Dynamic Modeling of an Industrial Electric Arc Furnace

This paper describes the development of a dynamic model for an industrial steelmaking electric arc furnace (EAF). The model is sufficiently detailed so as to describe the melting process and chemical reactions and account for reagent and energy additions. The lack of knowledge of reaction mechanisms due to the complex nature of the reacting system is overcome by modeling the process as equilibrium zones with mass transport limitations. An important objective of developing this model is to ensure that it can be used within an optimization framework, thus particular consideration is given to the continuity of model equations and the robustness of the model over a wide range of conditions. Parameter estimation is carried out using industrial data and the model performance illustrated through simulation studies.