CONCEPT ENGINEERING STUDY, PRELIMINARY AND DETAILED OF A COOLING WATER FILTRATION SYSTEM FOR CASTING IN A FOUNDRY (LA11)

ISSUE

A factory operates a process for producing ferrosilicon. Ferrosilicons are produced in a cooled oven with a cooling water circuit. The metal is cast into an ingot and sprayed by the water onto the hot metal to cool it. The hot water is cooled by a cooling tower and subsequently recirculated to the process. Metal particles were settled and accumulated in the pond, and the cooling system results in cleaning costs as well as an additional consumption of chemicals for water treatment.

TECHNOLOGICAL CHALLENGE

The project's goal was technological identification to remove 90-95% of the solids in the ingot water cooling circuit.

RECOMMENDED SOLUTION

This project was carried out in two stages, conceptual engineering, which consists of evaluating families of technological options for water treatment. This study made it possible to select and recommend the option best suited to the client's needs. The projects included a cost evaluation and assessment of the technological diversification of suppliers.

The second phase was the preliminary and detailed engineering and the realization of laboratory tests on a water sample from the process. Laboratory tests are required to determine the filtration parameters needed to size the filtration equipment. After the determination of the equipment's sizing, a request for a quote was sent to multiple suppliers to obtain prices (± 10%) for the main component of the system.

RESULTS

oncept engineering allowed for the evaluation of families of technological options, to select and recommend the option best suited to the client's needs. The rest of the project included laboratory tests to allow equipment sizing. All necessary information and documents, including the RFQ information, suppliers' submissions and installation procedures, were transferred to the customer. The installation of equipment was not part of STS Canada's mandate. These engineering studies have enabled the customer to obtain the best filtration equipment for their application at the lowest cost of purchase and installation.