Influence of Technological Factors on Mechanical Strength of Periclase-Carbon Refractories

The paper presents the investigation on the influence of humidity, heat treatment temperature, the grain size distribution of periclase, aging time prior to heat treatment, and the amount of carbon in the charge on the strength properties of periclase-carbon samples. It is established that the moistening prior to heat treatment and aging duration have no influence on the mechanical strength of the materials. The mechanical strength of the samples increases with the increase in the concentration of finer particles of periclase in the charge. Given that the variation in carbon content (ranging from 3 to 11%) has no significant impact on the mechanical strength of the samples, it is recommended that the carbon content (in the form of graphite) in the charge mixture be determined on a case-by-case basis, in line with the intended use of the periclase-carbon products. In the investigated temperature range (125 – 250°C), the highest mechanical strength of the samples was observed at a heat treatment temperature of 200°C.