Development of an Eddy Current System for Monitoring Taphole Operations

J A Coveney1 , A J Peyton2, A K Kyllo1, M H Pham3 and N B Gray1

1 GK Williams Research Centre for Extractive Metallurgy, Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Melbourne University, 3010, Australia, j.coveney@pgrad.unimelb.edu.au

2Engineering Department, Lancaster University, Lancaster, LA1 4YR, UK

3Telecommunications and Industrial Physics, CSIRO, Epping, NSW, 1710, Australia

ABSTRACT

The ability to monitor the condition of metallurgical tapholes will be critical in providing improvements to furnace safety and facilitate production increases. An eddy current tomography system is being developed at the GK Williams Centre to provide information regarding the taphole condition whilst being able to withstand the high temperature environment of the taphole.

This paper presents a direct comparison between measurements taken using the experimental system that is being developed, results of simulations performed using the model developed by Pham (2001) and a commercial FEM package. Further simulations of a simple experimental geometry representative of molten metal inside a taphole are used to show that the experimental system is sufficiently sensitive to detect a 2.5mm change in diameter of the taphole. An outline for possible future investigations is then given.

Keywords Eddy Current, Taphole, Imaging, Sensors