Arc furnace breaker upgrade forging stronger production future for North American steel giant

Finkl Steel®, the world's preeminent supplier of forging die, plastic mold, and die casting tool steels, has decisively resolved longstanding production and maintenance hurdles at its Canadian facility in Sorel, Quebec, by adopting ABB's VD4-AF1 vacuum arc furnace circuit breaker.

Handling a staggering 200,000 tons of steel annually and boasting facilities in Chicago, Detroit, and Houston, Finkl Steel® was determined to address the disruptive quarterly maintenance cycles and annual reconditioning of their circuit breakers, which had been impeding production and resource allocation. When two of their four circuit breakers reached the end of their lifespan, the prudent choice was to upgrade their electrical cabinet with a single specialized VD4-AF1 arc furnace breaker. This remarkable solution not only significantly extends longevity and endurance but also slashes maintenance expenses and introduces valuable technological enhancements. By halving the number of required circuit breakers, the facility is also making substantial strides in reducing its environmental footprint.

Phillipe Tremblay, Project Engineer at Finkl Steel®, noted, "It's proven to be a sound investment as, a year in, no one has needed to touch it. The ABB VD4-AF1 boasts an impressive capability of 150,000 operations, and given that we anticipate its service life to extend for at least a decade, that translates to a decade of maintenance-free operation. In the past, we endured continuous inspections, repairs, rebuilds, and all the associated costs, downtime, and equipment breakages."

This cutting-edge breaker also incorporates intelligent technological advancements, ensuring the synchronized opening of poles to eliminate overvoltage upon closure—a mission-critical feature for safeguarding transformers and other vital electrical components on the production line.

The VD4-AF1 stands as the first medium-voltage (MV) circuit breaker with servomotors, offering precise drive control and eliminating the need for inrush limiting reactors and resistances for applications up to 38kV, resulting in substantial cost and space savings. Moreover, it introduces round-the-clock predictive health indication and precise synchronization with network voltage, ensuring the utmost control accuracy and electrical current precision through the furnace. This not only mitigates the risk of component failure but also enhances safety.

Keven Ouellet, ABB Electrification Service Canada Field Service Engineer, remarked, "The VD4-AF1 emerged as a timely and tailored solution to Finkl's specific challenges, effectively rendering maintenance time and costs negligible. Given that these breakers are integral to their production process, they required a solution of unparalleled reliability and consistency, as they previously maintained a minimum of two spare breakers on standby at all times to ensure uninterrupted factory operation."

The VD4-AF1 serves as an all-in-one component, obviating the need for previously essential equipment in the demanding steelmaking environment, thereby yielding significant cost savings. Additionally, the transient recovery voltage (TRV) is substantially reduced, thanks to the TRV measurement element incorporated into the installation.

As part of their ambitious commitment to achieving zero greenhouse gas emissions, Finkl Steel® is actively pursuing electrification across all their operations. The Sorel plant, strategically located and powered by 100% renewable electricity sourced from Quebec, stands as the vanguard of the Swiss steel group's electrification initiative, poised to revolutionize the steelmaking industry.

Source:new.abb.com