The aim of research was creation of a furnace for aluminum alloys smelting “in a liquid bath” in order to reduce metal loss. In the paper,

the author demonstrates the results of research on smelting of aluminum alloys in a shaft-reverberatory furnace designed by the author. It

has been shown that smelting aluminum alloy in a liquid bath was able to significantly reduce aluminum loss and that shaft-reverberatory

design provided high efficiency and productivity along with lower energy costs. Ensuring continuous operation of the liquid bath and

superheating chamber, which tapped alloy with the required texture, was achieved by means of the optimal design of partition between

them. The optimum section of the connecting channels between the liquid bath of smelting and the superheating chamber has been

theoretically substantiated and experimentally confirmed. The author proposed a workable shaft-reverberatory furnace for aluminum

alloys smelting, providing solid charge melting in a liquid bath.

The author has developed and patented several types of gas cupola furnaces, which, due to replacing coke with gas, do not emit carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide and coke dust. The author has defined the optimal modes of gas-and-air mixture combustion, i.e. the optimal coefficient of air discharge and gas mixture escape speed in melting cast iron. It has been experimentally proved that from the point of view of obtaining the maximum temperature, the optimal was the process with some lack of air, i.e. with α = 0.98. The results of metallurgical studies used in the article allowed to develop an optimal structure of the gas cupola furnace with a heterogeneous refractory filling, and to establish the optimal composition of the filling. For the first time the optimal composition of the filling is given: 40% of chamotte, 30% of high-alumina refractory, 30% of electrode scrap. It has been noted that when gas cupola furnaces were used, the main environmental advantage was the reduction of dust emission into the atmosphere, CO and SO2 content.

The article describes the trend towards increased use of induction crucible furnaces for cast iron smelting. The use of gas cupola’s duplex

process – induction crucible furnace – has been proved the effective direction of scientific and technical advance in the foundry industry.

Gas cupolas and induction furnaces are used for cast iron smelting at the Penza Compressor Plant where in the 1960s the author developed

and introduced gas cupolas for the first time in the world. In the article, the author represents the findings of the investigation on

thermodynamics of crucible reduction of silicon, which is pivotal when choosing the technological mode for cast iron smelting in

induction furnaces. The author proposes a new reaction crucible diagram with due account of both partial pressure and activity of the

components involved into the process. For the first time ever, the electrochemical mechanism of a crucible reaction has been studied and

the correctness of the proposed diagram has been confirmed.

The aim of the current study was to examine the structure of an alloy treated at various temperatures up to 2,000–2,100 °C. Among research techniques for studying alloy structure there were the electron and optical microstructure, X-ray structure, and spectral analysis, and for studying the developed furnace geometric parameters the authors employed mathematical modeling method. The research was performed using aluminum smelting gas-fired furnaces and electric arc furnaces. The objects of the study were aluminum alloys of the brand AK7p and AK6, as well as hydrogen and aluminum oxide in the melt. For determining the hydrogen content in the aluminum alloy, the vacuum extraction method was selected. Authors have established that treatment of molten aluminum alloy in contact with carbon melt at high temperatures of 2,000–2,100 °C has resulted in facilitating reduction of hydrogen and aluminum oxide content in the melt by 40-43% and 50-58%, respectively, which is important because hydrogen and aluminum oxide adversely affect the structure and properties of the alloy. Such treatment contributes to the formation of the extremely fine-grained microstructure of aluminum alloy.