Coke Reactivity under Blast Furnace Conditions and in the CSR/CRI Test

The present work aims to study the high-temperature strength of coke. Mechanisms of disintegration were evaluated using basket samples charged into LKAB's experimental blast furnace prior to quenching and dissection. Coke charged into basket samples was analysed with CSR/CRI tests and compared with treated coke from the blast furnace. Results from tumbling tests, chemical analyses of coarse and fine material, as well as light optical microscopy studies of original and treated coke have been combined and evaluated. The results indicate a correlation between the ash composition and the CSR values. Differences in the texture of the coke were noted with light optical microscopy, and a significant change in the coke texture during the CSR/CRI test conditions was found. The results suggest that the main reaction between coke and CO2 took place in isotropic areas, which was especially pronounced in coke with a low CSR. Signs of degradation were apparent throughout the coke pieces that have undergone CSR/CRI testing, but were less observable in coke reacted in the blast furnace. The results indicate that reaction with CO2 is generally limited by the chemical reaction rate in the CSR/CRI test, while in the blast furnace the reaction is limited by the diffusion rate. Coke degradation is therefore mostly restricted to the coke surface in the blast furnace.