CISDI has long been committed to supplying critical tech and equipment to the global metals sector and in 2024, the company strived to advance the sustainable development and competitiveness of its clients.

It achieved these aims by providing innovative green and low-carbon solutions and unique intelligent manufacturing and high-end manufacturing products.

The year saw CISDI forge ever-stronger client relationships by swiftly and flexibly responding to global market volatilities and the diversifying requirements of its customers, taking on bold new project opportunities, bridging tech communication gaps and striving to exceed all expectations.

This month’s newsletter looks back on some of our finest achievements.

The 3R C-H blast furnace set the pace for economical and stable carbon emission reduction at ironmaking plants

The world’s first 3R - Carbon-hydrogen Reduction, Re-use and Recycle ironmaking tech - has now been operating stably for a year at Zongheng Steel’s two blast furnaces, which each have a volume of 2,300 cubic metres.

Smooth operation at the Hebei Province’s furnaces resulted in consistent carbon emissions reductions of 5 to 10 per cent, compared with similar volume furnaces in China.

Cost savings amounted to over US$13.76 million and Zongheng reduced its annual carbon dioxide emissions by 400,000 tonnes.

As part of Zongheng’s phase II programme in 2024, two of its existing blast furnaces were upgraded with the addition of CISDI’s C-H coupled injection system. They started up in September.

The marked benefits 3R C-H has achieved for the two 2,300 cubic metre furnaces has resulted in Zenith Nantong Steel contracting CISDI to transform a further three blast furnaces - each in 2,000m³ - with the same expertise. Work on these furnaces is progressing steadily.

World’s largest greenfield blast furnace blew in

TATA Steel’s blast furnace 2 blew in at its Kalinganagar plant in India in September 2024. CISDI was responsible for its design and core equipment supply.

The TSK furnace features an effective volume of 5,873 cubic metres - the largest in the world - and will produce 4.375 million tonnes of hot metal a year.

The new global giant features CISDI’s high-efficiency, low-consumption mega blast furnace tech and its high-blasting-temperature top-combustion stoves, dry-way gas cleaning, and precise coal injection. CISDI’s advanced tech systems for efficient stockhouse and casthouse dust collection and its slag granulating plant equipment are also contributing to its success.

TATA’s furnace was digitally designed and digitally managed and delivered by CISDI, which was achieved through full-process three-dimensional designs, smart piping and instrumentation diagrams and modular designs.

The furnace has been stably operating since its start-up.

CISDI enabled Desheng Steel Yunnan’s Vanadium-Titanium Metals Eco-Park to operate across the board

The V-Ti Metals Eco-Park at Desheng Steel in China’s Yunnan Province has been operating at full-steam since November 2024.

This new modern steel complex in Chuxiong City was built by CISDI on an EPC basis.

The eco-park aims to boost the production of green special steels, V-Ti metals deep processing and a circular economic industrial chain.

CISDI designed and built the ironmaking, steelmaking and rolling plants and part of the utilities. Throughout the smart steel complex, China’s latest green, low-carbon standards have been adhered to.

CISDI’s advanced tech and equipment has been tailored to V-Ti metals’ vanadium-extracting melting requirements:

At the ironmaking plant:

A low-shaft blast furnace with thin walls was designed for intensified smelting;

Hot stoves’ switch-over now operates with an independent blasting system and is free of impedance. This improves the V-Ti magnetite blast furnace’s operational stability and smoothness, enhancing its production capacity while reducing consumption;

China’s first application of a super-capacitor-powered single ladle for transporting hot metal from ironmaking to steelmaking plants has been implemented, effectively reducing hot metal’s temperature drop at the interface and eradicating the need for transport staff.

The V-Ti magnetite smelting blast furnace at Desheng Steel Yunnan’s Eco-Park, built by CISDI

At the steelmaking and the continuous casting plants:

To reduce land usage, in the duplex production process the vanadium-extracting BOF and melting BOF have been arranged in a reverse order;

CISDI’s latest robot temperature measurement system and its automatic skimming model, generation-2 sublance and smart desulphurising model are employed;

Processes have been enhanced by a highly-efficient stable steel ladle turret, electro-hydraulic direct-actuating mould vibration and robot-based smart loading and unloading of sliding gate;

The overall V-Ti resources recycling has been achieved across the plants.

The vanadium-extracting BOF at Desheng Steel Yunnan’s Eco-Park, built by CISDI

At the rolling line plant:

Hot direct charging and rolling, thermo-mechanical control process, dual-channel high-speed delivery and bar performance forecasting systems;

CISDI’s short-stress path rolling mills and modular mills have been applied and a maximum rolling force of 470 kilonewtons has been achieved by CISDI’s innovative, super-heavy dia. 310mm modular mill. The lowest rolling temperature is 780 Deg. C and the highest rolling speed is 45 metres a second;

The full-line’s power supply, drive and automation systems showcase high control precision.

The high-speed bar rolling line at Desheng Steel Yunnan’s Eco-Park, built by CISDI

At the full-process smart factory:

The first process-wide smart V-Ti smelting factory in southwestern China is based on the CISDigital® industrial internet platform. It is achieving:

Integrated production data, businesses and applications throughout the ironmaking, steelmaking and rolling plants and utilities;

The provision of multiple smart analysis tools for production management and technical staff;

Support for all-line lean production management control.