There are many known technologies that can be used to monitor surfaces, but the most of them requires a transparent environment to be functional. In the Blast Furnace where the environment is full of dust and fume at high temperatures those technologies are not applicable.

With a functional technology in such an environment the burden surface could be analysed and monitored, which in its extension would lead to a way to control the charging operation in the BF and thus a better use of raw material and also a better gas utilization.

In this paper we will discuss the use of microwave technology as one technology with the potential to create a topographical image of the burden surface in the Blast Furnace during operation.