Steel Mills

Primetals to Supply U.S. Steel Mon Valley Works Project

Written by Sandy Williams


Primetals Technologies will supply an Arvedi Endless Strip Production line for the U.S. Steel Edgar Thomson Plant in Pennsylvania. The ESP line is the first to be constructed in the United States and has a rated annual capacity of 2.76 million tons of high quality, ultra-thin strip.

The ESP line will be able to produce strip with thicknesses from 0.031 to 0.236 inches and widths ranging from 38 to 77 inches.

Primetals Technologies will supply the mechanical equipment, media-control systems, technological packages and automation systems. Automation processes will fully control all casting and rolling operations for the entire line. The Arvedi ESP process lowers energy consumption and costs by 45 percent compared to conventional mills and substantially reduces CO2 emissions. The compact line is much smaller than those of conventional casting and rolling mills at just 590 feet long.

The liquid steel produced by Edgar Thomson’s two blast furnaces is cast in a thin strand that is rolled to an intermediate thickness of 20 to 20 mm in a 3-stand high reduction mill at the end of the caster. The bar is reheated in an induction heater and rolling continues to the required thickness in a 5-stand finishing mill followed by laminar strip cooling. The strip is then cut by a high-speed shear just prior to rolling.

The steel produced will be the principal substrate for production of U.S. Steel’s XG3 Advanced High Strength Steel used by the automotive industry. Depending on permitting and construction, the first coil from the new line is expected to be produced in 2022.

ESPline

Primetals Technologies, Ltd., headquartered in London, is a worldwide engineering, plant-building and lifecycle services partner for the metals industry. The company offers a complete technology, product and service portfolio that includes integrated electrics, automation and environmental solutions. Primetals Technologies is a joint venture of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) and Siemens.

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