http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9l7JqonyoKA
STEEL: From Start to Finish (6:45), US Steel
Blow up the earth to discover iron ore, which is separated with magnets. Converted to pellets to turn into coke, that is heated into solid carbon fuel.
95k tons a day produced in the blast furnace
1.
Recycled steel scrap is placed into oxygen furnace, which is then mixed with iron to create steel
2.
1500 different chemistries to meet customer demand
3.
US Steel plants make sheet products, mostly slabs, up to 40ft long
4.
Slabs are reheated, and thinned, to roll into coils and sheets
5.
Controlled entirely by operators using automated equipment http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5zwgI-pQ6kE
Stainless steel production process- ArcelorMittal plant (8:46)
1.
Begins with recycled steel scrap and ferro-alloys
2.
All the waste products are reused
3.
All materials to be melted down are put into hoppers; chromium is added, along with other ferro-alloys like nickel.
4.
AOD Converter: Oxygen and argon gases are blown to purify the steel by removing unwanted carbon a. Different alloys and chemicals are added at this stage
5.
The process is like a “chef preparing a fine dish”
6.
Molds are made out of copper, and are cooled with water
7.
Like USS, ArcelorMittal casts slabs, which are then reheated and rolled into sheets- when it enters it is 32cm in thickness, when it exits it is only 1.5 mm thick (can be reduced 20x)
8.
Like USS, it is also a computerized process http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eXdCrZVLums&feature=related
Electric Arc Furnace (not applicable to AM project) (2:54)
1.
Melt 100% scrap steel by 100% electrical energy a. each batch is 165metric tons
2.
Can reduce amount of energy required to produce the steel a.
makes the steel more energy efficient b.
the furnace is completely computerized with sensors, allowing it to be controlled at each step to reduce the energy used c.
goal is to make a reduction of 5% (36kWh/ton of steel) in EAF energy use http://www.arcelormittal.com/stainlesseurope/manufacturing-process.html
Animation based video (repeats most of what is said in the Arcelor Mittal video, but goes more in depth) (

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xj4OFezTraA&feature=related
Metal recycling from scrapped cars, and its reclamation
Two types of scrap metal: Ferrous and nonferrous
metals can be recycled indefinitely without losing their properties
takes about two days to process materials (old cars and appliances)
raw material is scanned and stacked for items that won’t shred or process
conveyer belt is loaded with materials that are sent to the shredder
shredder shreds into fist sized chunks
industrial vacuum sucks out rubber and glass that gets mixed into the shredded steel
steel pieces stick to magnetic drums, which is then picked for items tat are unwanted, and then shipped to steel companies for reuse http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uT1hUC4JHy4&feature=related
Metal recycling back into steel
recycles scraps of metal, along with other materials
metal compacting plant sorts various metals (steel, aluminum, etc), chops, and shreds them so they can be sent to production mills and reused
- metal scraps are crushed into blocks for further reclamation