Argon oxygen decarburization, usually abbreviated AOD, is a steel-refining process that lowers the carbon content of molten stainless steel by blowing a carefully controlled mixture of argon and oxygen gas up through the melt from the bottom of a converter vessel, the diluting argon lowering the effective partial pressure of the carbon monoxide produced so that carbon can be oxidized and removed without also burning away the melt's valuable chromium. The process was developed jointly by the Union Carbide Corporation's Lindé Division and the steelmaker Joslyn Stainless Steels between 1954 and 1968, solving a problem that had made stainless steel unusually costly to produce, since older refining methods lost far more chromium to oxidation along with the unwanted carbon. AOD was rapidly adopted across the stainless steel industry after its introduction and remains the standard method of refining stainless and other chromium-bearing steels worldwide.
Facts
SignificanceBecame the standard worldwide method for refining stainless steel by the 1980s. 1 FAQs
Why is argon blown into the steel along with oxygen in the AOD process?
Argon lowers the partial pressure of carbon monoxide so that carbon is removed from the melt.
The argon lowers the partial pressure of the carbon monoxide that forms when oxygen burns carbon out of the melt. Keeping that pressure low drives the reaction toward carbon monoxide gas, so the carbon leaves the metal bath. The decarburization step is controlled by the ratio of oxygen to argon or nitrogen, and the ratio can be changed through several phases of blowing.
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Source Argon oxygen decarburization, Wikipedia
Sources
1. Argon oxygen decarburization, Wikipedia
History section
The AOD process was invented in 1954 by the Lindé Division of The Union Carbide Corporation
History, 1980s paragraph
In the 1980s, the AOD process became widely accepted as a standard refining method for stainless steel worldwide.
Lead section
The AOD process was invented in 1954 by the Lindé Division of The Union Carbide Corporation
In Field: Metallurgical Engineering, Categories
Steelmaking
In Group: Iron and Steel Making Processes, Introduction
Argonoxygen decarburization (AOD) is a process primarily used in stainless steel making and other high grade alloys with oxidizable elements such as chromium and aluminium.
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