Project Overview
Gansu Jinshi Chemical Co., Ltd. commissioned Shaanxi Chengda Industrial Furnace Manufacturing Co., Ltd. to design, manufacture, install and commission a 9000kVA special refining furnace at its Zhangye plant. The project is one of Chengda's most completely documented references, covering design, fabrication, water pressure testing, shell assembly, lining, cold commissioning and hot start-up.
Project Timeline
| Stage | Milestone |
|---|---|
| Manufacturing | Furnace shell, electrode holders, short network copper tubes and water-cooled components fabricated and inspected |
| Water pressure test | Short network, water-cooled frame, chimney and settling chamber tested in one pass on 30 May 2017 |
| Site construction | Steel structure building completed, shell assembled, second-floor water-cooled cover plates and holder cylinders installed |
| Cold commissioning | 1-15 June 2017: cable numbering and power-on, hydraulic station pressure cleaning on phases A, B and C, brake and slippingtesting, holder alignment |
| Lining | Refractory lining, electrode and protection sleeve installation completed and sealed |
| Hot start-up | Ignition at 10:00 on 9 August 2017; electric baking from 12 August; first tap on 15 August |
Commissioning Detail
The cold commissioning plan was executed to a day-by-day schedule: electrical wiring verification and power supply to the hydraulic station, pressure cleaning of the A, B and C hydraulic circuits, hydraulic station start-up, brake and electrode slippingtesting, holdertesting on all three phases, and furnace wall ramming mix preparation. All checks were signed off before the furnace was handed to the customer for lining.
Hot commissioning proceeded without interruption. The furnace was ignited on 9 August 2017, electrically baked from 12 August, and produced its first tap of metal on 15 August, with slag and metal tapped together through separate launders. Subsequent operation showed stable tapping, clean slag separation and consistent metal temperature.
Delivered Value
The Zhangye project demonstrates Chengda's ability to execute a complete furnace package - engineering, fabrication, water testing, site assembly, hydraulic commissioning, lining support and hot start-up - inside a compressed schedule and to a documented quality standard.
Quality Records
Every stage was documented: water pressure test reports, hydraulic commissioning checklists, electrode alignment records, lining inspection notes and hot commissioning logs. The customer holds a complete equipment file for maintenance planning.
Operating Performance After Start-up
Following the first tap, the furnace ran with stable arc, controlled slag foaming and consistent metal temperature. Tapping times and ladle cycles settled into a predictable rhythm within the first weeks, allowing the customer to plan downstream casting without buffer stock.
Chengda continues to advise the plant on lining practice and tapping schedules to extend campaign life.