PRESENT STATE OF STEELMAKING TECHNOLOGY IN KOBE STEEL.

Steelmaking technology in Kobe Steel has changed drastically in the last decade to respond to the grading up of wire and rod products, increasing demands for low phosphorus and low sulfur steel plates, and the expanding application of continuous casting. Hot metal treatment including lime based flux injection, combined blowing of LD converter and ladle refining with heating have enabled production of ultra clean steels having less than several ten ppm of C, P, S, N, O and also non-metallic inclusions. Some technologies on heat efficiency, heat compensation and the recovery of alloying element are also outlined from an economic point of view.