Sophisticated multi-phase multi-flow modeling of the blast furnace

Abstract

This article introduces an improvement of an existing blast furnace total model called the Four Fluid Flow Model, maintained by the last author. The derivation of solid phase motion in the former model is now replaced by an external numerical code, which implements a very specific granular flow theory called hypo-plasticity. The calculation method in the external solid flow model is based on the finite element method (FEM), and differs from the method used in the fluid flow model (finite volume method or FVM), hence their separation. Both models are run one after the other by exchanging data such as solid velocity field, drag forces and solid voidage, until convergence. One major issue of the additional solid flow model is its ability to calculate the shape of the dead man (the name of the stagnant zone inside the blast furnace), whereas its shape was prescribed in the fluid model. The solid flow model also introduces stress state dependence on voidage, and takes into account source and sink terms related to solid phase physical and chemical transformations.