BigPatents India

A device serves to seal the tap hole 10 of a tiltable converter with a sealing plug 8. The sealing plug 8 is characterized in particular by the composition of its material. Plastics material, preferably polystyrene foam in the shape of balls, serves therein, among other things, as material for the sealing plug 8. This gives the sealing plug 8 a considerably lower weight and above all guarantees more favourable deformation properties. The addition of the plastics material causes the sealing plug to melt or evaporate more quickly on impact by liquid steel, thus resulting in simpler and more precise handling of a converter. (FIG.)nil