Industrial Problem Solving (IPS) Contest The primary objective of introducing a new event Industrial Problem Solving (IPS) Contest in BTTD 2018 is to inculcate industrial exposure as well as the multitasking ability such that the young engineers would meet the present industrial demand. Rules: 1. Industrial problems are invited from several metallurgical industries and few potential industrial problems are selected based on the technical session themes of the oral presentations. 2. The problems statements are available online for the participants to work on it, since 29 th June 2018. 3. As the problems are related to technical session theme, naturally the BTTD participants/presenters of particular technical sessions are expected to solve the respective industrial problem. E.g. participants belong to Session 1A: Advanced materials and emergent technologies have to solve for the problem on Anti-stick and wear resistant solution for raw material chutes. 4. For session III B: coal processing, non-ferrous extraction and waste utilization, participants belong to TP 42 49 are expected to solve the problem Tackling Anode Effect in Aluminium Extraction and TP 50 55 are expected to solve the problem Utilization of copper slag in cement industry. 5. Although the problem statements are available in BTTD website, each problem statement will be formally introduced to the participants by the respective technical session chairs during the oral presentation on 5 th July 2018. 6. As the problem and contact address of authors of respective paper presenters is mailed to you, discussion among yourself and preparation to solve the task in group is encouraged. 7. The contest will be evaluated based on depth of understanding about the particular problem, related basics, feasibility of the solution to adopt in industries, team work, communication/presentation skills and timing. 8. The BEST SOLUTION AWARD for the IPS contest will be given to one group/session/theme. 9. Student participants are requested to feel like they are employed in the industries and you are asked to solve the problem by your company top management.
Problem Statements for Industrial Problem Solving (IPS) Contest 1. Theme: Advanced Materials & emergent technologies (Session I A) Domain: Advanced Material Development Industry: TATA Steel Ltd., Jamshedpur Name of the case: Anti-stick and wear resistant solution for raw material chutes Introduction: Different raw materials like iron ore lumps and fines, fluxes, coal etc. pass through chutes from one conveyor belt to another. These are often abrasive in nature and contain high amount of moisture. This combination results in combined problem of high wear rate and jamming of chutes which ultimately leads to production loss. Background: Jamming of raw material chutes is serious concern as they result in interruption of regular operation for cleaning on daily basis. This problem aggravates in the monsoon season due to higher percentage of moisture (around 12-18 %). This problem when combined with the wear makes the situation even more challenging to deal with. Problem Statement/Challenges Faced: Wear resistant materials consist of application of conventional high chromium cast iron or hard-facing alloys with different alloy carbides but they are not resistant to sticking. On the other hand, anti-stick coatings are mostly polymeric compounds that cannot withstand severe wear. Thus, the challenge is to develop a solution that can counter these opposing phenomena. 1. What design modification of chute can minimize wear and jamming? 2. Suggest a material which can substitute conventional hard facing alloys in the chute used for wear resistant properties? 3. Can non-metallic materials challenge conventional hard-facing alloys? 4. What methodology should be used for alloy design of hard-facing so as to tackle the issues of wear and jamming?
2. Theme: Damage Mechanisms in Materials (Session I B) Domain: Welding Technology & Industrial Corrosion Industry: BPCIL, Assam Name of the case: Repairing of pressure vessels in refineries Introduction: During repair of pressure vessels, welding technique has to be employed. The pressure vessel components contain corrosive fluids and will be operated at high pressure (85 kg/sq.cm) and temperature of 343 C intended for chemical reactions. Now after a year of service, the internal tray system which was fitted with rivet joints was affected by pitting corrosion. So, it has been recommended to replace pitted trays with new trays and during replacement the edges of trays were welded back and riveted to fit position as design drawings. Background: Repair and construction by welding process is one of key production technique for major process industries. Nondestructive testing of repair components is sufficient to ensure to welding quality. However, certain design aspects of components should be considered while repairing. Problem statement/challenges faced: Corrosive species are prone to attack the carbon steel metal surfaces at high temperatures. Welding a corroded part is very critical and complex due to preparation of edges; preheating and post weld heat treatment of pressure vessel. 1. What are major corrosive elements will lead to pitting of carbon steel? 2. How temperature and pressure plays a role in corrosion of metals and alloys? 3. What are all factors to be considered while evaluating material selection for pitting corrosion and how PREN helps in identifying material selection? 4. While welding the rivet at ends to be free or to be tight? Explain each case with respect to mechanical stress and phase transformation.
3. Theme: Steelmaking & Rolling (Session II A) Domain: Hot metal pretreatment Industry: M N Dastur & Co, Kolkata Name of the case: De-Siliconization (De-Si) of hot metal in steel plant Introduction: Silicon is an impurity that will be removed by oxidation in the steelmaking process. Due to its strong affinity with oxygen, it easily gets oxidized from metal to slag which is a highly exothermic reaction. However high Si content of hot metal is undesirable for the basic steelmaking process as it requires more lime, causing more slag volume, slag foaming and loss in temperature. Therefore, hot metal De-Si helps in controlled as well as economical steelmaking operation. Background: Mill scale addition in the blast furnace runner is a cheap method of De-Si, requiring no separate treatment station. The iron oxide content of the mill scale oxidizes the Si in the hot metal. Problem Statement/Challenges Faced: De-Si by iron oxide is an exothermic reaction. However cold additions of mill scale and fluxes (such as lime for formation of fluid slag) might affect the thermal balance. The obtained De-Si efficiency is usually inconsistent due to the way of addition, metal flow pattern in the blast furnace runner and presence of furnace slag that is not skimmed properly. 1. Is there a favourable heat balance? If it is unfavourable, what is the degree of De-Si that 2. can be achieved (say, for hot metal of Si content of 1.0, 0.8 and 0.6 mass %). 3. What mode of additions can enable consistent De-Si? 4. What runner design modifications can enable consistent De-Si? 5. What other agents can be introduced to enhance the De-Si efficiency?
4. Theme: Microstructural Engineering & Phase Transformations (Session III A) Domain: Materials Development & Microstructural Engineering Industry: Vedanta Aluminum Name of the Case: Improvement of impact toughness of high-chromium white cast iron for abrasive kneader applications. Introduction: High chromium white cast iron is the most suitable candidate material for wear resistant application owing to their high hardness. However, certain applications where white cast iron is used also include service conditions comprising that of excessive abrasion as well as significant impact. One such example is kneader flight components which are used in production of green anode pest (GAP) in an Aluminum industry. During the kneading action, rotation and oscillation of the component simultaneously take place. This oscillation action between two teeth demands higher impact toughness and the rotation leads to crushing heavy abrasives, thereby requiring very high wear resistance. Background: In high chromium white cast iron both the matrix as well as the combination M7C3 and M23C6 carbides impart the superior wear resistance. However, the impact toughness lies at a compromised level of ~ 2-4 J. But certain applications demand high impact toughness as well along with high wear resistance. Improving the impact toughness poses a difficult challenge as by simple modification of morphology of carbides or matrix phase would leave hardness and subsequently wear resistance inferior. Problem Statement/Challenges Faced: Enhancement of impact toughness has been attempted by precipitating more amount of M23C6 carbides which leaves behind a reduced volume fraction of M7C3 carbides. However, this leads to inferior wear resistance due to lower hardness. 1. What should be the generic approach to tackle such issues of improving the toughness of the material while not hampering the wear resistance? 2. What should be targeted so as to control the type of carbide that will form at lower temperature (i.e. < 700 o C)? 3. How the morphology of M7C3 carbide plays a role in determining the hardness and toughness of white cast iron? How can it be altered? 4. Which type of matrix can provide better wear resistance and impact toughness (i.e. > 10 J) when present along with carbides?
5. Theme: Coal Processing, Non ferrous extraction & Waste Utilization (Session III B) Domain: Extraction of Aluminium Industry: BALCO, Korba Name of the Case: Tackling Anode Effect in Aluminium Extraction Introduction: Aluminium is extracted from alumina by means of Hall-Heroult process. A typical modern aluminum reduction cell, commonly called a pot, consists of a rectangular steel shell, lined with refractory thermal insulation. Within this is an inner lining of SiC to contain the highly corrosive molten fluoride electrolyte (or bath, as it is commonly called) and liquid aluminium. Electric current enters the cell through prebaked carbon anodes. A crust of frozen bath and alumina covers the molten bath. Cells are generally fed alumina in frequent small doses by point feeders. Molten cryolite (Na3ALF6), having a high solubility for aluminium oxide, is the major component of the Hall-Heroult electrolyte or bath. Background: Anode Effect is a characteristic phenomenon in molten salt electrolysis, especially in cryolite - alumina melts electrolysis. During its occurrence, the cell voltage rises to 20-30 V, there is a sparking on the anode, a hissing sound is heard, and the anode bus bars vibrate. The normal electrolysis process is then interfered and the energy consumption increases significantly. Problem Statement/Challenges Faced: During an Anode Effect, the electrolysis mechanism is changed. The bath is agitated & the temperature increased. This can lead to considerable losses in Current Efficiency at Pot Line. The Anode Effect cannot be eliminated fully. Thus, the challenge is to reduce the Anode Effect frequency in Pot Line without affecting Bath Chemistry. 1. How Anode Effect occurs in the pot? 2. What optimum Alumina Concentration in bath should be maintained to avoid AE? 3. How Wetting of anode in bath is reduced by AE? 4. Propose few actions to be taken in pot operation to reduce the anode effect frequency.
6. Theme: Coal Processing, Non ferrous extraction & Waste Utilization (Session III B) Domain: Utilization of Copper slag Industry: Aditya Birla Name of the Case: Utilization of copper slag in cement industry Introduction: Copper slag is a by-product obtained during matte smelting and refining of copper. One of the greatest potential applications for reusing copper slag lies in cement and concrete production. Despite increasing rate of copper slag utilization, the huge amount of its annual production is disposed in dumps or stockpiles to date. (2.2 T of copper slag is generated for every ton of the copper produced). Background: Typical composition of Cu slag is Fe2O3: 35 60%, SiO2: 25 40%, CaO: 2 10%, Al2O3: 3 15%, CuO: 0.3 2.1%, MgO: 0.7 3.5%, the main component being vitreous FeSiO3. The chemical analysis of the slag indicates that its matrix is compatible with the cement system and can be used in the manufacturing of OPC (Ordinary Portland Cement). By using copper slag even as a partial replacement of cement, substantial amounts of energy required for production of cement can be saved. Further, copper slag has also been used as an iron adjustment material (high Fe content) during the cement clinker production, however to a limited extent. Problem Statement/Challenges Faced: The phases and the respective composition of Cu slag hinders its bulk utilization in cement production. 1. How Cu slag aids in the cement clinker production? 2. What are the possible separation methods to remove iron from Cu slag? 3. How Cu slag can be chemically modified to increase its incorporation in cement?
About the IPS contest on 6 th July 2018: 1. Contest will take place in NML auditorium from 14:30 to 16:30 Hrs on 6 th July 2018. 2. Contest involves three rounds. i) Group discussion, ii) First round discussion with technical people (technical consultant) and iii) second round or stage round in front of expert panels from industry and R&D (employers). 3. The main objective of this round is to make the student participants feel like they are employed in the respective industries and have been asked to solve the problem in group by their company s top management. 4. During group discussion, participants are expected to discuss among themselves within their group related to the problem. Statements regarding the problem clarity (in terms of technical and practical implications), causes and remedies in short have to be written in the given slips and pasted on the respective boards placed in the auditorium foyer. It is encouraged to have at least as many numbers of slips with ideas/information on the board as the number of team members to project your team s capability to solve the problem. Allotted time for this round is 15 minutes. 5. Two persons related to the technical domain of the problem (i.e, consultant outside of your company) are allotted for discussion and they will be available to the respective groups. During, first round technical discussion, you are allowed to refine/compile your problem definition, solution, causes carefully in discussion with the allotted technical persons so as to make your solution worth enough for the The Best Solution Award. Allotted time for this round is 15 minutes. 6. In the final round of IPS, a representative or group of people is expected to present/explain the ideas, views, solution, practical difficulties etc. related to the given problem in front of expert panel, which would be consisting of experts from industries and R&D. 8 minutes times will be given to present/explain your ideas followed by 4 minutes of discussion with the expert panel. 7. BEST SOLUTION AWARD will be recommended only to one team by the expert panel.