Mineralization characteristics of pellets prepared by ultrafine magnetite concentrate:influence on metallurgical property and improving method

The reducing property of pellets prepared by ultrafine magnetite concentrate(UMC)and improving method were revealed.The results show that the reduction degree of UMC pellets is only about 56%compared with that of pellets prepared from ordinary iron ore concentrate with relatively coarse particle size,which is significantly lower than the general reduction degree of about 70%.When the composite binder composed of bentonite and organic binder was added,the reduction degree was significantly increased to 69.66%.The revealed mechanism shows that the reduced pellets with common bentonite have a concentric structure,the oxidation gap between the inner and outer layers is obvious,and the outer dense oxide layer hinders the oxidation and reduction of the inner layer.After adding the composite binder,the organic components significantly improved the internal porosity of the pellets and the aggregation degree of ultrafine iron ore concentrate particles in the granulation process,forming a porous structure.The non-uniform double-layer structure is eliminated,and the increased pores are conducive to the internal diffusion of CO,and finally the reduction degree of pellets is increased to the level equivalent to that of ordinary magnetite pellets.

Oxidation and Induration Characteristics of Pellets Made from Western Australian Ultrafine Magnetite Concentrates and Its Utilization Strategy

Western Australian magnetite concentrates normally have ultrafine granularity and much higher specific surface areas than Chinese magnetite concentrates owing to the significant pre-grinding and beneficiation for saleable iron grade. Such characteristics will inevitably affect the subsequent pelletization process. However, very few investi- gations have been done before. Thus, the oxidation and induration characteristics of pellet made from a Western Aus- tralian ultrafine magnetite concentrate were revealed by conducting routine preheating-roasting tests in an electric tube furnace and investigating the microstructure of fired pellets under an optical microscope in comparison with that of pellets made from typical Chinese magnetite concentrate. The liquidus regions of CaO-SiO2-Fe2O3 and CaO-SiO2- Al2O3 ternary systems in air at various temperatures were calculated by FactSage software to explain the importance of liquid phase in the consolidation of fired pellets. The results show that pellet made from ultrafine magnetite con- centrate possesses better oxidability and preheating performance than that made from Chinese magnetite concentrate. However, it has inferior roasting performance, usually requiring conditions of roasting at 1280℃ for at least 30 rain to acquire sufficiently high compressive strength, which are attributed to higher temperature sensitivity caused by its smaller particle size and less formation of liquid phase because of low impurities like CaO and Al2O3 in raw materials. Correspondingly, its roasting performanee can be significantly improved by blending with Chinese magnetite concen- trates or increasing the pellet basicity （WCaO/WSiO2）. By comprehensive evaluation, blending with Chinese iron ore concentrates is an appropriate way to utilize Western Australia ultrafine magnetite concentrates.

Improving roasting performance and consolidation of pellets made of ultrafine and super high grade magnetite concentrates by modifying basicity

For improving the strength of pellets made of ultrafine and super-high-grade magnetite concentrates,the influence of basicity(CaO/SiO2 ratio)on the roasting and consolidation of pellets was investigated.The results showed that with the basicity of pellets increasing from 0.09 to 0.60,the compressive strength of both preheated and roasted pellets achieved an evident improvement from 502 and 2519 to 549 and 3096 N/pellet,respectively;meanwhile,the roasting time decreased from 15 to 9.min.The low-viscosity liquid phases were easily generated in fired pellets at the basicity range of 0.40-0.60 under the roasting temperature of 1240℃,filled the voids between hematite particles and tightened the bonding among particles,effectively restraining the generation of concentric cracks and decreasing the porosity of fired pellets;low-viscosity liquid phases facilitated the solid diffusion of hematite,leading to the formation of coarse hematite crystals and thicker connecting necks.

Influence of basicity on metallurgical performances of fired super high-grade magnetite pellets in hydrogen-rich gases

The influence of basicity on the metallurgical performances and reduction characteristics of fired super high-grade magnetite pellets under the simulated shaft furnace gas conditions was investigated.The fired pellets in the basicity range of 0.09(natural basicity)to 1.00 show superior reducibility and low-temperature disintegration performance.However,in the basicity range of 0.20–0.80,the abnormal swelling of the fired pellets occurs.Improving basicity from 0.09 to 0.40 promotes the generation of low melting point slag phases and lower porosity of fired pellets,and accelerates the growth and densification of hematite crystals,impeding the reduction of hematite particles and the formation of metallic iron shell.In addition,the slags that distribute between the hematite particles absorb the reduction stresses by increased distances between the particles during the reduction process,which leads to the large reduction swelling of pellets.