Thanks to the use of coal gas, coke is no longer needed in the steelmaking process, and even coal that is not suitable for coking can be supplied with gaseous fuel through a gas generator. The combustion flame formed by the mixing of air and gaseous fuels extends two-thirds of the height of the furnace chamber and rushes above the surface of the charge. In order to prevent the solid particles in the exhaust gas from settling in the brick compartment, the exhaust gas first settles the solid particles through the sediment chamber and then discharges to the chimney. In this exhaust gas discharge process, the exhaust gas transfers a part of the heat to the gas and air that enters the furnace through the brick compartment channel. As a result, the flame temperature in the furnace rises to 1650°C.

Due to its ability to smelt large quantities of metals at higher temperatures, the Siemens-Martin open-hearth steelmaking process was widely used and became the mainstream of steelmaking in the 20th century.

The refractory lining on the inside of the open-hearth wall is made of magnesia bricks produced by the bittern factory. The bitter brine plant of the Mayuan Salt Works extracts magnesium hydroxide from the bitter brine, a by-product of industrial salt production, and then calcins it at high temperatures. This brick lining is an alkaline furnace.

Early converters and blast furnaces used silicate fireproof materials, also known as acid furnaces, which were able to remove manganese, silicon, carbon and other elements in ore and pig iron, but could not remove phosphorus. As a result, steelmaking either uses only phosphorus-free iron ore or produces only low-quality steel. The UK has a large amount of phosphate-free iron ore, which makes it a big advantage in the industry. The emergence of alkaline method has greatly increased the utilization rate of various inferior iron ores. Germany's steel industry has been able to catch up thanks to the alkaline furnace process.

China's iron ore generally contains phosphorus, resulting in most pig iron purchased from Guangdong containing more phosphorus and a brittle texture. In the past, converters were used to remove phosphorus by adding baking soda and limestone through the slag making process. However, this process is not completely removed, and the quality of the steel produced is not good.

This time, Ji Silent decided to use the alkaline method in open-hearth steelmaking. Magnesia bricks are also used as fireproof linings in blast furnaces. However, the relationship between the acidic method and the alkaline method is not backward and advanced, but two different processes. Which method to use depends on the iron ore and what kind of steel is needed. Therefore, the number of acid furnaces should still be maintained. Ji silently decided that the small converter would continue to use an acidic lining.

In three or four days, a dredger was assembled at the mechanical port and the dredging work began at the Hongpai port. In addition to the dispatch of ships and personnel, the Navy also dispatched survey boats to conduct hydrographic surveys in the harbor, marking available shipping lanes and berths with buoys. Mondstadt immediately instructed the Port Authority to drag the floating barges from the stock to the red plate to form a floating trestle for the cargo to be disembarked. The fixed trestle was also put into construction. One by one, the wooden piles are driven into the sediment at the bottom of the port of Hongpai, and they will form a cargo passage that extends to the berths in the port. Temporary flatbed tracks and cranes will soon be erected on top of it to unload the various construction materials brought in by flatbed barges.

Yanchang Village was re-planned and relocated to the newly built Ma Yuan Commune. This is a "new village" built on the model of the Bairen Commune, and the centralized management of residential areas is implemented. Ma Yuan Commune was positioned as a professional producer of salt works, and all the labor force was recruited into the salt works, and a small number of local fishermen were relocated to Bopu Commune, which mainly focuses on fishery production.

The Mayuan Salt Farm is not only the main supplier of edible salt in Lingao, but also the source of chemical raw materials and an important source of income for the group. Although the financial income obtained from the sale of illicit salt has been declining in the entire export trade, the source is very reliable and stable, and even before and after the second anti-encirclement and suppression, when the import and export fell sharply, Liu Gang, their illegal salt agent on the mainland, still quietly transported ships of salt from Lingao.

Now, they have de facto control of all the salt farms in Hainan – along the Qiongzhou Strait, there are several historic seaside salt farms in the capital. However, these salt farms are the same as the Mayuan salt works in the past, the salt people have fled, the production has withered, the production facilities and means are extremely backward, the salt output is not high, and it is urgent to rectify and transform the jishu, which is not an overnight thing. Therefore, the Mayuan Salt Farm is still their main source of salt at the moment.

Due to the problem of sea pollution, some of the elders thought that the development of salt farms along the coast of Yinggehai or Guangdong should be considered immediately, and that the salt from Maqian should only be used for industrial purposes. But Ji Huisi didn't think there was any need to be so nervous.

"In the old time, the coast of Bohai Bay was still the main production area of sea salt, and the industrial pollution along the Bohai coast was much larger than that of a small steel company here...... Which is not a high-polluting industry? Ji Huisi said, "It's a big deal to get some special salt from Leizhou in the future - aren't they afraid of eating high-speed rail salt?" ”

The first blast furnace was in full swing and the shell was finally built after 24 hours of continuous work, and the 24-hour oven was started. After the oven is cooled, the blast furnace lining of refractory bricks is started, and the oven is baked again after the lining is completed.

The purpose of the oven is to remove the moisture in the furnace, which will reduce the temperature of the bottom of the furnace, cause the accident of sitting on the bottom and not producing iron, and will also affect the life of the furnace and cause cracking of the furnace wall.

The second oven is more critical, in fact, from the second oven, the blast furnace is no longer stopped, but directly fed for continuous production. Therefore, the second oven will not start until the concentrate powder from Sanya arrives. As for the coke, it has accumulated a lot in Bopu, and it is transported to the horse in a boat, crushed into 20mm coke particles, and loaded into silos for later use.

Thanks to the efforts of the elders of Sanya, on February 10, the first ship of iron ore concentrate was finally transported back from Sanya, and then two transport ships of the navy carrying out supply tasks brought back one ship each of open-hearth ore and blast furnace ore. Wang Luobin assured that only the transportation capacity is sufficient, with the current inventory situation, 2~3 ships of iron ore concentrate can be sent out every week, with 150~250 tons per voyage. This speed is enough to ensure the continuous production of blast furnaces and open hearths.

Ji Wusheng discussed with Wu De and decided that the official time for igniting the blast furnace and the open hearth should be at the end of February, so that a certain amount of iron ore concentrate could be stored in Lingao in case the ore supply in Sanya was interrupted.

"Ore concentrate and coke should be kept in at least one week's production capacity, and in case of interruption of sea transportation or problems in the production of Tiandu, it can be guaranteed that the furnace will not be stopped." Ji Wusheng said, "There is also thermal coal, and steel plants must have special reserves -- special funds for special purposes." It cannot be mixed in the fuel sector - thermal coal must also be stored for at least 7 days, and of course coal for gasification must also be included in the share. ”

Lingao Iron and Steel Company is a steel enterprise that imports coke and iron ore, and its dependence on foreign countries is very high. Coke coal is shipped from the Jiazi coal mine in Qiongshan, iron ore from Sanya, and thermal coal from Guangdong and Hongkai in Vietnam. Thermal coal is blood for steel companies that rely heavily on steam engine power. Without thermal coal, even the blowers would not work, all kinds of machinery and equipment would not work, and of course steelmaking would not be possible.

"Is a week enough?" Ude expressed concern. In addition to the Jiazi Coal Mine, which is basically reliable, Sanya, which surrounds half of Hainan Island, Hongji, which crosses the Beibu Gulf, and the coal mines in Guangdong on the mainland, are all in a state of unreliability, and Sanya is the most reliable in comparison, but in case of any serious situation in Sanya: a serious accident or a surprise attack by a foreign enemy, I am afraid that it will not take a week to completely return to normal.

Ji shook his head silently: "I'm afraid it's not enough." But I know the dilemma, especially for thermal coal – I heard there is a big gap. ”

"It's not ordinary." Wu De whispered to Ji Wusheng that the entire Lingao thermal coal equivalent to standard coal reserves is only 9 days.

"So little?" Ji Wusheng was taken aback, because the thermal coal reserves once reached the standard coal reserve for 30 days after the development of the Nanbao Coal Mine and the Jiazi Coal Mine. ”

"Just recovered, the amount hasn't come up yet." Wude said.

The coal supply in Guangdong has been largely interrupted since before the Battle of Chengmai, and only the coal from Leizhou has been continuously transported to Lingao through the operation of the Leizhou Station because of its close distance and easy transportation, but other mainland sources have been completely interrupted. And the most haode Hongji anthracite arrives intermittently. Very unstable.

"You know, we have to ship thermal coal to Sanya every week, and the appetite for thermal coal consumption there is getting bigger and bigger." Since Wu De became the director of the Planning Institute, his hair has gradually decreased, and his eyebrows have knotted, "I am already thankful that I can maintain the reserve for 9 days." ”

He has been thinking about the plan to occupy Hongji. The allure of this extra-large open-pit anthracite mine is too great. Lingao's industrial system needs such high-quality anthracite coal that is easy to mine and utilize.

At present, Hongji Coal is operated through the Vietnam Trading Company at Leizhou Station, which purchases coal locally through agents. Sugar was shipped back for rice and coal. But the scale of this trade has not been large.

"Chang Shide told me that the exchange ratio of trade with Vietnam is quite favorable to us, but the quantity of trade goods we can provide is really a bit small, and the variety is also small." Ji Wusheng said, "He said that Vietnam has a very large demand for small hardware, and there is also a great demand for military equipment. The North and the South fought almost every day -- on a very large scale. ”

Wu De thinks: The biggest problem of Lingao's products is the limited production capacity, and the production capacity is related to the lack of machinery supply, and the crux of the lack of machinery is, of course, the lack of steel. As long as the situation is opened up on the steel issue, the rest of the things will be easy to do.