The Coke and Chemical Division of PJSC Dniprovsky Metallurgical Plant (formerly Dniprokoks), which is part of DCH Steel of the DCH group of businessman Oleksandr Yaroslavsky, is currently operating with three batteries at 50-55% of their capacity and is repairing others aggregates.

According to information in the corporate newspaper DCH Steel on Thursday, the Coke and Chemical Division is implementing an investment project to repair the masonry of the heating walls of coke ovens. Work is being carried out on coke oven batteries Nos. 1, 4, and 5.

At the same time, a special ceramic mixture is used to restore the masonry, which is identical in its chemical parameters to refractories.

"Ceramic surfacing is the most effective method of repairing the heating walls of coke ovens. We have been actively using this technology since 2020," Director for Coke Production Oleksiy Horbulia is quoted by the corporate publication.

The masonry of the walls is destroyed over time due to constant temperature changes. Repairing with ceramic welding allows for increasing its resistance to thermal shocks, avoiding cracks, and sealing the seams. With the standard operation of coke oven batteries, the ceramic material protects the masonry for three years.

In 2020-2021, the masonry of three operating batteries was repaired at the Dniprovsky Metallurgical Plant using ceramic cladding. But the war hurt the state of the furnace fund.

"Together with the country, we survived three blackouts. The most difficult situation was in December: even after the blackout was over, we could not restore production, because there was no coke oven gas to heat the ovens. For several days, people lived at the enterprise to transfer the heating system from the coke oven to natural gas. The batteries cooled down for nine days and it seemed that it was already impossible to start them," Horbulia said.

Nevertheless, the coke production managed to be restarted thanks to promptly implemented solutions. At the same time, the cooling period harmed the furnaces and some of them had to be taken out of service due to masonry defects.

"The current repair will solve this problem: the damaged sections will be restored and the capacities that have now been stopped can again be used in the production process. They will protect the working furnaces with surfacing, which will increase their efficiency and reduce the impact on the environment. It is planned to complete the planned scope of work by the end of August," the division said.

As reported, the Coke and Chemical Division of Dniprovsky Metallurgical Plant resumed the production of metallurgical coke in March this year. To resume the production of metallurgical coke, the enterprise purchased more K-grade coking coal. At the same time, since the beginning of the war, the main products of the coke chemical division have been coal coke, nut coke, and coke breeze, which Dniprovsky Metallurgical Plant supplies to the country's ferroalloy enterprises.

Dniprovsky Metallurgical Plant specializes in the production of steel, cast iron, rolled products, and products from them. On March 1, 2018, the DCH Group signed an agreement on the purchase of the Dniprovsky Metallurgical Plant from Evraz.