ISO 23495:2021

This document applies for new steel converter and its associated equipment (hereinafter referred to as converter plant) used in the process of carbon or stainless steel making as defined in 3.1 and illustrated in Annex B.

This document deals with significant hazards, hazardous situations and events relevant to the converter plant. It covers the intended use and foreseeable misuse.

This document specifies the safety requirements to be met during design, pre-assembly, transport, site-assembly, commissioning, operation, maintenance (as described in Clause 5) and decommissioning/dis­assembly of the equipment.

Assembly does not include erection because national regulations, e.g. national civil engineering laws and regulations or occupational health and safety regulations contain such information.

This document applies to:

• Steel converter and its associated equipment (see Annex B, Figure B.1 for the oxygen steelmaking process)
• —  from charging hot metal/liquid steel and scrap;
• —  via oxygen refining and stirring;
• —  temperature measurement and sampling equipment;
• —  up to tapping including slag retaining device;
• —  cooling systems;
• —  maintenance devices (e.g. relining device, tap hole repair device, device for cleaning the converter mouth);
• —  process related interfaces/interactions (e.g. according to design, controls) to
  • —  process media,
  • —  primary and secondary gas cleaning plant,
  • —  material feeding systems and ladle alloying systems,
  • —  transfer cars for steel ladle and slag pot, and
  • —  charging/tapping equipment, e.g. crane, scrap chute, ladles and slag pots.

This document does not cover safety requirements for:

• —  usage of process media other than oxygen, nitrogen, argon and compressed air;
• —  primary and secondary gas cleaning plants;
• —  measuring devices with radioactive sources;
• —  material feeding systems and ladle alloying systems;
• —  transfer cars for steel ladle and slag pot;
• —  charging/tapping and de-slagging equipment, e.g. crane, scrap chutes, ladles and slag pots;
• —  auxiliary winches and hoists.

For variations of converter process where other gases and process media, e.g. hydrocarbons, fuels, steam, etc. are used, additional safety measures shall be considered which are not covered in this safety standard.

NOTE  In case of revamping, this document can be used as a guideline for the specific parts to be revamped.

This document is not applicable to steel converter and associated equipment manufactured before the date of its publication.