Abstract: A method for blowing a gas from below into a molten steel in a refining vessel, which comprises: using a refining vessel including at least one gas blowing aperture provided in the bottom wall thereof and a frustoconical plug matching with said aperture, releasably inserted into said gas blowing aperture, which has a small-diameter bore having a diameter within the range of from 0.5 to 6.

Abstract: High chromium steels having extremely low carbon and nitrogen contents are produced by blowing more than 15 up to 40 Nl/min per ton of molten steel of an inert gas into a high chromium steel containing 0.8 to 2.5% of C and 10 to 35% of Cr in a ladle under a reduced pressure from bottom of a ladle and concurrently blowing oxygen gas to the molten steel surface to form 1 to 100 kg per ton of the molten steel of a slag containing not less than 20% of SiO.sub.2 and not more than 25% of Cr.sub.2 O.sub.3 at the end of oxygen blowing, terminating the oxygen blowing when the carbon concentration in the molten steel becomes not more than 0.020%, and subsequently blowing 6 to 40 Nl/min per ton of molten steel of an inert gas under a high vacuum of not more than 10 torr.

Abstract: An alloy steel having a high chromium content and an extremely low carbon content is produced by soft blowing oxygen gas under vacuum into a molten steel in a ladle containing a high chromium content and a high carbon content while blowing an inert gas of a flowing rate of 1-15 Nl/min per ton of the molten steel into the molten steel until the carbon content in the molten steel becomes 0.025-0.050% by weight. And subsequently only the blowing of the inert gas is conducted into the molten steel under a high vacuum degree of less than 10 torr so that the reaction active area ratio becomes more than 7% to reduce the carbon content in the steel to less than 0.003%.

Abstract: A method of producing alloy steels having an extremely low carbon content of not higher than 30 ppm is disclosed. The alloy steels can be obtained by vacuum treating a preliminarily decarburized molten steel in the presence of a proper amount of a slag containing specifically limited amounts of chromic oxide and silicon oxide under an inert gas atmosphere by means of a commonly used degassing apparatus.

Abstract: A method of denitriding a high chromium molten steel with a minimum chromium loss is disclosed. A high chromium molten steel containing 0.8-2.5% of C and 10-35% of Cr is denitrided to a final nitrogen content of not more than 40 ppm in a ladle under vacuum by flowing an inert gas into molten steel at a flow rate of not less than 15 Nl/min per ton of molten steel and at the same time blowing oxygen gas against molten steel until carbon content [C] in molten steel satisfies the following equations (1) and (2) in accordance with the carbon content prior to decarburization [C] of molten steel:[C].ltoreq.[C] 0.3, when 0.8.ltoreq.[C].ltoreq.1.0% (1)[c].ltoreq.55/70[c]--6/70, when 1.0.ltoreq.[C].ltoreq.2.5% (2).