Investigation of Molten Metal Infiltration into Micropore Carbon Refractory Materials Using X-ray Computed Tomography.

The lifetime of a blast furnace (BF), and, consequently, the price of steel, strongly depends on the degradation of micropore carbon refractory materials used as lining materials in the BF hearth. One of the major degradation mechanisms in the BF hearth is related to the infiltration and dissolution of refractory materials in molten metal. To design new and more resilient materials, we need to know more about degradation mechanisms, which can be achieved using laboratory tests.