Description:TECHNICAL FIELD

[001] The present disclosure relates to the field of metallurgy. Particularly, the present disclosure relates to a method to reduce the size of Low Carbon Ferro Chrome alloy lumps.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[002] The following description includes information that may be useful in understanding the present invention. It is not an admission that any of the information provided herein is prior art or relevant to the presently claimed invention, or that any publication specifically or implicitly referenced is prior art.
[003] Steel production may involve utilization of various alloying elements (such as, Manganese, Chromium, Nickel, Silicon, etc.) to improve mechanical properties (such as, strength, toughness, ductility, corrosion resistance, etc.) of the steel. For example, in the production stainless steel or other alloyed steels, Chromium is generally added to molten steel to achieve a homogenous solid solution with improved corrosion resistance in the produced steel. In certain instances, Chromium may be available in form of Ferro Chrome alloy (such as, Low Carbon Ferro Chrome alloy). During casting of steel, wt.% of chromium in the steel alloy is used to determined amount of low carbon ferro chrome alloy to be added to a crucible for casting the steel. However, adding low carbon ferro chrome alloys in the form of lumps may reduce precision of quantity of the alloy. A reduced size form of the low carbon ferro chrome alloys allows for greater control, (i.e., in adding the low carbon ferro chrome alloy) resulting in higher precision in final composition of the alloyed steel. Further, reduced size of the low carbon ferrochrome alloy may be chemically tested by methods such as wet chemical method and instrumented analysis to determine chemical properties such as composition of the Low Carbon Ferro Chrome alloy.
[004] However, as such Low Carbon Ferro Chrome alloys are generally extremely hard (MOHS Hardness about 9) as well as very ductile (due to low Carbon content). Consequently, it may be difficult to crush the Low Carbon Ferro Alloy using equipment (such as, impact crushers and jaw crushers). In some instances, the Low Carbon Ferro Alloy is crushed in the jaw crusher for an extended period due to its extremely hard and high ductile properties. In such instances, because of the extended period of usage of the jaw crushers, there may be reduced equipment life and increased cost due to frequent replacement of equipment components.
[005] The present disclosure is directed to overcome one or more limitations stated above or any other limitations associated with the prior art.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[006] The following presents a simplified summary to provide a basic understanding of some aspects of the proposed method being patented. This summary is not an extensive overview and is intended neither to identify key or critical elements nor delineate the scope of such elements. Its purpose is to present some concepts of the described features in a simplified form as a prelude to the more detailed description that is presented later.
[007] In a non-limiting embodiment of the present disclosure, a method to reduce size of low carbon ferro alloy lumps is disclosed. The method includes placing the low carbon ferro alloy lumps in a container followed by a step of pouring a first coolant into the container to cool the alloy to a first predefined temperature. Further, the method includes subjecting the alloy to a first stage of cooling in the coolant for a first period followed by crushing the cooled alloy in a first crusher to reduce the size of the low carbon ferro chrome alloys lumps. Furthermore, the method includes a step of subjecting the crushed lumps of alloy to a second stage of cooling in a second coolant for a second period followed by a step of crushing the cooled alloy in a second crusher to reduce the size of the low carbon ferro chrome alloys lumps. Additionally, the method includes pulverizing the crushed lumps of cooled alloy in a pulverizer to reduce the size of the low carbon ferro chrome alloys lumps.

[008] In an embodiment of the disclosure, the low carbon ferro alloy lumps has a composition in weight percentage (wt.%) of :aluminum (Al) at about 0.01 % to about 0.75%, carbon (C) at about 0.01 % to about 0.10%, chromium (Cr) at about 59 % to about 65%, phosphorous (P) at about 0.01% to about 0.05%, Sulphur (S) at about 0.001% to about 0.05%, silicon (Si) at about 0.5% to about 1%, titanium (Ti) at about 0.01% to about 0.1%, the balance being Iron (Fe) optionally along with incidental elements.

[009] In an embodiment of the disclosure, a mass of the first coolant and the second coolant required for crushing the low Carbon Ferro chrome alloy lumps and the low Carbon Ferro chrome alloy blocks is based on a mass of Low Carbon Ferro Alloy lumps.

[010] In an embodiment of the disclosure, the container is made of high-density polyethylene (HDPE) polymer.

[011] In an embodiment of the disclosure, the Low Carbon ferro chrome alloy material is cooled to a temperature range of -60°C to -100°C during both the first stage of cooling and the second stage of cooling.

[012] In an embodiment of the disclosure, the first crusher is at least one of jaw crusher, hydraulic crusher, cone crusher, and compound crusher.

[013] In an embodiment of the disclosure, the first jaw crusher is defining a jaw gap of 20 mm.

[014] In an embodiment of the disclosure, the second crusher is at least one of jaw crusher, hydraulic crusher, cone crusher, and compound crusher.

[015] In an embodiment of the disclosure, the second jaw crusher is defining a jaw gap of 5 mm.

[016] In an embodiment of the disclosure, the first period of cooling of low carbon ferro alloy lumps is ranging from 8 minutes to 15 minutes.

[017] In an embodiment of the disclosure, the size of crushed low carbon ferro alloy lumps after crushing by the first crusher ranges less than 20mm.

[018] In an embodiment of the disclosure, the second period of cooling of low carbon ferro alloy is ranging from 10 minutes to 15 minutes.

[019] In an embodiment of the disclosure, the size of crushed low carbon ferro alloy blocks after crushing by the second crusher ranges less than 5mm.

[020] In an embodiment of the disclosure, the size of pulverized ferro alloy lumps is ranging ranges less than 0.15mm.

[021] In an embodiment of the disclosure, the first coolant and the second coolant are at least one of liquid nitrogen, liquid Helium, or a mechanical cooling system (like a cryogenic refrigerator).

[022] It is to be understood that the aspects and embodiments of the disclosure described above may be used in any combination with each other. Several of the aspects and embodiments may be combined to form a further embodiment of the disclosure.

[023] The foregoing summary is illustrative only and is not intended to be in any way limiting. In addition to the illustrative aspects, embodiments, and features described above, further aspects, embodiments, and features will become apparent by reference to the drawings and the following detailed description.

OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION

[024] One of objective of the present disclosure is to develop a method to reduce size of Low Carbon Ferro Alloy lumps for ease of chemical analysis and provide better control in the final composition the alloyed steel.

[025] Another objective of the present disclosure is to develop a method to reduce size of Low Carbon Ferro Alloy lumps for providing better control in adding alloying elements during casting of steel.

[026] Yet another object of the present disclosure is to develop a method to reduce size of Low Carbon Ferro Chrome alloys without damaging the components of a crushing apparatus thereby increase life of the crushing apparatus.

[027] Yet another objective of the present disclosure is to reduce size of low carbon ferro chrome alloys lesser than 0.15mm such that, the reduced size of the Low Carbon Ferro Chrome alloys may be utilized for performing wet chemical analysis of composition and other properties of the Low Carbon Ferro Chrome Alloy.
EFFECTS/ADVANTAGES OF THE PRESENT INVENTION

[028] One of the advantages of the present disclosure is reduced effort required to crush the lumps of Low Carbon Ferro Chrome alloy.

[029] Another advantage of the present disclosure is increased life of crushers and pulverizes due to the method of the present disclosure.

[030] Another advantage of the present disclosure is that pulverized Low Carbon Ferro Chrome alloys have higher surface to volume ratio in comparison to the lumps of Low Carbon Ferro Chrome alloys. Hence, a small amount of pulverized Low Carbon Ferro Chrome alloy would be required to perform wet chemical or experimental analysis of the Low Carbon Ferro Chrome alloy.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[031] The novel features and characteristics of the disclosure are set forth in the appended description. The disclosure itself, however, as well as a preferred mode of use, further objectives, and advantages thereof, will best be understood by reference to the following detailed description of an illustrative embodiment when read in conjunction with the accompanying figures. One or more embodiments are now described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying figures wherein like reference numerals represent like elements and in which:
[032] FIG. 1 is a flowchart of a method to reduce size of Low Carbon Ferro Alloy lumps, in accordance with an embodiment of the disclosure.
[033] FIG. 2 illustrates a graph showing variation of flow stress and fracture stress in accordance with temperature, for the crushed Low Carbon Ferro Alloys, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure.
[034] FIG. 3A illustrates fracture surface of the crushed Low Carbon Ferro Alloys at a room temperature, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure.
[035] FIG. 3B illustrates fracture surface of the crushed Low Carbon Ferro Alloys at a temperature below a ductile-to-brittle transition temperature, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure.
[036] FIG. 4A illustrates microstructure of the fracture surface of the crushed Low Carbon Ferro Alloys at a room temperature, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure.
[037] FIG. 4B illustrates microstructure of the fracture surface of the crushed Low Carbon Ferro Alloys at a temperature below ductile-to-brittle transition temperature, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[038] The foregoing has broadly outlined the features and technical advantages of the present disclosure in order that the detailed description of the disclosure that follows may be better understood. Additional features and advantages of the disclosure will be described hereinafter which form the subject of the description of the disclosure. It should also be realized by those skilled in the art that such equivalent methods do not depart from the scope of the disclosure. The novel features which are believed to be characteristic of the disclosure, as to method of operation, together with further objects and advantages will be better understood from the following description when considered in connection with the accompanying figures. It is to be expressly understood, however, that each of the figures is provided for the purpose of illustration and description only and is not intended as a definition of the limits of the present disclosure.
[039] FIG. 1 is a flowchart of a method (200) to reduce size of Low Carbon Ferro Alloy lumps. For example, the method (200) may be used to obtain Low Carbon Ferro Alloy particles of size ranging less than 0.15mm. In the present disclosure, the method is devised to reduce size of Low Carbon Ferro Chrome alloy. However, the material should not be construed as a limitation to the method (200).
[040] At step 102 of the method (200), Low Carbon Ferro Chrome Alloy lumps may be loaded in a container of predefined capacity and material of construction. The container may be defining a geometrical configuration such as but not limited to a circular, rectangular cross section based on the requirement and industry standards. Further, the container may be made of materials with high load bearing capacity and resistance to deformation under lower temperatures. The material of the container may be any one of metals, polymers, ceramics, and composites. In an embodiment, the container is made of high-density polyethylene (HDPE) polymer. In an embodiment, the Low Carbon Ferro Alloy lumps has a composition by weight of Aluminum (Al) 0.01 - 0.75 %, Carbon (C) 0.01 - 0.10 %, Chromium (Cr) 59 - 65 %, Phosphorous (P) 0.01 - 0.05 %, Sulphur (S) 0.001 - 0.05wt. %, Silicon (Si) 0.5 – 1.0 %, Titanium (Ti) 0.01 - 0.1 %, the balance being substantially Iron (Fe) along with incidental elements. Furthermore, the lumps may be a single structural object of Low Carbon Ferro Chrome alloy defined with an inner section and an outer section. Each of the inner section and outer section may be defined with a predefined thickness. The division of the lumps into inner section and outer section is described in the present disclosure for ease of illustration and should not be construed as a structural feature of the lumps.
[041] At step 104 of the method (200), a first coolant may be poured into the container to cool the alloy to a first predefined temperature. In an embodiment, the first coolant may be one of: liquid Nitrogen, liquid Helium, or any other suitable coolant that may be adopted to cool the lumps. As seen in FIG. 2, reducing the temperature of the lumps, Low Carbon Ferro Chrome alloy, reduces the fracture stress of the material. Further reduction in fracture stress below a predefined temperature may result in a ductile-to-brittle transition (DBT) of the alloy material. Ductile-to-brittle transition temperature (DBTT) is a temperature below which a ductile material starts becoming brittle.
[042] At step 106 of the method (200), the lumps may be subjected to a first stage of cooling for a first period. In an embodiment, the first period of cooling of the Low Carbon Ferro Alloy material may be ranging from 8 minutes to 15 minutes. In an embodiment, a temperature range of cooling during the first cooling period may be between -60°C to -100°C. by soaking in a suitable medium or coolant till the temperature reduces to between -60°C to -100°C and becomes uniform (the time may range from 8 minutes to 15 minutes, depending on circumstances).
[043] In general, most materials include slip planes along which ductile deformation of a material may occur upon loading. Failure of materials at temperatures above DBTT may initiate along intergranular cracks. Intergranular crack formation may refer to formation of cracks in material along grain boundaries of the material. However, at lower temperatures, such slip planes may be locked resulting in excessive loading on slip planes. Particularly, below DBTT, activation energy required by the material to undergo ductile deformation may not be available resulting the brittle fracture. Thus, reducing temperature of Low Carbon Ferro Chrome alloy below the ductile-to-brittle transition temperature (DBTT) may result in the ductile-to-brittle transition (DBT).
[044] At step 108 of the method (200), the cooled lumps may be unloaded from the container and passed through a first crusher to crush the cooled lumps. By reducing temperature of the lumps below DBT and subjecting the lumps to impact loads by means of series of crushers, trans-granular crack formation may occur to the lumps. Trans-granular crack may refer to crack formation of a material through grains and crystal of the material. Trans-granular crack formation may occur due to lack of available slip planes in a material for the material to undergo ductile deformation and consequently intergranular fracture. In an embodiment, the first cooling may reduce the temperature of only the outer section below DBTT. Due to such reduction in temperature of the outer section, trans-granular crack formation due to impact loads from the first crusher may occur through the predefined thickness of the outer section of the lumps. In an embodiment, the first crusher may crush throughout the predefined thickness of the outer section and a portion of the inner section. Such selective crushing of the outer section of the lumps by the first crusher may be due to incomplete cooling of the plurality of lumps below DBTT. During the first stage of cooling by the first coolant, the cooling of the lumps may not be cooled uniformly throughout the thickness of the lumps i.e., the lumps may be cooled up to a predefined thickness of the lumps. In such cooling conditions, DBT may not occur throughout the thickness of the inner section of the lumps, resulting in partial crushing of the lumps by the first crusher. In an embodiment, the first crusher may be any of jaw crushers, hydraulic crushers etc. In an embodiment, the first crusher may include a jaw crusher, hydraulic crusher, cone crusher, and compound crusher.
[045] In an embodiment, the cooled lumps may be initially passed through a first jaw crusher defining a jaw gap of 20 mm. The first jaw crusher may be configured to reduce size of the lumps to under 20 mm. The compressive action of the first jaw crusher may result in reduction of size of the lumps to form blocks of size range less than 20 mm.
[046] At block 110 of the method (200), the blocks may be subjected to a second stage of cooling in a second coolant for a second period. The second stage of cooling may be performed to reduce the temperature of the uncrushed portion of the blocks i.e., the inner section of the lumps. In an embodiment, the second coolant may be any one of: liquid Nitrogen, liquid Helium, or a mechanical device (like a cryogenic refrigerator). In an embodiment, the second period of cooling of low carbon ferro alloy blocks may be ranging from 10 minutes to 15 minutes. The second stage of cooling may be performed to reduce the temperature of the blocks below the DBTT of the Low Carbon Ferro Chrome alloy.
[047] At step 112 of the method (200), the cooled blocks may be passed through a second crusher to crush the cooled blocks. In an embodiment, the second crusher may be any of jaw crushers, hydraulic crushers etc. In an embodiment, the cooled blocks may be passed through a second jaw crusher defining a jaw gap of 5 mm to crush the blocks. The second jaw crusher may be configured to crush the blocks to a size of about 5 mm. The compressive action of the second jaw crusher may result in reduction of size of the blocks to form coarse powder of size range less than 5 mm.
[048] At step 114 of the method (200), the cooled and crushed coarse powder of the low carbon ferro chrome alloy may be pulverized by a pulverizer to reduce the size of Low Carbon Ferro Chrome alloys to form fine powder. In an embodiment, the size of pulverized ferro chrome alloy fine powder may be below 0.15 mm (< 150 microns (µ)) and passes through a screen of 60 mesh.
[049] The method (200) for reducing the size of Low Carbon Ferro Chrome alloys may increase the surface to volume ratio of the Low Carbon Ferro Chrome alloys lumps. Such increased surface to volume ratio may result in higher available surface area for any chemical reaction to take place. Consequently, a smaller quantity of the fine powdered low carbon ferro chrome alloy would be required to perform wet chemical analysis (such as gravimetric method, volumetric method etc.), or instrumental analysis of the Low Carbon Ferro Chrome alloys to determine composition (for example composition of Chromium) or other chemical properties of the Low Carbon Ferro Chrome alloys.
[050] The order in which the flowchart (200) is described is not intended to be construed as a limitation, and any number of the described method can be combined in any order to implement the flowchart (200) or alternate methods. Additionally, individual steps may be deleted from the flowchart (200) without departing from the spirit and scope of the subject matter described herein. Furthermore, the method can be implemented in any suitable hardware, software, firmware, or combination thereof.
[051] Referring to FIG. 2, it illustrates a graph showing variation of flow stress and fracture stress with temperature. Reducing temperature below a predefined temperature called the DBTT, materials which are ductile at room temperature may become brittle. The transition phenomenon between ductile to brittle may be a direct consequence of the strong temperature and strain rate sensitivity of flow stress, which in turn is regulated by thermally activated motion of screw dislocation at the atomic scale. Generally, the transition phenomenon is a consequence of the interplay between flow stress and fracture stress. Fracture stress may be defined as the maximum amount of stress a material can withstand before breaking or failure. Flow stress may be defined as instantaneous value of stress required to continuously deform a material plastically. The fracture stress is reported to be constant with temperature, whereas the flow stress decreases sharply with temperature. The crossover point, where the flow stress and the fracture stress curves meet, represents the ductile-to-brittle transition temperature (DBTT). The series of crushers described in step 108 of the method (200) required less effort to crush lumps of Low Carbon Ferro Chrome alloy below temperatures of -60 °C and showed further reduction in effort till temperatures of -200 °C. Below a temperature of -60 °C, there is adequate reduction in the effort required to crush the lumps hence the cooling range is kept between -60 deg Celsius and -100 deg Celsius.
[052] Experimental analysis is conducted to determine compressive load to failure of Low Carbon Ferro Chrome alloy at room temperature. Table 1 below represents the compressive load to failure of the lumps and corresponding fracture stress.

Table 1
Sl No. Compressive Load to Failure (kN)
Area of sample (mm2) Fracture stress
1
412.65
355 1162.4MPa

2
413.8
424 975MPa

3
>1000
502 Approx. 2000MPa

Three sets of Low Carbon Ferro Chrome alloy lumps of varying sizes were tested for fracture stress. It was observed that upon increasing size of ferro chrome alloy lumps, higher compressive force was required to crush the Low Carbon Ferro Chrome alloy lumps thereby increasing fracture stress.
[053] FIG. 3A and 3B represents the fracture surface of samples crushed at room temperature and fracture surface of samples crushed at temperatures below ductile to brittle transition temperature, respectively. In either case, (FIG. 3A and FIG. 3B), the lumps undergo brittle fracture and get reduced in size. Crack formation in brittle fracture occurs at a triple point (As seen in FIG. 3B). In case of brittle fractures, failure may occur at grain boundaries between two or more grains at a defined angle.
[054] FIG. 4A illustrates a microstructure of fracture surface of crushed lumps at room temperature. From FIG. 4A, it can be noted that brittle fracture of the lumps at room temperature may be due intergranular crack formation. Intergranular cracks may refer to crack formation between adjacent grains.
[055] Fig. 4B illustrates a microstructure of fracture surface of crushed lumps at a temperature of -100 °C. From Fig. 4B, it can be noted that brittle fracture of the lumps at a temperature below DBTT may be due to trans-granular crack progression. Trans-granular crack formation may refer to crack formation of a material through grains and crystal of the material.
[056] Experimental analysis was performed to measure crack length, crack surface area and crack density for the lumps crushed at room temperature and for the lumps at -100 °C [Referring Fig. 4A and Fig. 4B] with same loading conditions. Two sets of crushed lumps were considered for measurement of crack length, crack surface area and crack density.
[057] Measured crack length for lumps crushed at room temperature was found to be 45.28mm and 37.83 mm. The measured crack length for lumps crushed at -100 °C was found to be 61.23mm and 60.88mm. The percentage increase in crack length for lumps crushed at -100 °C in comparison to crack length for lumps crushed at room temperature is 35% and 61%. Thus, trans-granular crack formation of lumps below DBTT may result in longer crack length.
[058] Measured crack surface area for lumps crushed at room temperature was found to be 133.7 mm2 and 200.6 mm2. The measured crack surface area for lumps crushed at -100 °C was found to be 136.0 mm2 and 224.0 mm2. The percentage increase in crack surface area for lumps crushed at -100 °C in comparison to crack length for lumps crushed at room temperature is 2% and 12%. Thus, crack surface area of lumps below DBTT may increase by an average of 5% in comparison to crack surface area of lumps at room temperature after crushing at same loads.
[059] Measured crack density for lumps crushed at room temperature was found to be 0.34 mm/mm2 and 0.18 mm/mm2. The measured crack density for lumps crushed at -100 °C was found to be 0.5 mm/mm2 and 0.27 mm/mm2. The percentage increase in crack density for lumps crushed at -100 °C in comparison to crack density for lumps crushed at room temperature is 32% and 50%. Thus, crack density of lumps below DBTT may increase by an average of 40% in comparison to crack density of lumps at room temperature after crushing at same loads.
[060] From the above experimental results, it can be concluded that the Low Carbon Ferro Chrome alloy of the present disclosure shows better crack formation i.e., crack length, crack surface area and crack density when cooled below DBTT i.e., -100 °C in comparison to the room temperature samples. Consequently, less effort may be required to crush the lumps. Such increase in crack length, crack surface area and crack density when cooled below DBTT and lower effort may result in increased life of the crushers and pulverizers.
[061] In the present document, the word "exemplary" is used herein to mean "serving as an example, instance, or illustration." Any embodiment or implementation of the present subject matter described herein as "exemplary" is not necessarily to be construed as preferred or advantageous over other embodiments.
[062] While the disclosure is susceptible to various modifications and alternative forms, specific embodiments thereof have been shown by way of example in the drawings and have been described in detail above. It should be understood, however that it is not intended to limit the disclosure to the form disclosed, but on the contrary, the disclosure is to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternative falling within the spirit and the scope of the disclosure.
[063] The terms “comprising” or any other variations thereof, are intended to cover a non-exclusive inclusion, such that a method that comprises a list of acts does not include only those acts but may include other acts not expressly listed or inherent to such method. In other words, one or more acts in a method proceeded by “comprises… a” does not, without more constraints, preclude the existence of other acts or additional acts in the method.

Equivalents:

[064] With respect to the use of substantially any plural and/or singular terms herein, those having skill in the art can translate from the plural to the singular and/or from the singular to the plural as is appropriate to the context and/or application. The various singular/plural permutations may be expressly set forth herein for sake of clarity.
[065] It will be understood by those within the art that, in general, terms used herein, and especially in the appended claims (e.g., bodies of the appended claims) are generally intended as "open" terms (e.g., the term "including" should be interpreted as "including but not limited to," the term "having" should be interpreted as "having at least," the term "includes" should be interpreted as "includes but is not limited to," etc.). It will be further understood by those within the art that if a specific number of an introduced claim recitation is intended, such an intent will be explicitly recited in the claim, and in the absence of such recitation no such intent is present. For example, as an aid to understanding, the following appended claims may contain usage of the introductory phrases "at least one" and "one or more" to introduce claim recitations. However, the use of such phrases should not be construed to imply that the introduction of a claim recitation by the indefinite articles "a" or "an" limits any particular claim containing such introduced claim recitation to inventions containing only one such recitation, even when the same claim includes the introductory phrases "one or more" or "at least one" and indefinite articles such as "a" or "an" (e.g., "a" and/or "an" should typically be interpreted to mean "at least one" or "one or more"); the same holds true for the use of definite articles used to introduce claim recitations. In addition, even if a specific number of an introduced claim recitation is explicitly recited, those skilled in the art will recognize that such recitation should typically be interpreted to mean at least the recited number (e.g., the bare recitation of "two recitations," without other modifiers, typically means at least two recitations, or two or more recitations). Furthermore, in those instances where a convention analogous to "at least one of A, B, and C, etc." is used, in general such a construction is intended in the sense one having skill in the art would understand the convention (e.g., "a system having at least one of A, B, and C" would include but not be limited to systems that have A alone, B alone, C alone, A and B together, A and C together, B and C together, and/or A, B, and C together, etc.). In those instances where a convention analogous to "at least one of A, B, or C, etc." is used, in general such a construction is intended in the sense one having skill in the art would understand the convention (e.g., "a system having at least one of A, B, or C" would include but not be limited to systems that have A alone, B alone, C alone, A and B together, A and C together, B and C together, and/or A, B, and C together, etc.). It will be further understood by those within the art that virtually any disjunctive word and/or phrase presenting two or more alternative terms, whether in the description, claims, or drawings, should be understood to contemplate the possibilities of including one of the terms, either of the terms, or both terms. For example, the phrase "A or B" will be understood to include the possibilities of "A" or "B" or "A and B."
[066] While various aspects and embodiments have been disclosed herein, other aspects and embodiments will be apparent to those skilled in the art. The various aspects and embodiments disclosed herein are for purposes of illustration and are not intended to be limiting, with the true scope and spirit being indicated by the following claims. , Claims:We Claim:
1. A method to reduce size of Low Carbon Ferro Alloy lumps, the method comprising:
placing the Low Carbon Ferro Alloy lumps in a container;
pouring a first coolant into the container to cool the alloy to a first predefined temperature;
subjecting the alloy to a first stage of cooling in the coolant for a first period;
crushing the cooled alloy in a first crusher to reduce the size of the Low Carbon Ferro Chrome alloys lumps;
subjecting the crushed lumps of alloy to a second stage of cooling in a second coolant for a second period;
crushing the cooled alloy in a second crusher to reduce the size of the Low Carbon Ferro Chrome alloys lumps and
pulverizing the crushed lumps of cooled alloy in a pulverizer to reduce the size of the low carbon ferro chrome alloys lumps.

2. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the Low Carbon Ferro Alloy lumps has a composition in weight percentage (wt.%):
aluminum (Al) at about 0.01 % to about 0.75%,
carbon (C) at about 0.01 % to about 0.10%,
chromium (Cr) at about 59 % to about 65%,
phosphorous (P) at about 0.01% to about 0.05%,
Sulphur (S) at about 0.001% to about 0.05%,
silicon (Si) at about 0.5% to about 1%,
titanium (Ti) at about 0.01% to about 0.1%
the balance being Iron (Fe) optionally along with incidental elements.
3. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein a mass of the first coolant and the second coolant required for crushing the low Carbon Ferro chrome alloy lumps and the low Carbon Ferro chrome alloy blocks is based on a mass of Low Carbon Ferro Alloy lumps.

4. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the container is made of high-density polyethylene (HDPE) polymer.

5. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the low Carbon ferro chrome alloy material is cooled to a temperature range of -60°C to -100°C during both the first stage of cooling and the second stage of cooling.

6. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the first crusher is at least one of jaw crusher, hydraulic crusher, cone crusher, and compound crusher.

7. The method as claimed in claim 6, wherein the first jaw crusher is defining a jaw gap of 20 mm.

8. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the second crusher is at least one of jaw crusher, hydraulic crusher, cone crusher, and compound crusher.

9. The method as claimed in claim 8, wherein the second jaw crusher is defining a jaw gap of 5 mm.

10. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the first period of cooling of Low Carbon Ferro Alloy lumps is ranging from 8 minutes to 15 minutes.

11. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the size of crushed Low Carbon ferro alloy lumps after crushing by the first crusher ranges less than 20mm.

12. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the second period of cooling of Low Carbon Ferro alloy is ranging from 10 minutes to 15 minutes.

13. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the size of crushed Low Carbon Ferro Alloy blocks after crushing by the second crusher ranges less than 5mm.

14. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the size of pulverized ferro alloy lumps is ranging ranges less than 0.15mm.

15. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the first coolant and the second coolant are at least one of: liquid Nitrogen or liquid Helium or a cryogenic refrigerator.