Ladle Refractory Monitoring System

Factory Monitoring system

Refractory Lined ladles are used to transport molten steel from steel making furnace to the casting facility in Steel Industry. Due to the excessive temperature in this process, refractory linings degrade or develop cracks & the outer parts can be exposed to excessive temperature.

There is always risk of ladle breakout which can lead to equipment damage & hold the production. Besides the economic impact, breakout can be dangerous & there is potential risk of injuries & loss of life.

Maintenance of refractory is including significant cost which increases the cost of production.

steel ladle refractory lining
Ladle Refractory

AST Solution:

AST have reliable & accurate solution for ladle refractory temperature monitoring to ensure safety of plant and help in maintenance schedule in steel plants across the world. AST has special system named ThermCAM 384, a thermal camera which are mounted on four directions to monitor the ladle effectively. This camera has such FOV so that it can view complete profile of the ladle. This system provides thermal images of the ladle by measuring the temperature at ladle surface. This helps us to get indications such as refractory wear, enabling effective relines schedules to be set.

These thermal images & temperature data are stored for analysis & quality control. AST Ladle refractory monitoring system uses four ThermCAM 384. Three cameras are placed around the ladle and one underneath the ladle. These four cameras are connected to 4 SBC’s. Data processing occurs in these SBC’s Areas of Interest (AOI’s) is established in critical areas. AOI’s are evaluated against set points. AOI’s can output Average Maximum, or minimum. Automatic capturing of ladles is done as they pass by. The output of these SBC’s is sent to a PC via 8 port Gigabit router. Infraview software collects temperature data and provides thermal images.

lte 384 thermal camera
ThermCAM 384

ladle refractory thermal heating
Thermal view of Ladle refractory

Key Benefits

  • Improved Safety
  • Allows timely replacement of refractory lining before failure
  • Prevention of break-outs
  • Extended lifetime of ladle refractories
  • Evaluation of different refractories
  • Detection of problematic areas
  • Cast refractory uniformity

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