The protection of electric heat tracing bands for steel plants

In the production process of steel plants, pipelines play a crucial role in transporting key media such as water, gas, and chemical auxiliary materials. When severe winter cold strikes, low temperatures become their greatest threat - water pipes freeze, gas pipelines become blocked by ice, and chemical media crystallize. Each of these situations can lead to production interruptions or even safety accidents. Electric heat tracing bands, with their characteristics of active heating and precise temperature control, are becoming the "invisible guardians" that safeguard the smooth operation of steel plants during winter.

In the water supply system of steel plants, the application of electric heat tracing bands is the most fundamental and widespread aspect. The water treatment pipelines in steel plants are usually distributed in open environments or non-heated workshops, facing severe anti-freezing challenges in cold seasons. Once the liquid inside the pipeline freezes, it will not only cause a disruption in water supply, affecting production, but may also lead to serious issues such as pipeline rupture and valve damage, resulting in high maintenance costs and affecting production continuity. The electric heat tracing system generates heat through the heat tracing bands laid on the outer wall of the pipeline, compensating for the heat loss of the pipeline, maintaining the temperature of the medium inside the pipeline above freezing point, and ensuring uninterrupted and stable operation of the water supply system.

For the more specialized gas pipelines in steel plants, the value of electric heat tracing becomes even more prominent. For a long time, steam tracing pipes have been predominantly used for gas pipeline tracing, but this method has obvious drawbacks - steam pipes corrode rapidly after prolonged operation, and they are highly prone to causing burns to personnel, resulting in significant energy waste. In the practice of the Gas Branch of the Energy and Environmental Protection Center of Ansteel, Anshan Metallurgical Group Power Engineering Company successfully transformed the steam tracing of gas pipelines into electric heat tracing, which not only saves energy but also greatly improves maintenance convenience and operational safety. The construction personnel also innovatively modified the end of the electric heat tracing belt into an indicator light, allowing inspection personnel to determine the power-on status without touching, eliminating potential safety hazards.

On some critical medium pipelines, steel enterprises have even adopted a dual-loop guarantee scheme for electric heat tracing systems. Located in Yangqu County, Taiyuan City, Gangke Company faces extremely low temperatures in winter, with the lowest temperature dropping below -25℃, posing high demands on the antifreeze and insulation of energy medium pipelines. The company has implemented a dual-loop guarantee scheme for electric heat tracing systems on its critical medium pipelines - when the original loop fails to maintain insulation, the other loop is promptly activated to ensure the continuity of production processes. This transformation not only completely eliminates hidden dangers at critical points in the production process, but also provides valuable maintenance and repair time for pipelines and valves, greatly enhancing the supply guarantee capability of energy mediums.

In the field of chemical auxiliary material transportation in steel plants, electric heat tracing bands also play an important role. Taking the molasses pipeline of a coal briquetting project in a steel plant as an example, molasses viscosity increases sharply at low temperatures, and its fluidity deteriorates, seriously affecting production. Through the installation and commissioning of the electric heat tracing system, the transportation challenge of the molasses pipeline in winter was successfully solved, ensuring the continuous and stable operation of the coal briquetting process.

The practice of Hebei Iron & Steel Group Handan Iron & Steel Company demonstrates an innovative strategy of complementary use of electric heat tracing and steam heat tracing. To prevent safety hazards caused by the freezing of gas drains and gas water seals in severe cold weather, the plant adopts a complementary approach of electric heat tracing and steam heat tracing, ensuring cold and freeze protection while reducing steam usage. Through reasonable calculations, it is required that the heat tracing set temperature during extreme cold weather should not exceed 65°C, to avoid energy waste and overheating that may reduce equipment lifespan. The plant also organizes team members and young people to conduct four special inspections during the day, afternoon, before and after the night shift, to promptly identify and rectify hidden dangers, ensuring reliable operation of gas-related equipment.

The electric heat tracing system is widely used in steel plants due to its significant advantages over traditional heat tracing methods. The self-regulating electric heat tracing belt possesses the characteristic of "self-temperature control" - it releases more heat when the temperature drops and automatically reduces heat when the temperature rises. This self-temperature control performance can compensate for temperature changes at any time, avoiding overheating and burnout. Additionally, the electric heat tracing belt can be wrapped and knotted freely without fear of overheating, offering greater energy efficiency compared to steam heat tracing and eliminating the risk of leakage. Its comprehensive accessory system, including explosion-proof power junction boxes, intermediate junction boxes, end junction boxes, explosion-proof temperature controllers, aluminum foil tape, etc., forms a complete heat tracing solution.

From water supply pipelines to gas pipelines, from chemical auxiliary materials to critical media, the electric heat tracing band provides multi-dimensional and comprehensive protection for steel plants. With just the right amount of heat, it melts the threat of freeze-induced blockages brought by severe cold, ensuring the smooth flow of every pipeline and the continuity of every process.