Programming of Operation in Electric Arc Furnaces

The objective of this paper is to analyze the decrease of the “tap to tap,” or operating time, of arc furnaces. A study that includes dynamic programming is carried out in the programming of operation of electric arc furnaces. Optimization of the operation is performed at a later phase of the research. Each step of the process is analyzed or put into operation following the direction of an expert. Following specific operating conditions, the behavior of the furnace is characterized and the relationship between voltage levels in the secondary arc is identified using a circular diagram in order to find the feasible region for the optimal solution. The search is carried out in the furnace feeder, and the furnace specific mechanisms are identified in order to decrease the “tap to tap.” This analysis allows the proposal of a new optimization model that considers dynamic.