An Introduction Third Edition 2015. This book describes the principles of the blast furnace process and especially the control of the process. As a starting point, the blast furnace is seen as a simple iron ore smelter, while gradually the physical, chemical and metallurgical background of the blast furnace process is clarified. The book focuses on the control of the blast furnace process with respect to thermal control, gas flow control and casthouse operation. In this book, all essential process details are described and a special focus is on optimization of coal injection. The optimization of the blast furnace process is not only