of the primary concerns regarding slag carryover is the reversion
of phosphorous for steel grades with very low P specifications. In these cases the
carryover slag is either minimized during tap or removed after tap and a complete
synthetic slag mixture is used.
For the majority of steel grades, a certain amount of slag carryover can be
tolerated, and can even be beneficial, provided that it is controlled and conditioned
by the addition of suitable fluxes and deoxidation agents. The composition of the
EAF slag will have a major impact on the type of slag formed in the ladle, i.e., the
carryover of a "balanced" EAF slag could result in a good slag in the ladle.
Slag components
The approach that will be used to demonstrate slag principles is very simple. The
slag components are divided into two groups as follows:

29
Refractory oxides

Fluxing oxides

CaO

SiO2

MgO

Al2O3
CaF2
FeO
MnO

The amount of these two types of oxides has to be controlled as it can

determine the fluidity of the slag. The balance of these two types of oxides will
result a creamy slag, which is ideal for refractory protection and metallurgical.

Refractory oxides are so called the stubborn oxides. When there is an

addition of too much CaO and MgO, the slag will become too stiff or solid. Thus it
can only give a little or even zero refractory protection of the LF.
When there is an addition of too little CaO and MgO, slag may become too
fluid and it will be very aggressive toward refractory. Thus, only the balance of these
two types of oxides will give an ideal creamy slag.
Addition of fluorspar, CaF2
After the tapping process, arcing process is carried out for about 2 to 3
minutes in the LF. The fluorspar is then added into the LF. Fluorspar is used to
increase the solubility of the refractory oxides, which means to increase the CaO and
MgO solubility in slag. Thus, the slag will have a good fluidity and become creamy.

30
The fluxing potential of CaF2 to bring CaO into solution is very similar to
that of Al2O3, only stronger. One important difference is the MgO saturation levels in
the slag. When the Al2O3 level in the slag increases, the saturation level of MgO in
the slag decrease (at CaO saturation). However, when the CaF2 level in the slag
increases, the solubility of MgO in slag stays increases. This is a very important
consideration when using Mag-C slag line refractories in contact with slags
containing high CaF2 levels.
Fluorspar should never be added in its pure form to a slag but rather in
combination with lime and silica. Lime, silica, and CaF2 mixtures are much more
effective to go into solution than lime and CaF2 mixtures.
The "creaminess" of the slag should be maintained throughout the heat by
adding lime to slag if it becomes too watery.

5.2

Slag treatment

Slag deoxidation
In order to have a better alloy recoveries (yields) and less fading of the steel, it is
required to condition the slag in the ladle by adding a suitable reductant (deoxidizer)
to reduce the reducible oxides (FeO, MnO, Cr2O3) in the slag. Typical slag
deoxidizers are the aluminium and ferrosilicon.
These deoxidizers are added into the molten steel during tapping as well as after the
tapping process. Before the arcing process, the melter will also insert the specified
amount of aluminium rods into the LF.
Reaction occurs when aluminium and ferrosilicon added into LF:
2Al + 3[O] = Al2O3 (aluminium oxide)
Si + 2[O]

= SiO2 (silica)

31
After deoxidizers react with oxygen, they will eventually become inclusions
which is needed to be removed from molten steel. Refer back to Figure 5.0.2, there is
a porous plug which supply the argon gas into the molten steel at LF. This process is
known as argon purging.
Argon purging is done through forming a stream circulation to stir the molten
steel. Thus it will move the inclusions to the top of the molten steel and to be
absorbed by the slag layer. On top of that, purging is also very important in
homogenize the composition and temperature of the molten steel throughout the
whole ladle process. Argon gas is used as the purging gas because it is inert and it has
extremely low reactivity with other substances.
The inclusions might not be fully eliminated through the argon purging. Some
of them will still being unsettled around the molten steel and might clog the ladle
nozzle. To encounter this problem, CaFe and CaSi will be inserted into the molten
steel to modify the solid inclusion into the liquid form of CaO.Al 2O3 to prevent the
nozzle clogging. CaFe and CaSi will be injected into the molten steel in the form of
core wires to ensure the alloy being charged into the molten steel bath. If CaFe and
CaSi are in the form of shots, it may have ended up sticking in the slag as the slag
does not have sufficient energy to melt the metal shots. Normally, CaSi will be
preferred to be injected rather than CaFe as for the reason of lower cost, but when the
Si content is high in molten steel, CaFe will be used instead of CaSi.

Desulphurisation
Desulphurisation occurs after the process of deox
idation. Lime and fluorspar are the main materials used for desulphurisation.
Calcium from these materials will react with sulphur in molten steel to form CaS and
move to the slag layer.
(CaO) + [FeS] = (CaS) + [FeO]

( ) = in slag
[ ] = in steel

32

Colour of slag
The colour of the slag is an excellent indicator for the amount of reducible oxides in
slag:
Component oxide

Colour

CaO

White

MgO

White

SiO2

White

Al2O3

White

CaF2

White

FeO

Black

MnO

Green

Cr2O3

Dark Green

After a series of slag treatment, we can see that the colour of the slag changes from
black to white. This means that the amount of FeO (black in colour) has been
reduced significantly in the molten steel bath, which indicates the recovery of Fe into
the steel bath. FeO can affect the strength of the final product since it is a brittle
oxide, besides, it can also attack the lining of the refractory lining of the furnace.
Thus we can say that good slag treatment can ensure the good quality of steel
produced.
The slag phase has a tremendous impact on the steelmaking goals. Like the
Mr.Praba, the consultant of the LF section said, once you get the nice slag, you will
get a nice steel

33

CHAPTER 4

Continuous Casting Machine (CCM)

Guided by Mr. Rifki

34
Continuous Casting Machine (CCM)
6.0

Overview of Continuous casting machine (CCM)

After the treatment of molten steel bath in LF section, the LF will lifted by a

crane and transferred onto a ladle turret that is located at the top of the CCM for
queuing. The molten steel will then passed down to the tundish through a ladle
shroud. At the bottom of tundish, there are strands that allow the molten steel to flow
out into the mold. The molten steel is then cooled and rolled to become a solidified
billet with the desired dimension
The casting speed and casting temperature of the CCM is vital to ensure the
good quality of the casted steel billets. Thus, the temeperature of molten steel is
controlled throughout this whole process like tundish preheating while the casting
speed is regulated by the automatic mould level control (AMLC).
The advantages of CCM are :
i.

Considerable energy savings.

ii.

Less scrap produced ( improved yield)

iii.

Improved labour productivity

iv.

Improve quality of steel

v.

Reduced pollution

vi.

Reduced capital costs

35

6.1

Types of casting

Open casting
-Used for low quality steel

Submerged casting
-Used for high quality steel

-Casting speed affected by the level of

-Casting speed regulated by a stopper rod.

molten steel inside the tundish. ( tundish

level casting speed )

-Molten steel free-fall into the mold with no

-Molten steel flow into the mold through an

shroud is used. (visible flow of molten steel) enclosed shroud.

-Casting oil is used as lubricant.

-Powder (Flux) is used as lubricant.

-Tundish preheat to around 900C.

-Tundish preheat to higher temperature

(around 1200C)

Open casting

6.2

Submerged casting

Continuous casting machines main components

36

Ladle turret
Ladle turret is a support which is able to hold two LF at the same time. Its
function is to ensure the continuous supply of molten steel into tundish. There are
two positions on the ladle turret which are loading position and casting position.
Once the LF(1) is lifted and transferred to the CCM section, it will be inserted to the
loading position. Once the LF (2) in the casting position is emptied, the turret will
turn 180 to switch the LF(1) from loading position to casting position and therefore
allow the molten steel of LF(1) to flow into tundish.
Tundish
A tundish is a broad, open container with 5 holes (strands) the bottom. It is
used to feed molten metal into an ingot mould so as to avoid splashing and give a
smoother flow. The tundish allows a reservoir of metal to feed the casting machine
while ladles are switched, thus acting as a buffer of hot metal, as well as smoothing
out flow, regulating metal feed to the moulds and cleaning the metal. The tundish is
lined with refractory bricks specific to the liquid metal which is being cast.
On top of that, tundish covering powder is also added on top of the molten
steel inside the tundish. It is to prevent the heat losses, prevent the contact with the
environmental air (reoxidation) and to absorb any inclusions found in the molten
steel bath.
Metallic remains left inside a tundish are known as tundish skulls and need to
be removed, typically by mechanical means (scraping, cutting). Scrap recovered in
this way is ordinarily reused in the steelmaking process.
Mould
Mould is a copper tube coated with chromium that located just below the
nozzle of tundish. It is used to bring the molten steel into the shape of billet, which is
usually in the dimension of 140x140 mm. At the same time, it also act as a first
cooling mechanism that cools the billet. Inside the mould there is a stream of water
flowing (about 1650l/hour) inside the mould that can solidify the outer shell of the

37
billet, which left only liquid core in the billet. The billet will then further cooled in
the cooling zone I, II and III to ensure fully solidified and further strengthening.
The mould will oscillate in a sinusoidal operation throughout the casting
process. It is used to promote the uniform growth of the billet shell and to prevent the
sticking of residue steels on the mould wall.
Shrouding
Shrouding is installed to prevent the heat loss of the molten steel as well as
prevent the contact between the molten steel with the atmosphere (reoxidation might
occur) when the molten steel is channelling from ladle to tundish or also from
tundish to mold.
These shrouds are aided by inert air curtain to shroud the molten steel from
tundish to mould. Argon gas flow is used between ladle shroud and ladle nozzle
while nitrogen gas is used for the shrouds between tundish nozzle and tundish
shroud.
Thus, air is prevented from entering into the nozzle and the number of pinholes can
be reduced ( quality improved).
There are two types of shrouding: submerged entry shroud (SES) and
submerged entry nozzle (SEM). SES is a combination of two parts of body, which
consist of shrouding attached on the nozzle while the SEM is a single body part that
combine both nozzle and shrouding.
There will be some gap between the nozzle and ladle for SES as it is the
combination of two body parts and thus, argon gas purging is needed to prevent the
atmospheric gases from entering to it. Besides, maintenance of the SES will be more
convenient as it can be dissembled into two parts, which means whenever the nozzle
or the shrouding has broken down, we only need to replace the specific part instead
of replacing by a whole new body. While for SEM, the atmospheric air is almost
impossible to enter into the nozzle as it is a single body part with no fit or gap and
thus there is no need for air purging. However, a broken SEM has to be completely

38
replaced by a new one as it cannot be dissemble to parts to be repaired or being
replaced.

Sub-Mould Electromagnetic Stirrer (SMEMS) and Final Electromagnetic Stirrer

(FEMS)
Electromagnetic stirring can improves the quality of the steel in continuous casting.
The stirring flow is created by the electromagnetic fields produced by the metallic
coils of the EMS. This stirrer motion is focused inside the liqiudus core, which
distribute the chemical content like carbon and sulphur so that it is more homogenous
and also to cause the inclusion to concentrate at the centre to improve billet quality.
SMEMS is installed on the lower part of the mould while FEMS is located before the
shear cutter in SMP1. FEMS is being used only for high grade steel, which works
with larger power for better stirring effect.
Automatic Mould Level Control System (AMLC)
AMLC system is used to control and maintain the molten steel level in the mould at a
certain preset level, whereby the molten steel level is controlled by the casting speed.
AMLC uses the concept of radiator source (Co60) and radiator detector to control the
casting speed.
When the molten steel level is too high and over the preset level, the radioactive
radiation will be weaken and then detected by detector. The detector will send a
signal to the withdrawal to increase the withdrawal speed to lower the molten steel
level. The reverse action will be done if the molten steel level is too low. Normally,
the mould level is about 70% of the mould, to provide a good flow of the molten
steel during casting.
Dummy bar
A structure that connects the red hot billet to the withdrawal and straightening unit at
the beginning of the continuous casting process. The dummy bar guides the partially
solidified molten steel from the copper mould to cast out as hot strand and connect to
the withdrawal and straightening unit for further pulling in the beginning of the

39
process. The dummy bar is then shift to the parking position once it had guide the hot
strand to the withdrawal and straightening unit.

Withdrawal roll and straightening roll

Withdrawal roll functions by inserting and withdrawing dummy bar into the
respective casting strands for every start of the new sequence as well as withdrawing
the red hot billet during the casting process. Meanwhile, straightening roll is used to
straighten the billet before billets reaching the cutting length by shear cutter.

Billet cutter
Once the red hot billet have already pass through withdrawal and straightening roll,
the strand will be cut by a shear cutter once they are reaching approximately 12m.
Spray cooling system
There are four zones of spray cooling system used in SMP1, which are spray rings,
spray Zone I, II and III. Spray ring is a round shape spray which is located below
SMEMS for each strand. The purpose of spray ring cooling is ensure the four faces
and the four faces are evenly cooled. Zone I and II are located at the upper part of the
machine, which cools the strands by using strong spray on them. They are to increase
the shell thickness. While Zone III is located at the lower part of the machine, which
uses soft cooling to prevent excessive reheating of the shell.

Turn over cooling bed (TOCB)

TOCB is one of the cooling mechanism that allows the billets to cool from all
direction. It will lift the billets and turn 45, enable the side plane of the billet to be
cooled. TOCB then moves the billets to the receiving area, where there will be a
magnetic crane to transferred the billets.

40

CHAPTER 5

Refractories
Guided by Mr.Nga Kok Hau
7.0

Refractories
Inside EAF, LF and tundish, there will be linings of refractories to protect the

wall of these containers from wearing off in the extreme condition. After every
heating process, the refractories inside the containers will be corroded to a certain
extent, and thus need to be repaired before sending them back again into operation.

7.1

Refractories in ladle furnace

(Structure of refractory picture)

Woking lining has to endure very high temperature and thus special bricks are
needed. Dolomite (CaO), MgC or MgO bricks are used to withstand such high
temperature. This working lining is usually needed to be replaced after 21 to 23
heats, depending on the condition.

Different materials and thickness on the refractory linings have to be

controlled and manipulated in order to achieve effective refractory. The refractory
linings are divided into two depth level which are called slag lining (upper part) and
side wall (lower part). Only slag lining is able to contact with the slag components,
but not the side walls as the slag is strong enough chemically to erode the side wall.
The ladle walls consist of 2 layers of safety lining (permanent lining) and one layer

41
of working lining. These refractories linings are mostly composed of MgC bricks.
There will be also normal bottom bricks and impact bricks (thicker) aligned on the
bottom of the furnace.

Vertical preheating
Vertical preheater is to preheat the refractory bricks for around 10 to 16 hours
until the temperature is high enough for brick-cell interlocking to occur. This
interlocking process occurs as the brick cells expand thermally and squeeze with
each other, thus preventing themselves from falling down when it goes to horizontal
preheating. The vertical preheating station has a rounded concave cover, with a
burner mounted in its centre part. The burner will produce high velocity long flame
to direct the heat towards the bottom of the ladle during heating.

Horizontal preheating
Same concept like the verticle preheater, horizontal preheater is carried out
just before the beginning of the production cycles. Besides, it is also used as a station
to check, repair and clean the purging plug and the nozzle of the ladle.

Types of ladle bricks

There are three types of ladle bricks shape: P-shape, mini key shape and semiuniversal shape (spiral shape). Each type of the brick has their own advantages and
disadvantages. For example, semi-universal shape bricks are easier to place along the
ladle wall and more time-saving, but they often get interlocking problem. Previously
in SMP1, the refractory bricks used in the ladle are in P-shape, until recently they
have been replaced by mini key shape bricks.
Comparison between P-shape and mini key shape bricks:
P-shape
-Easy to arrange

Mini key shape

-Can alter the ladle design ( dimension of

42
-Structure is not strong enough compared the brick is flexible)
to mini key shape

- Not easy to be arranged.

- Erosion may occur faster.

- Has stronger structure.

- It creates gradient to reduce erosion.

In the ladle preparation, the nozzle and the porous plug need to be removed and the
cone surface of the block need to be cleaned by using oxygen blow. If the mortar
stuck, use chisel to clip off carefully, not to damage the block. Blow away the left
over mortar with air.

7.3

Refractories in tundish

Tundish working lining is divided into 3 types: spray material, dry powder and broad
application. The spraying type is the most often used method to apply as working
lining. The examples of spraying material are monolite + SIAM70. Dry powder and
broad application are less practical in SMP1. Basically, after permanent lining (MgO
based) and working lining is apply on the tundish wall. The tundish will be left for 1
hour to be cooled by air. Then the tundish will heat without cover at temperature of
500C and finally heat with cover for 3 hours at their preheating temperature. This is
to prevent the thermal shocking which will cause damages to the refractories inside
the tundish.

43

CHAPTER 6

Quality Assurance
Guided by Mr. Azizan
8.0 Quality Assurance (QA)
QA plays a vital role in SSB, which is responsible of testing and maintaining the
quality of the daily produced steel to meet the customers requirement. There are two
routine works for the QA section, On-line sample testing and billet inspection.

8.1

On-line sample testing

To ensure every billet produced meets the specification of its grade, on-line sample
testing from each section like EAF, LF and tundish is important to ensure desired
quality of billet produced. This on-line checking has been used to monitor the
chemical content of the molten steel at each stage of steel making process.
Test sample will be sent to the QA room by a shooter through a channel. Once the
sample has reached the receiving area, operator will took it out carefully and cool the
sample by dipping it into the water. The sample is then grinded to get a flat surface
for sparking test and further testing.

8.1.1

DS02 Grinding machine

44
DS02 Grinding Machine is used to provide flat surface for on-line sample to
sparking. There are two types of grinding disc used which are P40 and P80. Flat
surface produced is essential for ensuring the accurate sparking test and minimize the
escape of argon gas.
8.1.2

Q8 and M7 spectrometer

Spectrometer is used in the routine analysis of chemical composition for the steel
samples. There are two spectrometers available in SMP1, which are Q8 and M7
spectrometer. This is to avoid any interruption of the production process in case of
either one of them has broken down. The complete analysis of a sample can be
accomplished in less than 2 minutes of sparking. The sparking process is repeated 2
to 3 times while the average results are determined and printed out. After that the
results will be feedback to the respective section through the intercom in order to
monitor the chemical content of the molten steel.
Maintenance, standardization and calibration of sparking machine are essential.
These works have to be done to eliminate the possibility of the analysis error that can
cause the production delay or product downgrade. For example, standardization is
carried out by using the standard sample to undergo the sparking test. If the machines
are performing well, the standard samples sparking result should be within the
acceptable range.

8.1.3

Carbon-Sulphur determination using CS-200

CS-200 uses an induction furnace and measures the carbon and sulphur content using
infrared absorption. It is usually used to double confirm the carbon content of the
high carbon steel. Steps of the analysis are shown as below:
1. A small piece of sample is removed.
2. The sample piece is weighted.
3. Sample piece is then placed into a ceramic crucible with Lecocel and iron
chip accelerator in powder form.
4. Testing is run in pure oxygen environment and heat generated cause sample
to combust.

45
5. During combustion, the carbon bearing and sulphur bearing elements are
reduced. Then they bind with oxygen respectively to from CO, CO2 and SO2.
6. The sulphur and carbon content are measured when both CO 2 and SO2 gases
flow through infrared cells.
7. Results are shown on the screen.

8.1.4

Hydrogen, Nitrogen and Oxygen determination using ELTRA

ONH2000
Hydrogen
Analysis begins with a graphite crucible containing tin flux in the electrode furnace.
Then, it is purged with contaminants and atmospheric gases from the system.
Gaseous impurities trapped in the tin flux and graphite crucible will be cleared out by
the high temperature generated by the high current that passed through crucible.
After series of flushing and filtering, gases are separated in molecular sieve column
with lower molecular weights (hydrogen) pass the column faster than heavier gas
(nitrogen). The detected hydrogen results are then displayed and printed.
Nitrogen/Oxygen
Oxygen is measure by infrared detection and detected in the form of CO 2. Testing
begins by placing empty graphite crucible between 2 electrodes in the furnace and it
is sealed and purged off all athmospheric gases. High current passes through the
crucible, generating high heat to drive off gases trapped in the graphite. This process
is known as out gassing. Following that, the high current again passes through the
crucible to drive off the gases trapped in the graphite. Oxygen released from the
sample is detected in the form of CO 2. After detection, CO2 and water formed are
removed to prevent detection by the TC cell. Meanwhile, gas flow pass through the
thermal conductivity cell detects nitrogen.
8.2 Slag Analysis
8.2.1 Crushing machine

46
For slag sample preparation, the sample must have a flat surface. The slag obtained is
in the rock-form, thus it needed to be crushed into powder and reshape them again in
order to obtain the flat surface.
8.2.2 Mounting machine
After the slag has been crushed into powder, the powder is inserted into the mounting
machine, with the addition of binder. Operator will then turn the wheel of the
mounting machine manually to lower down the mounting die and press forcefully
onto the powder until it compacted to become a slag piece in cylindrical shape.
8.2.3 XRF Machine
The Rigaku XRF machine is used to check the chemical composition amount of the
slag (like SiO2, Cao, etc.) . The level X-ray form surface is <0.1mSV/hr. It provides
quick and rapid analysis of the slag pieces.

8.3

Billet inspection

The process for billet inspection was done by the QA operator. First of all the
magnetic crane will transfer the billet from the cooling bed to the billet inspection
area. The QA operator will measure the cut length for billet from each casting strand.
Each heat will take 1 billet as sample. The operator will cut a small size of portion
for sampling purpose by using oxy cutter. After that the portion of billet will be cut
by using bandsaw to obtain sample in thickness of 30 mm for sulphur print and
rhombodity determination.
8.3.1

Rhombodity

Rhombodity is a test for measuring one diagonal length, D1 and the other diagonal,
D2 for the cross section sample using Vernier caliper. The difference of rhomboidity
D1-D2 must be less than 8mm.
8.3.2

Sparking test

Like online inspection checking, the portion of the billet will be grinded and undergo
the sparking test to obtain the results of chemical composition for checking.

47
8.3.2

Sulphur print

After sparking test, sulphur print is carried out on the surface of test sample to check
and examine the cross section of the surface of the cutting billet to determine the
defects like pinholes, blow-holes, cracks and inclusion. The process of sulphur print
is done according to these steps:
1. The billet edge corresponding with top of colour paper is marked with C.
2. The photographic paper is soaked into 4% sulphuric acid solution for 5
minutes.
3. The photographic paper is adhered over the entire inspection surface.
4. All the air bubbles are removed by rubbing the photographic paper with flat
ruler all over the adhered surface.
5. The sample is left covered with photographic paper for 5 minutes.
6. The photographic paper is removed and the sample is rinsed with running
water.
7. Finally the photographic paper is dried with a hair-dryer.
Billet defects
Internal defects
Triple point cracks

Surface defects
Longitudinal

Diagonal cracks

cracks
Longitudinal cracks in the Transverse depression

Centreline cracks

initial strand
Longitudinal cracks near Strand bulging

Centre

segregation

porosity
Casting flux inclusions

Shape defects
surface Longitudinal depression

the corner
and Transverse surface cracks
Pin holes

Rhomboidity
Surface slag

Cracks are caused by any kind of tension occurring in the cast strand or the solidified
shell exceeding the strength of the material.

Blow holes are mainly caused by insufficient deoxidation of the steel that appear in
various distances and sizes under the surface.

48
Pinholes are produced by some trapped gases inside the steel.
Surface slag depends on the degree of oxidation, respectively on the content of nonmetallic inclusions. If the degree of the liquidity for inclusions is insufficient, solid
slag is floating on top and solidified on the surface to form surface slag, which is
difficult to be removed.

Part II:
Rolling Mill No. 2 (RM2)

49

Chapter 1

Process flow in Rolling Mill No.2

Guided by Mr. Syukur
1.0

Processes in RM2

RM2 is a mill that converts billets (semi-finished products) into rods (finished
products). Processes in the RM2 is shown as the following steps:
1. Before any rolling processes, billets are charged in according to the charging
list.
2. Billets are then reheated to the rolling temperature at furnace before being
rolled.
3. Next, billets are rolled to smaller diameter through a series of roll stands.
4. Billets are rolled to wire rod size after passing through a series of 10 stands in
wire rod block.
5. Wire rods are then cooled to required laying head temperature.
6. Wire rods are layed in coil form through the laying head.
7. After laying, wire rod are quenched to required temperature in order to allow
phase transformation occurs.
8. Wire rod in coil form are then transferred to reforming tub and unloaded to
pallets.
9. Coils in pallet are transferred to C-hook through pallet conveyor and shuttle
car.
10. Coils are transferred to compactor to be compacted and then packed.
11. Coils are then travelled again with C-hook and passed through quality control
section (QC) to be inspected to meet the finish product specification.
12. Finally, coils are then transferred and keep in the store.

50

Figure 1.0.1: RM2 Plant layout

51
Chapter 2

RM2 Charging/Furnace
Guided by Mr. Tan Boon Loong

2.1

Charging system

At the beginning of the process, billets in the billet yard are lifted up by a 15 ton
overhead magnetic crane and transferred onto the charging table. All the billets are
about the length of 11 to 12m, weight about 1.7 to 1.8 ton and with a cross section of
140mm x 140mm. These billets are charged according to the billet charging planner,
which identifies which grade of steel and how much amount of coil should be
produced. Each billet will have their billet number which represent their grade.

Figure 2.1.1: Charging system

52
The charging table charges the billets into roller table (RT) by using hooks that are
supported by the hydraulic system. This process is carried automatically with the
help of sensors. There is a total of 5 roller tables in this system (RT1 to RT5). Billet
is first transferred to the RT1, then rolled to RT2 and so on. RT3 is a pivoting table
that can rotate 90 direction to transfer the billet into RT4. Then the billets are
transferred to RT5, which located inside the reheating furnace.
2.2

Furnace system

Billets are needed to be reheated before the rolling process can carried out to provide
high plasticity and minimum resistance of the billet for deformation during rolling.
It is required to reheat the cold billet up to around 1150C.
The furnace used in the RM2 is the walking beam type furnace, which the billet is
moving slowly while being heated inside the furnace. It can charge up to 70 metric
ton of billets per hour.
Advantages of walking beam type furnace:
1. Billet sticking minimized.
2. Less scale
3. Time exposed to high temperature minimized hence less risk of
decarburization.

Figure 2.2.1: Side view of walking beam type furnace

53
There are five zones inside this walking beam type furnace (ZONE 1 to 5).
Zone 1: Preheating zone
Zone 2: Heating zone
Zone 3: Left soaking zone
Zone 4: Centre soaking zone
Zone 5: Right soaking zone

Figure 2.2.2: Five zones in walking beam type furnace

The temperature is controlled in each of the different zone.
2.2.1

Combustion

The main source of fuel that is used in furnace is the natural gas. It is preferred over
the crude oil as it contains less inclusion and produces less pollution compared to the
crude oil. During heating, certain amount of combustion air is pumped to continue
reheating and maintain the temperature of billet. The pressure of furnace is
monitored to avoid explosion of the furnace. The warm air will pump into the
furnace when the furnace is too hot meanwhile hot air and excess air will be
extracted out via recuperator. Purge is used to absorb the excess air when the furnace
pressure is too high.
2.2.2

Setting of excess air

Setting of excess air in the reheating furnace is very important. This is because
excess air will induce positive pressure in the furnace. Thus, the surrounding air from

54
atmosphere is not allowed to enter the furnace, otherwise the surrounding air will
enter from the bottom of furnace and cool down the surface of billet at the bottom.
This will lead to cooler surface at bottom compared to the top of the billet. This nonhomogenous condition will results in many types of defects such as pin holes and
cracks, due to different rate of shrinkage.

55
Chapter 3

RM2 Production
Guided by Mr. Ang Beng Yong

3.0

Rolling

Basically, the main process in the production of steel rod is the rolling process.
Rolling is a metal forming process in which metal stock is passed through a pair of
rolls. Rolling is classified according to the temperature of the metal rolled. If the
temperature of the metal above its recrystallization temperature, then the process is
termed as hot rolling. If the temperature of the metal is below its recrystallization
temperature, the process is termed as cold rolling.
Rolling is an indirect compression process where the force or stress applied is from
the radial pressure of the rolls. This deforms the metals and pulls it through the roll
gap continuously. It is a process where material are pass through two rollers which
sane peripheral speed in opposite direction in order to achieve the required shape.

Figure 3.0.1: Rolling process

56

Figure 3.1: Production layout ( from furnace until reforming tub)

57

3.2

Basic parts and components in rolling process

3.2.1

Roughing mill (cantilever stand)

Roughing mill or cantilever stand is the primary rolling process where the maximum
reduction of billets cross section takes place. Coming out from the furnace, billets
are deformed effectively once passed through the roughing mill which reduce the
cross section drastically. Roughing mill consists of 6 rougher stands, which included
3 vertical and 3 horizontal stands that are arranged alternatively. Each stand consists
of two rolls where each rolls having one neck for bearing support. Meanwhile, the
pass of the roll for rougher stand is designed into box or box-oval shape.

Figure 3.2.1.1: Roughers

In addition, the mills have large diameter rolls with surfaces that are roughened to
increase the coefficient of friction. This enables the billet to be pulled and rolled
effectively to the next stand and so on. During the rougher stages, the gap of each
stand is remained constant even if the grade of steel is changed. Also there will be
water streaming around these stands to cool down the roller, which is to prevent
overheating of the roller.

58

3.2.2

Intermediate mill and finishing mill

Intermediate mill consist of 8 horizontal stands starting from stand 2 to stand 9.

Finishing mill consist of 4 horizontal stands starting from stand 10 to 13. The pass
design is oval round combination with the even numbered stands oval pass and the
odd numbered stands round pass.

Figure 3.2.2.1: Intermediate mills

Figure 3.2.2.2: Change of shape of passes at different stand during rolling

59

3.2.3

Interstand Looper

A device that situated between intermediate stand and finishing stand which force the
straight bar to form a loop. Looper is normally design to control bar tension free
especially at the mill where bar travelling at high speed. Usually the height of the
loop will be around 160 mm.

Figure 3.2.3.1 : Interstand Looper

3.2.4

Mill guides

At the stages of intermediate mill and finishing mill, the metal rod is having smaller
and smaller cross sectional area, therefore it needs some guiding equipment to guide
it into the stand so that it can be rolled precisely between the rollers in a particular
plane and deliver the product from roll stand. Thus, Entry roller guides are installed
in all odd number stands (3,5,7,9,11,13) while roller guides installed in all even
number stands (2,4,6,8,10,12).

60

Figure 3.2.4.1: Entry Roller guides

Normally, entry roller guide can be found at oval pass enter to round pass which need
a perfect holding to the roll stand with round pass. Entry roller guide can eliminate
scratches of bar surface and also have a vital holding the product in a particular
position.

Figure 3.2.4.2: Twist guide

Twist guide can be found in an oval pass of stand and normally at the exit side of
stand. The twist guide roller are set to a specific angle of rotation relative to the
distance of the next stand.

3.2.5

Wire rod block

Wire rod block at RM2 is a no-twist high speed rod rolling block which consists of
10 stands, ranging from stand 16 to stand 25. The rollers are installed 45 to one
another. This block is important for high speed rolling, which can reached up to

61
120m/s. The wire rod size rolled at RM2 is range from 5.50 to 18.00mm. Different
rolling size requires different series of roller will be applied in the wire rod block.

Figure 3.2.5.1: Wire rod block

Twist-free reduces the chance for cobbling to occur. However if there is cobbling
occurs, there are two lines that installed in the wire rod block will be broken and the
following shear will chop off the wire rod automatically in order to avoid extent
damages.
3.2.6

Mill shear

Shears are installed in the rolling mill from the billet stage towards finishing wire rod
block. The function is designed for chopping the bar head and tail and for emergency
cobble cutting.
Common shear in rolling mill are:
a) Crank arm shear ( shear 3)

62
This can be found after roughing mill. This shear sometimes can be found at
finishing mill as dividing shear in bar mill where it divide the bar into
suitable length for the cooling bed.
b) Rotary shear ( shear 9)

This shear can be found after intermediate mill and use to crop bar head and
tail or continuous cropping in the event of after cobble.
c) Disc shear ( shear 13)

The function is to cut off the bar head and tail before entering the finishing
wire block.
d) Snap shear (before wire rod block)

63

Snap shear can be found before the wire rod block. It is design to operate
automatically in the event of cobble to prevent the remaining cobble entering
the wire rod block.

Figure 3.2.6.1: Cobble event occurs

3.2.7

Pinch roll

Pinch roll can be found before shear, before and after cooling section. Its function is
to guide the bar properly for head and tail crop as well as cobble cut. Pinch roll also
play an important role to control constant speed of material flow as it pinches and
drag the material. Sometimes pinch roll also can be used to brake the material.

64

(picture maybe)

3.3

Various controls of the production.

To ensure smooth processes during production and high quality rod being produced,
there are various things needed to be handled and controlled wisely. Thus, every
operator is required to control and manipulate the production according to the
standard operational procedures (SOP) for the specific event. For example, the roller
size, rolling speed, gap time and rolling temperature are to be controlled according to
the specific billet dimension by referring their SOP.
The main control room at RM2 is known as P4 control room, where it controls
mostly everything in the production of the wire rods.
3.3.1

Test run

Test run is carried out to ensure the smoothness of the process after the daily
maintenance. Basically two types of test run is carried out in RM2, by using short bar
or by using commercial grade billet.
3.3.1.1

Test short bar

The semi-roller bar with length approximately 6m and have smaller diameter than
billet is categorized as short bar. During maintenance, the short bar is soak in
preheating furnace (normally at zone 3) to heat up the temperature. After that, the
short bar will be tested at the first intermediate stand. After the test run, the physical
appearance of the wire rod will be inspected and hence the alignment of the roller
can be adjusted to the correct setting.
3.3.1.2

Using commercial grade billet

65
SSM2 grade billet will be used for the test run. SSM2 billet will charge from furnace
and pass through the whole production line. During a test run, operator will use a
steel bar to hit the on-going steel rod to test its strength and tension by feeling. The
height of the loop and the gap setting will be controlled according to the feedback of
that operator.
3.3.2

Tracking system in P4

Tracking system is a system which used for information traceability where rolling
and steel making process history can be trace back. It is also used for controlling the
automation for loop, tension shear cut and water zone control. Other than that,
tracking system used for temperature control, rougher mill, entry wire rod bar, laying
head and EDC temperature. Tracking system has three types of sensor used:
i. Hot metal detector (HMD) : tension control, shear control and water zone
control
ii. Hot metal position detector (HMPD) : Loop control
iii. Pyrometer : Temperature control
3.3.2.1

Operation control

a) Loop control
Tension free control that achieved by controlling individual motor speed to form free
hanging centenary loops between in line stand.
b) Constant tension control
Min tension control that achieved by controlling individual motor speed according to
tension setting through monitoring of motor load.
c) Cascade control
This control is enabling the speed of downstream stand to be adjusted simultaneously
on top of the individual speed adjustment in order to achieve constant tension
control.

66
3.3.2.2

Temperature control

The temperature of billet is expected to be in the region of upper control limit and
lower control limit. The control of temperature is important as the microstructure will
change as temperature varies. For each grade of steel, they have their own
temperature limit.

3.3.3

Tension/ Gap setting

Every week, there will be a weekly maintenance that serves to preserve the
component of the rollers, for example, replace the old roller, coupling box, and some
mechanical parts, as well as applying grease into the roll chop. Thus, the gap setting
needs to be reset to obtain an accurate gap size for the new rolling process.
To work on this setting, one will need to check the tension by hitting the incoming
test run bar by a bar. Then the tension is determined by looking at the running of bar
whether is smooth, tensed or loosen. Adjustment is made immediately by rotating the
handle.
3.3.4

Online diameter gauge

Online diameter gauge is to control the diameter of wire rod. There will be two
online diameter gauges along the mills to
(internet search xia lor)

3.3.5

Cooling Zone

After the wire rod has reached its desired diameter, the rod will enter the water box
to be cooled down before entering the laying head. Inside the cooling zone, the water
is pumped directly onto the wire rod through five nozzles, where the flow rate and
pressure is to be controlled.

67

Figure 3.3.5.1: Cooling zone

Water box can reduce the wire rod temperature to about 800 -860 C, depending on
the steel grade, in order to achieve the desired microstructure of the rod. The inner
parts of the water zone are established by:

The function of stripper is to block the water which come from the nozzles in
opposite direction to avoid the excess water flowing out of the cooling section.
Drier is to dry off the wire rod by using air blow before travelling to the preceding
cooling section.
After the water cools the wire rod, it will flow out into the water reservoir for further
treatment to be reused.
3.3.6

Laying head

68
Since the wire rod is elongated, it needs to be circled up to make it convenient for
delivery. Thus the laying head will convert the wire rod from a full straight length
into a series of circular rings. The rings are allowed to fall onto conveyor and thus
ensuring the rings are spaced apart for better cooling.

3.3.7

Easy drawing conveyor (EDC)

EDC process is a process for heat treating wire rod after the rolling process. Its main
characteristic consists of rapid and very homogeneous cooling of wire rod in boiling
water.

Figure 3.3.7.1: EDC

69
The cooling process is carried out by adjusting parameters such as conveyor speed,
immersion temperature and dipping time. It is possible to modify the cooling rate to a
large extend in order to produce a large range of high quality wire rod.
EDC cooling conveyor consists of:
-A first dry roller which transported the wire rod loops to immersed water tank.
-Immersed roller conveyor allowed the boiling water quenching of wire rod loops.
-An evacuation conveyor, followed by a roller conveyor up to the reforming tub.

3.3.8

Coil handling station (Reforming tub)

After the circular rings of rod have been cooled, the rings will fell into the reforming
tub. The reforming tub consists of a cap to convert wire rod rings into coil form.
Coil handling area consists of :
1. Trestle line
2. C-Hook Conveyor
3. Compactor
The complete coil was mounted at the tilting device (pallet) and act as transporter to
transfer the coil to the C-Hook conveyor along the trestle line. At trestle line area,
QC will carry out physical inspection at inspection station to check the appearance of
the coil. The coil is then transferred by using C-Hook conveyor to the compacting
area (compactor) for reducing the height of a loose coil by tightening it with 4 tying
wire.
Then it was sent to QC final inspection area for final inspection. The finished product
will then be transferred to the discharging area for storage.

70

Figure 3.3.8.1: Pallet moving on trestle line

Figure 3.3.8.2: C-Hooks carrying the coil

71
Chapter 4

RM2 Quality Assurance (QA)

Guided by Mr. Veloo

4.0

Quality assurance (QA)

RM2 QA is responsible in carrying out quality control of the wire rod, which to
ensure good quality wire rods are produced before they are supplied to the customer.
QA begins their job once the wire rod coil is unloaded into pallet at the reforming tub
until the coil are sent to the store.
4.1

QA online inspection

4.1.1

Physical inspection

Starting from the reforming tub, the pallet is travelled along the trestle line and stops
at a QA station for physical inspection. For lower grade steel, operator will inspect
the sample once after every15minutes of production. While for higher grade of steel,
every coil has to be inspected one-by-one.
Operator will use the Vernier calliper to measure the diameter of the wire rod, as
well as observe the roundness, condition of the surface of head and tail of the wire to
ensure its follow the standard. Then, the head and tail of the wire rod coil will be cut
for further testing. Decision is made immediately after inspection of the wire rod,
either to accept or reject the wire rod coil. If it is rejected, the inspector will inform
the production and QA for correction. The accepted wire rod will continue the
operation to the compacted before it is tagged and stored.
Types of defects like tangle, scratches, wap, dip in water, turn down, oil
contamination, roll mark, roll cross, sharp edges and sharp angle, water temperature
out, laying temperature out, dark spot, surface lap, surface decarburisation and many
more.

72
4.1.2

Upset testing

Lap is one of the defects that will found inside the wire rod. Lap occurs due to the
material lapping or the existence of the pinholes in billets. To identify this defect,
upset testing is carried out to detect the lap in wire rod sample. Cracks occur once the
wire rod with lap is upset.
First, the wire rod sample is collected during physical inspection (head and tail).
After that, the sample sheared and upset by using upset machine. Finally, the upset
sample is cooled down before examined and compared with the upset index.
(diagram please)

4.1.3

Trimming section

C-hook conveyor carries the wire rod coil and passes through the trimming section.
At this section, C-hook conveyors will be stopped one-by-one for operator to trim the
anchor length of the wire rod coil. Anchor length is the certain length of the head
and tail of the wire rod coil, depending on the length of coil where the surface and
dimension are not acceptable by the observation of naked eyes.

4.1.4

Tagging

Another QA section which is for tagging each coil just before the coils are ready to
be sent out to store. The tag of the coil contain many information such as the grade of
steel, heat number, weight and some chemical composition such as Mn and C.
Besides, there is also a logo of the company, SIRIM and its certificate number. Each
alphabet and numbering in tag represent its own characteristic. Usually, there is only
one tag for each coil, unless there is an additional customer requirement.

73

Figure 4.1.4.1: Tags are printed out (ready for tagging)

4.1.5

Online reject

Once a wire rod coil is rejected, it will be transferred into a quarantine area for
storage. During offline inspection, QA inspector will check and confirm whether the
coil can be reworked or be made as scrap.

4.2

Offline inspection

Flow of offline inspection is shown like:

1. Cut off shirt by production
2. Print detail & summary report
3. Inspect unconfirmed products (Upgrade, downgrade or rework)
4. Print summary & by batch report
5. Prepare daily final rolling mill report
4.2.1

Tensile test

Usually three samples are tested per hear. Before run the tensile test, the sample need
to be straighten first before weighing and measuring the length of the sample. After
that, tensile test is carried out by using universal tensile machine (UTM) until

74
samples break. The information such as cross-sectional area, yield strength, tensile
strength, elongation and reduction percentages can be obtained directly from the
machine.

Figure 4.2.1.1: Instron Tensile test machine

4.2.2

Inspect unconfirmed products

There will be three choices to manage these coils: reclass, rework or dump into
scrap.
Reclass consists of upgrade and downgrade of the unconfirmed products. For
example, if the tensile strength found from a grade of steel appears lower than its
minimum tensile strength, downgraded will be done. This process is done through
Material review board (MRB).
Rework is a trimming operation method that trim off the parts of coils which are
having warp and tangle defects that can be reworked. Once the inspector found that
the wire coil cannot be either reclass or rework, the coils will be sent to the scrap
yard to be recycle.

4.3

Material Review Board (MRB)

75
Material review board (MRB) is the process that involved in downgrading of
products. Online downgrading is considered as yield loss, however, offline
downgrading is one of the problems related to inventory downgrading. If the
damaged coil cannot be downgraded to commercial grade, the coil must be scrap
down. All the relevant department manager and Chief Operations Officer (COO)
must verify the process.
General flow for MRB:
1. Put in the form of different category.
2. Attach information
3. Verification from all related department
4. Decision by COO
5. QA offline
6. Finished Good Store
7. Scrap down

4.4

Customer complain

Once there is a customer complain by arguing the quality of the steel products, QA
personnel need to provide information about the coil regarding the history of process
and the final chemistry of the coil to find out the root cause of the problem arise.
Besides, there will be some defect samples of customers product been sent to the
metallurgical lab to check out its microstructure and chemistry again to find out the
root of defects. The sample needs to be examined by using SEM for obtaining a more
accurate information. All data will then be recorded in SAP system and reports were
made to be verified by QA manager. After that, the report will be directed to the
customer and compensation will be made.

4.5

Corrective Action Request (CAR)

76
This is made to overview and clarified all the defects occurred and solve it by
sending the report to the particular production section for the corrective action to be
made to improve the quality of the products. Besides, there is a Preventive Action
Request (PAR) which will ensure the same problem does not occur in the future
again.
Chapter 5

RM2 Finished Good Store

Guided by Mr. Kam Soo Leong

77

Chapter 6

Metallurgical lab
Guided by Mr. Tarmeezy
12.0

Metallurgical lab

Samples from each plant will be sent to this metallurgical lab for checking its
metallic properties. From one heat, 6 sample which approximately 15mm long in
length will be taken.
Process of checking for the samples metallurgy:
Cutting -> Mounting -> Grinding -> Polishing -> Inclusin Checking ->
Microstructure Checking.

12.1

Cutting

There are 2 types of sample cutting method: longitudinal and cross section.
Cross section cut is for detecting defects such as martensite, impurities and dark spot,
while longitudinal cutting is for inclusions checking.
12.2

Mounting

After cutting, the fresh sample is mounted with resin by using an automatic mounting
machine. First, the sample is inserted in the mounting machine, followed by the resin
powder that called Bakelite onto it. Close the cover and start the heating process. It
will take about 15 minutes until the sample is cooked

78

Figure 12.2.1: Sample merged with Bakelite after mounting.

12.3

Grinding & Polishing

After mounting, the sample was grinded using an auto grinder to grind the surface of
the sample. Grinding is to remove all the unnecessary impurities and smoothen the
surface. Besides, polishing also make the surface smoother and clearer for specimen
inspection. Each grinding and polishing have to be start from coarser plate until the
finer plate. After polishing, samples are briefly cleaned with dish cleaner and then
put into the ultrasonic cleanser to clean inaccessible and hard-to-reach areas. Then,
apply the ethanol on the surface of sample and dried it completely with a hair dryer.
12.4

Inclusion and Microstructure checking

Longitudinal sample cutting will be used for the inclusion checking. Inclusion can be
straight away been observed under optical microscope without etching.

Figure 12.4.1: Inclusion in metal

79

Before the microstructure checking, the cross section cutting sample need to be etche
with Nital 2%, if decarburization, defect occur and it might cause by temperature,
oxygen rich area or the period of time.
The results of good or bad sample will be determined by the cementite level and
martensite level by viewing through the microscope.

Figure 12.4.2: Checking the microstructure of sample using optical microscope

80

Part 2
Chap 2 RM production
1. There is a SOP for roller size, rolling speed, gap time and temperature for a
specific billet dimension
2. Tension/gap (that pull the rod through the loop with a height of 160mm )
3. Online diameter gauge shape (2 shape) why will 2 d? one DBIC and another
want call?
4. Use water cooling zone interface to control the flow rate of water and
pressure to cool the rod.
5. EDC to cool rod after layhead.

Wait! (EDC difference with cooling zone?

Cooling zone at where? )

6. Coupling, ffblock???

Maintainence
1. Change coupling box d bush? Because will loosen?
2. There is a twist guide, and roller guide
3. Sterling untuk ubah gap.
4. Pump grease into roll chop.
5. Lespar to control centreline?
6. Pinch roll help to draw rod (especially during last rod)

81
7. Shear knife.
8. Twist guide at 2.4.6.8.,10,12
9. Roll guide at 3,5,7,9,11,13
10. Even number oval shape
11. Odd number round shape
12. S1 to 9 BASIC
13. S10-13 VARIATION

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83

APPENDICES

APPENDIX A: Graphs (Optional)

Spacing between chapter title and first line of text is 4.5 lines. The first paragraph in
a subsection should align with left margin. General alignment for texts in paragraph
should be justified.
Spacing between paragraphs is 1.5 lines. Subsequence paragraphs should be
indented 1.27 cm (0.5 inch) from the left margin. General alignment for texts in
paragraph should be justified.

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APPENDIX B: Log Book

(Attach the daily log in the following pages)

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DAILY\ RECORDS
WEEK NO. __1__
Date
Duties Performed / Task setting
01/10/2015 Orientation day:
-Companys familiarisation
-Learn some rules and procedures to be followed in the
company

02/10/2015 Orientation day:

-Familiarise 5S culture
-Assigned to the R&D department
-Familiarise the workplace of R&D department

Role

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Students Acknowledgement

Supervisors Acknowledgement

_______________________

__________________________

DAILY RECORDS
WEEK NO. ____
Date
5/10

Duties Performed / Task setting

-Study the reading materials to know more about the
production of steel.

-Study the reading materials to know more about the

production of steel.

-Training programme been assigned.

Role

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Students Acknowledgement

Supervisors Acknowledgement

_______________________

__________________________

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REFERENCES

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Mak, J. (2006, October 4). More public holidays for workers. The Star, p. N6.
Martin, S., Smith, L., Forehand, M. R., Mobbs, R., Lynch, T. F., Renfrew, E. J., et al.
(2001). Use of collaborative technology in business, The Academy of
Management Executive, 19, 130-138.
Playfair, J. H., & Bancroft, G. J. (2004). Infection and immunity. (2nd ed.). Oxford:
Oxford University Press.
Reppel, F. G. (2003, February 13). Conflict and cognitive control. Natural Science,
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Roeder, K., Howdeshell, J., Fulton, L., Lochhead, M., Craig, K., Peterson, R., et. al.
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Serlin, R. C., & Lapsley, D. K. (1985). Rationality in psychological research: The
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Skinner, M. E., Sun, K. F., & Liu, R. P. (2005). Small group learning. Psychological
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Walker, M. M. (2001). Transfer of lexical information in adults with reading
disorders. Perceptual and Motor Skills, 93 (1), 257-267.

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