Research results in the field of improving the efficiency of needle coke production have been published in the authoritative scientific journal International Journal Of Engineering. It is published by the Materials and Energy Research Center (Iran).
What unites the electric arc method of steel production, lithium-ion batteries, and nuclear power? The use of needle coke. Its high electrical conductivity, thermal conductivity, low thermal expansion, and resistance to thermal shock allow this material to be classified as one of the most promising in the 21st century.
To date, the share of the electric arc method in global steel production has increased to a quarter, and in the USA, for example, it is already 58%. In Russia, it is currently about 18%, but there is a clear trend towards expanding the use of this more environmentally friendly method compared to the open-hearth and converter methods. The demand for lithium-ion batteries worldwide is growing even faster – by almost 19% per year. In metallurgy and battery production, needle coke is indispensable for electrode production. Its importance is also great in the nuclear industry.
For the Empress Catherine II Saint Petersburg Mining University, improving needle coke production technologies is one of the most important areas of research work. About 3 years ago, the university's Scientific Center "Problems of Mineral and Technogenic Resources Processing" was equipped with Russia's largest pilot delayed coking unit. The quality of the product obtained on it is highly appreciated by international experts, and an active search for methods to optimize the technology is underway.
Today, scientists from the Mining University are providing research support for the organization of needle coke production at the Naftan oil refinery in Belarus. Furthermore, 2 out of 10 joint projects between the Mining University and Shiraz University in Iran are dedicated to collaboration on the topic.
Cooperation between the two universities is developing very actively, leading to scientific publications. In particular, the article "Polymer-modified Needle Coke Properties Formation During High Temperature Calcination" by Empress Catherine II Saint Petersburg Mining University scientists Renat Gabdulkhakov, Arthur Samigullin, Vyacheslav Rudko, Igor Pyagay, and their Iranian colleague Professor Ali Hafizi received high praise from experts. They studied the effect of modification of hydrocarbon feedstock with polymeric mesogen additive on high-temperature calcination of needle coke in the temperature range of 600-1600 °С. Changes in the structure formation of needle coke during high-temperature calcination as a function of feedstock modification and calcination temperature were determined by SEM, XRD, CHN, XRF and Raman spectroscopy, as well as by methods of complex study of physicochemical properties.
The scientists established that at lower calcination temperatures (1200 degrees), needle coke from modified feedstock achieves a higher degree of carbonization compared to needle coke from unmodified feedstock (1400 degrees). Thus, it is possible to reduce the heat load on the calcining furnace while maintaining the quality of the resulting needle coke for the production of premium-grade graphite electrodes. This implies a significant reduction in calcination costs.
In the pyrolysis products of coke from modified feedstock, the mass fraction of highly carcinogenic components benzofluoranthene, benzanthracene, benzophenanthrene, and benzopyrene decreases from 43.4% to 26.5%, along with a decrease in the yield of nitrogen-containing compounds.
