With blast furnace service lives typically extending to 20 years or more, it is essential that effective intermediate refractory repairs are performed to address advancing wear in areas such as the stack, tuyere, tap holes, hearth walls and pad.
Saint-Gobain Performance Ceramics & Refractories offers castable solution, ideal for hearth wall, tap hole, tuyere and bosh repairs:
Sialfrax™ 18 Cast (colloidal silica bonded) for reprofiling and tap hole repairs in the hearth.
| Area | Main wear mechanism | Suitable Product |
| Hearth | Molten Iron/Slag Erosion | Sialfrax™ 18 Shot+ Sialfrax™ 18 Cast+ |
| Lower Stack | Abrasion / Strong Alkali Attack | Sialfrax™ 18 Shot+ |
| Middle and Upper Stack | Abrasion at < 1,000°C | Sialfrax™ 18 Shot+ |
Sialfrax™ 18 Cast demonstrates high mechanical strength at high temperature, while its SiC content ensures high alkali and abrasion resistance.
While regular hearth repairs will not eliminate the eventual need for a full blast furnace reline, they offer significant operational benefits. These include:
In short, regular hearth maintenance is a strategic approach to maximizing furnace uptime and optimizing lifecycle costs.
