Sintering facility and sintered ore cooling method

Abstract

To provide a sintering facility which can reduce the leakage of cooling air from a chute, and a sintered ore cooling method using the same.SOLUTION: A sintering facility comprises a sintering machine, a crusher, a cooling machine, a chute (40) and a shield plate (50). The chute (40) receives sintered ore grains (SO) and introduces the same into the cooling machine. The chute (40) comprises: a chute body (41) with the sintered ore grains (SO) flowing inside; and a swelling part (42) swelling from a part of the chute body (41) upward. The shield plate (50) is fitted to a shaft body (51) in an internal space formed by the chute body (41) and the swelling part (42). The shield plate (50) is configured to be switchable between an open state in which the sintered ore grains (SO) can flow within the chute body (41) and a closed state in which the sintered ore grains (SO) cannot flow within the chute body (41) by being rotated around the shaft body (51).SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to sintering equipment and a method for cooling sintered ore using the same. [Background technology]

[0002] In the pig iron making process, iron ore and coke are charged into a blast furnace, where they are subjected to a chemical reaction at high temperatures to produce pig iron. The raw material (iron ore) charged into the blast furnace is usually sintered ore produced in a sintering facility. The sintering facility includes a sintering machine. The sintered raw material is baked in the sintering machine to obtain sintered ore cake, which is the base for sintered ore. The sintered raw material is, for example, a mixture of fine ore, powdered coke, and coal.

[0003] The sintered ore cake is discharged from the sintering machine and crushed by a crusher. This forms sintered ore. At that time, the sintered ore cake discharged from the sintering machine has a temperature of approximately 600°C. Therefore, the hot sintered ore is supplied to a cooler to be cooled before being sent to the belt conveyor. Specifically, the sintered ore crushed by the crusher is guided to the cooler through a pipe called a chute. The chute extends, for example, from above to below at an angle.

[0004] In recent years, from the viewpoint of energy saving and dust prevention, closed ventilation type coolers are widely used as coolers for cooling sintered ore. This type of cooler, for example, draws in outside air (cooling air) by a fan and cools the sintered ore with the drawn air. In this case, in order to effectively cool the sintered ore in the cooler, it is necessary to reduce as much as possible the amount of wasted cooling air that does not contribute to cooling the sintered ore. If the amount of air that does not contribute to cooling the sintered ore increases, the cooling capacity of the cooler decreases.

[0005] Conventionally, as ventilation cooling type coolers, linear conveying pan type, annular pan type, annular hopper type, and other types of coolers are known. In these coolers, sintered ore introduced into the cooler through a chute is piled up on the pan or in the hopper. In the pan or hopper, the piled up layer of sintered ore is sealed by a water seal structure or the like to prevent cooling air from leaking out. On the other hand, the lower part of the chute is filled with sintered ore, and the piled up layer of sintered ore increases the ventilation resistance. Specifically, the ventilation resistance of the piled up layer in the chute is designed to be larger than the ventilation resistance of the piled up layer in the pan or hopper, which should promote ventilation. The seal by the sintered ore piled up in the chute is called a material seal.

[0006] A cooling machine using a material seal is described in, for example, Patent Document 1. Patent Document 1 discloses a cooling machine with a circular hopper. In this cooling machine, sintered ore is accumulated in a hopper and further accumulated in a chute. Patent Document 1 describes that by making the height of the sintered ore accumulated in the chute higher than the height of the sintered ore accumulated in the hopper, the sintered ore in the chute can be used as a material seal. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0007] [Patent Document 1] JP 2008-232519 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0008] Depending on the operating conditions of the sintering equipment and the arrangement of the sintered ore inside the chute, the air flow resistance inside the chute may not be sufficient. In order for the material seal to function fully, the sintered ore inside the chute must be piled up in the same condition as the sintered ore inside the hopper, and the length through which the cooling air passes through the piled up layer of sintered ore in the hopper must be longer than the length through which the cooling air passes through the piled up layer of sintered ore in the chute. However, in terms of the layout of the sintering equipment, it is difficult to ideally arrange the various elements that make up the sintering equipment.

[0009] Furthermore, if the airflow resistance in the chute is smaller than that in the hopper, most of the air drawn in by the fan or the like is drawn in through the chute. This reduces the amount of gas passing through the sintered ore pile in the hopper, resulting in insufficient cooling capacity of the cooler. Since sintered ore cannot be transported by a belt conveyor unless it is sufficiently cooled, if the cooling capacity of the cooler is insufficient, the production volume of sintered ore must be reduced in order to sufficiently cool the sintered ore. Therefore, from the viewpoint of the cooling capacity of the cooler, it is preferable that the amount of cooling air passing through the chute is as small as possible.

[0010] From another perspective, in the sintered ore accumulated inside the inclined chute, the sintered ore with small particle size gathers near the bottom plate of the chute and flows down, while the sintered ore with large particle size gathers near the ceiling plate of the chute and flows down. Near the ceiling plate of the chute where the sintered ore with large particle size gathers, the air flow resistance is smaller than near the bottom plate where the sintered ore with small particle size gathers, and the cooling air flows in a concentrated manner. Also, near the ceiling plate of the chute, the size of each sintered ore is large and the total specific surface area of ​​the accumulated sintered ore is small, so heat exchange between the cooling air and the sintered ore is not sufficient. The specific surface area is the surface area per unit mass of the sintered ore. Therefore, the air passing through the chute remains at a low temperature compared to the air that has passed through the sintered ore in the hopper and has become hot.

[0011] Furthermore, cooling air is continuously ventilated through the sintered ore sediment layer in the hopper for about 0.5 to 2.0 hours. In this case, there is sufficient time for heat to be transferred from the inside of the sintered ore, which has a particle size of several tens of mm, to the surface in the hopper. On the other hand, the time for cooling air to be ventilated through the sintered ore sediment layer in the chute is less than a few minutes. In other words, there is not sufficient time for heat to be transferred from the inside of the sintered ore to the surface in the chute. For this reason, the air that passes through the chute remains at a low temperature compared to the air that has passed through the sintered ore sediment layer in the hopper and has become hot.

[0012] The air that has passed through the chute is mixed with the air that has passed through the sintered ore pile in the hopper, and is discharged from the cooler. The air discharged from the cooler has heat recovered by a heat recovery device such as a boiler. From the viewpoint of heat recovery efficiency, it is preferable that the temperature of the air supplied to the heat recovery device is as high as possible. Therefore, it is preferable to reduce as much as possible the amount of cooling air that passes through the chute, which is a factor in lowering the temperature of the air supplied to the heat recovery device.

[0013] As described above, in a sintering facility, it is required to reduce the suction of air through the chute, that is, the leakage of cooling air from the chute, from the viewpoint of the cooling capacity of the cooler and the heat recovery efficiency.

[0014] An object of the present disclosure is to provide sintering equipment and a method for cooling sintered ore using the same, which are capable of reducing leakage of cooling air from a chute. [Means for solving the problem]

[0015] The sintering equipment according to the present disclosure includes a sintering machine, a crusher, a cooling machine, a chute, and a shielding plate. The sintering machine produces a rectangular parallelepiped sintered ore cake by baking sintering raw materials. The crusher crushes the sintered ore cake discharged from the sintering machine to form sintered ore particles. The cooling machine cools the sintered ore particles. The chute receives the sintered ore particles crushed by the crusher and guides them to the cooling machine. The chute includes a chute body extending at an angle from above to below, through which the sintered ore particles flow, and a bulging portion that bulges upward from a part of the chute body and whose inside is continuous with the chute body. The shielding plate is attached to a shaft extending in a direction perpendicular to the extension direction of the chute body and in a horizontal direction in an internal space formed by the chute body and the bulging portion, and is provided rotatably around the shaft. The shielding plate is configured to be switchable between an open state in which the sintered ore particles can flow through the chute body and a closed state in which the sintered ore particles cannot flow through the chute body by rotating around the shaft.

[0016] The sintering equipment is used in the cooling method for sintered ore according to the present disclosure. In the cooling method, the switching between the open state and the closed state of the shielding plate is controlled based on the current value for driving the crusher. Effect of the Invention

[0017] According to the sintering equipment and the sintered ore cooling method using the same according to the present disclosure, leakage of cooling air from the chute can be reduced. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0018] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a side view of a sintering machine. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of the cooler and chute. [Diagram 3] FIG. 3 is a vertical cross-sectional view of the chute. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a vertical cross-sectional view of the chute. [Diagram 5] FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram showing a modified example of the chute. [Figure 6]FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of the shielding plate. [Figure 7] FIG. 7 is a vertical sectional view of a chute for explaining the sintering equipment according to the second embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0019] Mechanical shielding is considered to be the most effective way to minimize air leakage from the chute. For example, when supplying granular materials to a high-pressure vessel such as a blast furnace, a method has been put into practical use in which a valve for receiving the granular materials and a valve for sealing the gas are installed separately. This method makes it possible to supply the granular materials while maintaining the sealing performance for a long period of time.

[0020] However, since the basic structure of sintering equipment is significantly different from that of high-pressure vessels, it is not easy to simply apply high-pressure vessel technology to sintering equipment. Sintered ore particles are constantly piled up and flowing in the chute to the cooler in sintering equipment. It is difficult to install a valve in a chute through which sintered ore particles are constantly flowing, and there are no technical examples of this being done. This is because even if a valve is installed in the chute, it cannot be expected to operate reliably due to the fact that sintered ore particles are hard and angular, their temperature is high, and the load on the valve is large when sintered ore particles pile up.

[0021] For example, if a valve is installed in a chute, it is possible that sintered ore particles may get caught in the valve or the valve may wear out. If sintered ore particles get caught in the valve, it becomes difficult for the valve to operate, and as a result, the sintering machine will have to stop operating. If the valve wears out and becomes smaller in size or develops holes, it becomes difficult to maintain the valve's shielding effect. In addition, the temperature of sintered ore particles is 600°C on average, but in some places it can reach as high as 1000°C. If the valve directly receives high-temperature sintered ore particles, thermal distortion will occur, causing the valve to deform, and the gap between the valve and the casing will no longer be uniform, which may lead to contact over time.

[0022] Furthermore, it is difficult to install the valves in the chute away from the accumulated sintered ore particles. This is because the layout of the sintering facility limits the height from the crusher, which crushes the sintered ore cake discharged from the sinter machine, to the cooler, and there is no space to install the hopper and two valves. If the sinter machine were placed at a higher position, it would be possible to install the hopper and two valves, but this would not be economical.

[0023] Under such restrictions, it was difficult to perform mechanical shielding in the chute where sintered ore particles are constantly accumulated or flowing. Therefore, the inventors focused on the fact that sintered ore cake is discharged from the sintering machine one pallet car at a time, the discharged sintered ore cake is crushed by a crusher, and the sintered ore particles intermittently flow through the chute (or are accumulated in the chute). A large amount of sintered ore particles flow through the chute for about 10 seconds per minute, and sintered ore particles hardly flow at other times.

[0024] The sintering equipment and the sintered ore cooling method using the same according to the embodiment of the present disclosure have been completed based on the above findings.

[0025] The sintering equipment according to the embodiment includes a sintering machine, a crusher, a cooling machine, a chute, and a shielding plate. The sintering machine produces a rectangular parallelepiped sintered ore cake by baking sintering raw materials. The crusher crushes the sintered ore cake discharged from the sintering machine to form sintered ore particles. The cooling machine cools the sintered ore particles. The chute receives the sintered ore particles crushed by the crusher and guides them to the cooling machine. The chute includes a chute body that extends at an angle from above to below, through which the sintered ore particles flow, and a bulging portion that bulges upward from a part of the chute body and whose inside is continuous with the chute body. The shielding plate is attached to a shaft that extends in a direction perpendicular to the extension direction of the chute body and in a horizontal direction in an internal space formed by the chute body and the bulging portion, and is provided rotatably around the shaft. The shielding plate is configured to be switchable between an open state in which the sintered ore particles can flow through the chute body and a closed state in which the sintered ore particles cannot flow through the chute body by rotating around the shaft (first configuration).

[0026] In the sintering equipment according to the first configuration, a chute that supplies sintered ore particles crushed by a crusher to a cooler is provided with a bulging portion. The inside of the bulging portion is continuous with the chute body, and a shielding plate is disposed in the internal space formed by them. The shielding plate can be switched between an open state and a closed state by rotating around the shaft. As described above, since the flow of sintered ore particles is intermittent, by opening the shielding plate when a large amount of sintered ore particles flow, the sintered ore particles can be made to flow without being caught by the shielding plate. In addition, by closing the shielding plate when almost no sintered ore particles flow, the flow of gas in the chute can be blocked. In this way, according to the sintering equipment according to the first configuration, leakage of cooling air from the chute can be reduced.

[0027] In the above sintering equipment, the shaft body may be disposed on the boundary between the chute body and the bulging portion (second configuration).

[0028] The sintering equipment preferably has the following configuration: When in an open state, the shielding plate is in a position parallel to the boundary between the chute body and the bulging portion (third configuration).

[0029] In the sintering equipment of the first or second configuration, when in the open state, the shielding plate may come into contact with the sintered ore particles flowing inside the chute body (fourth configuration). In the sintering equipment of the fourth configuration, when in the open state, there is no space for air to flow between the shielding plate and the flowing sintered ore particles. In this case, the sintered ore particles flowing inside the chute body function as a material seal. Therefore, according to the sintering equipment of the fourth configuration, leakage of cooling air from the chute can be suppressed even when the shielding plate is in the open state.

[0030] In the above sintering equipment, a water channel through which cooling water flows may be provided inside the shielding plate (fifth configuration). In the sintering equipment of the fifth configuration, the shielding plate is cooled by circulating cooling water through the water channel provided inside the shielding plate. Therefore, it is possible to suppress the temperature rise when the shielding plate comes into contact with high-temperature sintered ore grains. Therefore, according to the sintering equipment of the fifth configuration, it is possible to improve the life of the shielding plate.

[0031] In the cooling method for sintered ore according to the embodiment, the sintering equipment is used. In the cooling method, the switching between the open state and the closed state of the shielding plate is controlled based on the current value for driving the crusher (sixth configuration). For example, when the current value for driving the crusher is detected, it is considered that the crusher is performing the crushing of the sintered ore cake and the formation of sintered ore particles is in progress, so the shielding plate is in the open state. Conversely, when the current value for driving the crusher is equivalent to the no-load state, it is considered that the crushing of the sintered ore cake is not being performed and the formation of sintered ore particles has stopped, so the shielding plate is in the closed state. By switching the state of the shielding plate, it is possible to reliably reduce the leakage of cooling air from the chute.

[0032] In the cooling method of the sixth configuration, the current value is detected, and the shielding plate is opened when the current value reaches its peak, and the shielding plate is closed when a predetermined time has elapsed since the shielding plate was opened (seventh configuration).

[0033] Hereinafter, the sintering equipment and the sintered ore cooling method of the present disclosure will be described with reference to the drawings. In the drawings, the same or corresponding parts are given the same reference numerals, and duplicated explanations will be omitted as appropriate.

[0034] First Embodiment [Sintering equipment] The sintering equipment according to this embodiment includes a sintering machine, a crusher, and a cooler. Fig. 1 is a side view of the sintering machine 10. The sintering machine 10 bakes and solidifies the sintering raw materials to produce sintered ore cake SC. The sintering raw materials are granular raw materials in which fine ore is mixed with powdered coke and coal. As shown in Fig. 1, the sintering machine 10 includes a sintering machine main body 11, a charging device 12, an ore discharge section 13, an ignition furnace 14, a plurality of wind boxes 15, and an exhaust gas discharge device 16.

[0035] The sintering machine body 11 has an endless track 111. A plurality of pallet carts (not shown) are arranged on the endless track 111. The pallet carts run along the endless track 111. In FIG. 1, only the outgoing path of the endless track 111 is shown, and the return path is omitted.

[0036] The pallet cart loads the sintered raw materials supplied from the charging device 12, and sinters the loaded sintered raw materials while transporting them toward the ore discharge section 13. This results in a sintered ore cake SC that is solidified along the inner shape of the pallet cart. The sintered ore cake SC has a rectangular parallelepiped shape. The sintered ore cake SC is discharged from the ore discharge section 13.

[0037] The charging device 12 charges sinter raw materials into the pallet car traveling on the endless track 111. The charging device 12 is provided above the sinter machine body 11 at the upstream end of the outward path of the endless track 111. The charging device 12 includes a floor hopper 121 and a surge hopper 122. The floor hopper 121 supplies floor ore onto the pallet car. The surge hopper 122 is disposed downstream of the floor hopper 121 in the traveling direction of the pallet car. The surge hopper 122 supplies sinter raw materials onto the pallet car.

[0038] The ignition furnace 14 is provided downstream of the surge hopper 122 in the traveling direction of the pallet cart. The ignition furnace 14 ignites the sintering raw material on the pallet cart traveling on the endless track 111.

[0039] A number of wind boxes 15 are arranged below the endless track 111 in the range from the charging device 12 to the ore discharge section 13. The pressure inside each wind box 15 is set to a pressure (negative pressure) lower than atmospheric pressure. Each wind box 15 sucks in air above the traveling pallet cart and ventilates the sintering raw materials. This promotes the combustion of the fine coke in the sintering raw materials, and the iron ore in the raw materials is heated and partially melted. As a result, a red-hot lump of sintered ore (sintered ore cake SC) is produced. The air sucked in by the wind box 15 is discharged into the atmosphere from the exhaust gas exhaust device 16.

[0040] The ore discharge section 13 is disposed at the downstream end of the outward path of the endless track 111. In the ore discharge section 13, the pallet cart reverses direction toward the return path, whereby the sintered ore cake SC falls off the pallet cart one by one. The sintered ore cake SC that falls off the pallet cart is crushed by the crusher 20. The crusher 20 has a plurality of teeth 21 and is rotatable around a shaft body 22. As a result, sintered ore grains are formed. Hereinafter, the word "grain" in sintered ore grains may be omitted and the word "sintered ore" may be referred to as "sintered ore."

[0041] The sintered ore formed in the crusher 20 is cooled in the cooler. The chute receives the sintered ore and guides it to the cooler. FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of the cooler 30 and the chute 40.

[0042] The cooling machine 30 has a disk-shaped table 31 and an annular hopper 32 provided on the table 31. The hopper 32 includes an inner cylinder 321 and an outer cylinder 322. Each of the inner cylinder 321 and the outer cylinder 322 has a substantially cylindrical shape and is disposed substantially coaxially with the table 31. The radius of the outer cylinder 322 is larger than the radius of the inner cylinder 321, and the outer cylinder 322 is disposed radially outside the inner cylinder 321. The inner cylinder 321 has a larger diameter from the upper end to the lower end. The outer cylinder 322 has a smaller diameter from the upper end to the lower end. The inner cylinder 321 and the outer cylinder 322 each include louver portions 321a and 322a that can take in air outside the hopper 32.

[0043] A plurality of rails 33 forming an endless track along the circumferential direction are provided below the table 31. A plurality of support rollers 34 are fixed to the underside of the table 31. The plurality of support rollers 34 are movable on the endless track of the rails 33. The movement of the plurality of support rollers 34 causes the table 31 and the hopper 32 on the table 31 to rotate. The power source of the plurality of support rollers 34 is not particularly limited, and is, for example, a motor.

[0044] An annular hood 35 is provided above the hopper 32. The inside of the hood 35 is connected to the hopper 32 and the chute 40. An exhaust gas duct (not shown) is connected to the hood 35, and a suction fan is connected to the exhaust gas duct. The suction fan sucks air inside the hood 35. At this time, air outside the hopper 32 is taken inside through the louver parts 321a, 322a of the inner cylinder 321 and the outer cylinder 322. This air passes through the sintered ore SO in the hopper 32. This cools the sintered ore SO.

[0045] The exhaust gas duct is provided with a heat recovery device (such as a boiler) (not shown). The high-temperature exhaust gas discharged from the cooler 30 passes through the exhaust gas duct, and the heat is recovered by the heat recovery device.

[0046] The lower part of the outer cylinder 322 is partially open. A scraper 36 is inserted through this opening from the outside of the hopper 32. The scraper 36 scrapes out the cooled sintered ore SO inside the hopper 32 to the outside.

[0047] A seal portion 37 is provided between the hood 35 and the hopper 32. This seal portion 37 has a water seal structure. Specifically, groove portions 371, 371 are provided on the outer periphery of the outer cylinder 322 and the inner periphery of the inner cylinder 321, and a predetermined amount of water 372, 372 is stored in each groove portion 371, 371. As a result, the gap between the hood 35 and the hopper 32 is sealed with the water 372, 372.

[0048] The chute 40 includes a chute main body 41 and a bulging portion 42 that bulges upward from a part of the chute main body 41 and has an interior that is continuous with the chute main body 41. The chute main body 41 extends at an angle from above to below.

[0049] The chute 40 receives the sintered ore SO formed in the crusher 20 and guides it to the cooler 30. The sintered ore SO descends inside the chute body 41 and flows toward the cooler 30. The flowing sintered ore SO accumulates in the hopper 32 and further accumulates in the lower part of the chute body 41. The cross-sectional shape perpendicular to the extension direction of the chute body 41 is not particularly limited, but is, for example, rectangular.

[0050] The bulging portion 42 protrudes upward from the outer circumferential surface of the chute body 41. The bulging portion 42 has a semi-cylindrical internal space, and the internal space of the bulging portion 42 is continuous with the internal space of the chute body 41. The bulging portion 42 may be molded integrally with the chute body 41, or may be molded separately and then joined to the chute body 41 by welding or the like.

[0051] Fig. 3 is a vertical cross-sectional view of the chute 40. Referring to Fig. 3, a shielding plate 50 is disposed in an internal space formed by the chute body 41 and the bulging portion 42 of the chute 40. The shielding plate 50 is attached to a shaft body 51 and is provided rotatably around the shaft body 51. The shaft body 51 extends in a direction perpendicular to the extension direction of the chute body 41 and in a horizontal direction. The shaft body 51 may be molded integrally with the shielding plate 50, or may be molded separately from the shielding plate 50.

[0052] The shielding plate 50 is configured to be rotatable in a direction along the sintered ore SO flowing through the chute 40. In the example shown in FIG. 3, the shielding plate 50 can rotate counterclockwise. By making the rotation direction along the flow direction of the sintered ore SO, the shielding plate 50 is less likely to catch the sintered ore SO when rotating, compared to when the shielding plate 50 rotates in the opposite direction to the flow direction of the sintered ore SO. The mechanism for rotating the shielding plate 50 may be, for example, as follows. The shaft 51 of the shielding plate 50 is inserted through the chute 40, and the output shaft of a reducer is connected to the end of the shaft 51 outside the chute 40. The outside of the chute 40 is a room temperature atmosphere that is separated from the atmosphere inside the chute 40. The input shaft of the reducer is connected to the output shaft of an electric motor. The shielding plate 50 is rotated by driving the electric motor.

[0053] 3, the shielding plate 50 includes a plate body 501. In this embodiment, the plate body 501 is a rectangular flat plate attached to the shaft body 51. The plate body 501 has a hole extending in the axial direction, through which the shaft body 51 passes. The material of the plate body 501 is typically metal, for example steel. The plate body 501 may be provided with reinforcing ribs. For example, a plurality of reinforcing ribs are provided on the surface of the plate body 501. The plurality of reinforcing ribs are provided at intervals in the extension direction of the shaft body 51.

[0054] In this embodiment, liners 502, 503, 504, and 505 are attached to the plate body 501. The liners 502, 503, 504, and 505 are each made of a wear-resistant material, such as high-chromium cast steel. Each of the liners 502, 503, 504, and 505 can suppress functional damage caused by wear of the plate body 501.

[0055] The liners 502 and 503 each extend along the axial direction of the shaft body 51 and are provided at the width direction end of the plate body 501. A cross section of the liners 502 and 503 cut perpendicular to the axial direction is substantially L-shaped. The liners 502 and 503 are arranged symmetrically with respect to the shaft body 51. Specifically, the liner 502 is arranged on a surface on the rear side in the rotation direction of the shielding plate 50 at one end 501a side of the plate body 501 from the shaft body 51. The liner 503 is arranged on a surface on the rear side in the rotation direction of the shielding plate 50 at the other end 501b side of the plate body 501 from the shaft body 51. In this case, the liner 503 is arranged on a surface of the plate body 501 opposite to the surface on which the liner 502 is arranged.

[0056] The liners 504 and 505 are each flat plate-shaped. The liner 504 is disposed in a region from the liner 502 to the shaft body 51 in the width direction. The liner 505 is disposed in a region from the liner 503 to the shaft body 51 in the width direction. The liners 504 and 505 are disposed symmetrically with respect to the shaft body 51. Specifically, the liner 504 is disposed on the same plane as the liner 502 on one end 501a side of the plate body 501. The liner 505 is disposed on the same plane as the liner 503 on the other end 501b side of the plate body 501.

[0057] As described above, the liners 502, 503, 504, and 505 are all disposed on the surface of the shielding plate 50 on the trailing side in the rotation direction. In other words, the liners 502, 503, 504, and 505 are disposed on the surface of the shielding plate 50 on the side that comes into contact with the sintered ore SO flowing through the chute 40. In this case, wear of the plate body 501 due to contact with the sintered ore SO flowing through the chute 40 is suppressed.

[0058] In this embodiment, the shaft 51 is disposed on the boundary B between the chute body 41 and the bulging portion 42. In a vertical cross-sectional view of the chute 40, the dimension from the shaft 51 to the widthwise ends 501a, 501b of the shielding plate 50 (hereinafter also referred to as the half-width of the shielding plate 50) is substantially equal to the distance from the shaft 51 to the bottom plate 411 of the chute body 41, i.e., the dimension (width) in the direction perpendicular to the extension direction of the chute body 41. This makes it easier to block the flow of gas inside the chute 40.

[0059] However, the position of shaft body 51 is not limited to this. For example, shaft body 51 may be provided at a position closer to bottom plate 411 of chute body 41 than boundary B. Even in this case, the half-width of shielding plate 50 is made to match the distance from shaft body 51 to bottom plate 411 of chute body 41. In other words, shielding plate 50 is smaller than when shaft body 51 is located on boundary B. In this case, thermal strain is less likely to occur in shielding plate 50.

[0060] The shielding plate 50 is configured to be switchable between an open state and a closed state by rotating around the shaft body 51. In the example of this embodiment, the shielding plate 50 can hold its position every time it rotates 90 degrees. FIG. 3 shows the state when the shielding plate 50 is in the open state. In the open state, the sintered ore SO can flow inside the chute body 41. That is, in the open state, the sintered ore SO can flow near the shielding plate 50. As shown in FIG. 3, in the open state, the shielding plate 50 is substantially parallel to the boundary B in the vertical cross-sectional view of the chute 40. In the example of this embodiment, in the open state, the shielding plate 50 does not come into contact with the sintered ore SO flowing inside the chute body 41.

[0061] FIG. 4 is a vertical cross-sectional view of the chute 40. FIG. 4 shows the state when the shield plate 50 is in the closed state. The shield plate 50 shown in FIG. 4 is in a state in which the shield plate 50 shown in FIG. 3 is rotated 90 degrees around the shaft body 51. In the closed state, the sintered ore SO cannot flow inside the chute body 41. That is, in the closed state, the sintered ore SO cannot flow near the shield plate 50. The sintered ore SO that flows inside the chute body 41 in the open state is deposited downstream of the shield plate 50. As shown in FIG. 4, in the closed state, the shield plate 50 is substantially perpendicular to the bottom plate 411 of the chute body 41 in the vertical cross-sectional view of the chute 40.

[0062] In the present embodiment, the shielding plate 50 is switched between the open state and the closed state by rotating the shielding plate 50 by 90 degrees. In a vertical cross-sectional view of the chute 40, the shielding plate 50 is substantially parallel to the boundary B in the open state, and the shielding plate 50 is substantially perpendicular to the bottom plate 411 of the chute body 41 in the closed state. However, the rotation angle of the shielding plate 50 accompanying the switching between the open state and the closed state is not limited to this. In the open state, the position of the shielding plate 50 does not have to be substantially parallel to the boundary B as long as a passage through which the sintered ore SO can flow is secured. For example, the shielding plate 50 may be switched from the closed state to the open state by rotating the shielding plate 50 by 45 degrees from the position in which the shielding plate 50 is substantially perpendicular to the bottom plate 411 of the chute body 41 (the state shown in FIG. 4). In this case, the space through which air flows between the shielding plate 50 in the open state and the bottom plate 411 of the chute body 41 becomes smaller compared to the case where the attitude of the shielding plate 50 in the open state is substantially parallel to the boundary B, so that leakage of cooling air from the chute 40 can be further reduced. Note that in this case, when switching the shielding plate 50 from the open state to the closed state, the shielding plate 50 is rotated 135 (=180-45) degrees.

[0063] As described above, in the vertical cross-sectional view of the chute 40, the half width of the shielding plate 50 is substantially equal to the dimension (width) in the direction perpendicular to the extension direction of the chute body 41, so that the ends 501a, 501b of the plate body 501 of the shielding plate 50 in the closed state come into contact with the bottom plate 411 of the chute body 41. However, when powdered sintered ore SO is constantly accumulated or flowing in the chute 40, the half width of the shielding plate 50 may be slightly smaller than the width of the chute body 41. In this case, in the closed state, a gap is formed between the ends 501a, 501b of the plate body 501 of the shielding plate 50 and the bottom plate 411 of the chute body 41, but sintered ore SO is always constantly accumulated or flowing in this gap. This blocks the flow of gas in the chute 40.

[0064] Furthermore, the bottom plate 411 of the chute body 41 may include a movable part that is movable in a direction perpendicular to the extension direction of the chute body 41 in a vertical cross-sectional view of the chute 40. FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram showing a modified example of the chute 40. In the example shown in FIG. 5, the bottom plate 411 of the chute body 41 includes a movable part 411a. In this case, even if a gap is generated between the ends 501a, 501b of the plate body 501 of the shielding plate 50 and the bottom plate 411 of the chute body 41 in the closed state, the movable part 411a can be moved in a direction perpendicular to the extension direction of the chute body 41. This allows the movable part 411a to come into contact with the ends 501a, 501b of the plate body 501 to eliminate the gap.

[0065] The position where the shielding plate 50 is disposed, i.e., the position where the bulge 42 is provided with respect to the chute body 41, is not particularly limited. The shielding plate 50 is disposed, for example, slightly above the sintered ore SO accumulated in the chute 40. However, the shielding plate 50 may be provided at a position where the sintered ore SO is accumulated. In this case, the shielding plate 50 rotates according to the flow of the sintered ore SO. That is, in this case, no special power is required to rotate the shielding plate 50.

[0066] When the sintered ore SO flowing through the chute 40 is very hot, the shielding plate 50 may also become hot and deformed. In this case, a water passage 52 through which cooling water flows may be provided inside the shielding plate 50. An example of the water passage 52 is shown in FIG. 6. FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of the shielding plate 50. FIG. 6 shows a cross section of the shielding plate 50 cut along the center of the shaft body 51. In the example shown in FIG. 6, the water passage 52 includes an inner pipe 521 provided inside the shaft body 51, an outer pipe 522 provided outside the shaft body 51, and a plurality of holes 523. The inner pipe 521 and the outer pipe 522 each extend along the axial direction of the shielding plate 50. The plurality of holes 523 extend along the width direction of the shielding plate 50. One end 521a of the inner pipe 521 is connected to one end 522a of the outer pipe 522 by a ring-shaped connection passage 524. The holes 523 are provided on both sides in the width direction of the shaft body 51. The outer tube 522 has an interior that is continuous with each of the holes 523.

[0067] In FIG. 6, the flow of cooling water circulating inside the shielding plate 50 is indicated by arrows. The cooling water is supplied from the other end 521b of the inner pipe 521. After turning around at the connecting passage 524, the cooling water flows toward the other end 522b of the outer pipe 522 while filling each hole 523. In this manner, the shielding plate 50 is cooled by circulating the cooling water through the water passage 52 provided inside the shielding plate 50. Therefore, it is possible to suppress the temperature rise when the shielding plate 50 comes into contact with high-temperature sintered ore SO. Therefore, it is possible to improve the life of the shielding plate 50.

[0068] [Cooling method for sintered ore] The cooling method for sintered ore SO according to this embodiment uses the above-mentioned sintering equipment. In the sintering equipment, the shielding plate 50 in the chute 40 that guides the sintered ore SO formed by the crusher 20 to the cooler 30 is configured to be appropriately switched between an open state and a closed state. In the example of this embodiment, the switching between the open state and the closed state of the shielding plate 50 is performed by rotating the shielding plate 50 by 90 degrees. The switching between the open state and the closed state of the shielding plate 50 will be described in detail below.

[0069] The sintering equipment may have a control device (not shown) that controls the switching of the shielding plate 50 between the open state and the closed state. The control device, for example, acquires information on the current value for driving the crusher 20. Usually, the current value for driving the crusher 20 increases when the crusher 20 crushes the sintered ore cake SC. Therefore, the control device may control the switching of the shielding plate 50 between the open state and the closed state based on this current value.

[0070] When the current value for driving the crusher 20 is detected, the crusher 20 is crushing the sintered ore cake SC, and it is considered that the sintered ore SO is being formed, so the shielding plate 50 is opened. The timing for opening the shielding plate 50 is, for example, when the current value is at a peak. Conversely, when the current value for driving the crusher 20 is equivalent to the no-load state (at the reference value), it is considered that the crushing of the sintered ore cake SC is not being performed, and the formation of the sintered ore SO has stopped, so the shielding plate 50 is closed. The timing for closing the shielding plate 50 is, for example, when a predetermined time has elapsed since the shielding plate 50 was opened. This predetermined time may be determined in advance by observing the state in which the crusher 20 crushes the sintered ore SO and flows through the chute 40. By switching the state of the shielding plate 50, it is possible to reliably reduce the leakage of cooling air from the chute 40.

[0071] However, the means by which the control device controls the switching between the open state and the closed state of the shielding plate 50 is not limited to this. For example, the shielding plate 50 may be opened depending on the timing at which the sintered ore cake SC falls off the pallet cart traveling on the endless track 111 of the sintering machine 10 (sintering machine main body 11). The timing at which the sintered ore cake SC falls off the pallet cart can be calculated, for example, from the traveling speed of the pallet cart.

[0072] The shielding plate 50 may be in a closed state at other times as long as it is in an open state when a large amount of sintered ore SO flows through the chute 40. In other words, even when a small amount of sintered ore SO flows through the chute 40, the shielding plate 50 may be in a closed state.

[0073] [effect] In the sintering equipment according to the present embodiment, the chute 40 that supplies the sintered ore SO crushed by the crusher 20 to the cooler 30 is provided with a bulging portion 42. The inside of the bulging portion 42 is continuous with the chute body 41, and a shielding plate 50 is disposed in the internal space formed by them. The shielding plate 50 can be switched between an open state and a closed state by rotating around the shaft body 51. Since the flow of the sintered ore SO is intermittent, by opening the shielding plate 50 when a large amount of sintered ore SO flows, the sintered ore SO can be made to flow without being received by the shielding plate 50. In addition, by closing the shielding plate 50 when almost no sintered ore SO flows, the flow of gas in the chute 40 can be blocked. The closed shielding plate 50 can effectively suppress the suction of air through the chute 40. In this way, according to the sintering equipment according to the present embodiment, the leakage of cooling air from the chute 40 can be reduced.

[0074] In the cooling method for sintered ore SO according to the present embodiment, the switching between the open state and the closed state of the shielding plate 50 is controlled based on the current value for driving the crusher 20. By switching the state of the shielding plate 50, leakage of cooling air from the chute 40 can be reliably reduced.

[0075] <Second embodiment> FIG. 7 is a vertical cross-sectional view of the chute 40 for explaining the sintering equipment according to the second embodiment. FIG. 7 shows the sintering equipment according to this embodiment when the shielding plate 50 is in an open state. The sintering equipment according to this embodiment differs from the sintering equipment according to the first embodiment in that the shielding plate 50 comes into contact with the sintered ore SO flowing inside the chute body 41 in the open state. In other words, in the vertical cross-sectional view of the chute 40, the height of the sintered ore SO flowing upstream of the shielding plate 50 (the distance from the bottom plate 411 to the top surface of the sintered ore SO) is greater than the distance from the end (end 501a) of the shielding plate 50 on the side closer to the bottom plate 411 to the bottom plate 411.

[0076] In the example of this embodiment, when the shield plate 50 is switched from the closed state to the open state, the shield plate 50 is rotated by an arbitrary angle θ degrees from a substantially vertical attitude (the state shown in FIG. 4) with respect to the bottom plate 411 of the chute body 41. As a result, the shield plate 50 is in the state shown in FIG. 7. The angle θ is greater than 0 and less than 90. Referring to FIG. 7, in the open state, there is no space through which air flows between the shield plate 50 and the flowing sintered ore SO. In this case, the sintered ore SO flowing in the chute body 41 functions as a material seal. Therefore, according to the sintering equipment of this embodiment, even when the shield plate 50 is in the open state, it is possible to suppress leakage of cooling air from the chute 40. Note that when the shield plate 50 is switched from the open state to the closed state, the shield plate 50 is rotated by (180-θ) degrees.

[0077] During the open state, the attitude of the shielding plate 50 may basically be fixed in the state shown in FIG. 7 (a state rotated by θ degrees from a substantially perpendicular attitude (the state shown in FIG. 4) to the bottom plate 411 of the chute body 41). At this time, it is preferable that the airflow resistance of the sintered ore SO in the chute body 41 is sufficiently large, and the height of the sintered ore SO on the upstream side of the shielding plate 50 and the height of the sintered ore SO on the downstream side are substantially constant in the open state. When at least one of the heights of the sintered ore SO on the upstream side of the shielding plate 50 and the height of the sintered ore SO on the downstream side of the shielding plate 50 gradually decreases, the attitude of the shielding plate 50 may be adjusted by rotating the shielding plate 50 in a direction along the flowing sintered ore SO during the open state. Then, after a predetermined time has elapsed since the shielding plate 50 was opened, the shielding plate 50 is further rotated to switch to the closed state. As a result, the shielding plate 50 is in a substantially perpendicular attitude to the bottom plate 411 of the chute body 41 (the state shown in FIG. 4). The timing for closing the shielding plate 50 is preferably a little before the sintered ore SO stops flowing near the shielding plate 50. If the sintered ore SO stops flowing near the shielding plate 50 while the shielding plate 50 is in the open state, the sintered ore SO will no longer function as a material seal, and a space through which air can flow will be created in the chute body 41.

[0078] The embodiments of the present disclosure have been described above. However, the above-described embodiments are merely examples for implementing the present disclosure. Therefore, the present disclosure is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and can be implemented by appropriately modifying the above-described embodiments without departing from the spirit of the present disclosure.

[0079] In the above embodiment, the plate body 501 of the shielding plate 50 is a rectangular flat plate. It can also be said that the shielding plate 50 has two blades around the shaft body 51. However, the shape of the shielding plate 50 is not limited to this, and the shielding plate 50 may have three or more blades. [Explanation of symbols]

[0080] 10: Sintering machine 20: Crusher 30: Cooler 40: Shoot 41: Shoot body 42:bulge 50: Shielding plate 51: Axial body SO: Sintered ore particles (sintered ore)

Claims

1. A sintering facility comprising: a sintering machine that produces rectangular sintered ore cakes by baking the raw sinter material; a crusher for crushing the sintered ore cake discharged from the sintering machine to form sintered ore particles; A cooler for cooling the sintered ore particles; A chute that receives the sintered ore particles crushed by the crusher and guides them to the cooler, the chute including a chute body that extends at an incline from above to below and through which the sintered ore particles flow, and a bulging portion that bulges upward from a part of the chute body and whose inside is continuous with the chute body; a shielding plate attached to a shaft extending in a direction perpendicular to the extension direction of the chute body and in a horizontal direction in an internal space formed by the chute body and the bulging portion, and rotatably provided around the shaft, The sintering equipment is configured such that the shielding plate can be switched between an open state in which the sintered ore particles can flow within the chute body and a closed state in which the sintered ore particles cannot flow within the chute body by rotating around the shaft body.

2. 2. The sintering equipment according to claim 1, The shaft body is disposed on the boundary between the chute body and the bulge portion.

3. 2. The sintering equipment according to claim 1, In the sintering equipment, when in the open state, the shielding plate is oriented parallel to the boundary between the chute body and the bulge portion.

4. 2. The sintering equipment according to claim 1, In the sintering equipment, when in the open state, the shielding plate comes into contact with the sintered ore particles flowing inside the chute body.

5. 2. The sintering equipment according to claim 1, The sintering equipment has a water channel through which cooling water flows provided inside the shielding plate.

6. A method for cooling sintered ore using the sintering equipment according to claim 1, A cooling method comprising controlling switching of the shielding plate between the open state and the closed state based on a current value for driving the crusher.

7. The method for cooling sintered ore according to claim 6, A cooling method comprising the steps of: detecting the current value; opening the shielding plate when the current value reaches its peak; and closing the shielding plate when a predetermined time has elapsed since the shielding plate was opened.

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