Effect of temperature and reaction path interaction on fluidization reduction kinetics of iron ore powder

Due to the instability of FeO at temperatures below 843 K,the fuidization reduction pathway of iron ore powder changes with the reduction temperature.Thus,the effect of temperature and reaction pathway interaction on the kinetics of fuidization reduction of iron ore powder under low-temperature conditions ranging from 783 to 903 K was investigated to describe the fluidization reduction rate of iron ore powder from three aspects:microstructure change,reaction limiting link,and apparent activation energy of the reaction,exploring their internal correlation.The experimental results revealed that in a temperature range of 783-813 K,the formation of a dense iron layer hindered the internal diffusion of reducing gas,resulting in relatively high gas diffusion resistance.In addition,due to the differences in limiting links and reaction pathways in the intermediate stage of reduction,the apparent activation energy of the reaction varied.The apparent activation energy of the reaction ranged from 23.36 to 89.13 kJ/mol at temperature ranging from 783 to 813 K,while it ranged from 14.30 to 68.34 kJ/mol at temperature ranging from 873 to 903 K.

Reduction of 1-3 mm iron ore by H_2 in a fluidized bed

The reduction of 1-3 mm fine powder of iron ore by H2 was conducted in a lab-fabricated kg class high temperature fluidized bed. The results show that the differential pressure in the fluidized bed, which has small fluctuation with time, increases with the increase of gas flowing velocity. The utilization ratio of gas decreases when the reaction lasts longer time indicating that the reaction is faster at the beginning of reduction and becomes slower in the latter process. The higher the reaction temperature is, the higher the utilization ratio of gas is, but the difference of utilization ratio among the different temperatures becomes smaller with time. The utilization ratio of gas and the metallization ratio can reach 9% and 84% respectively at 750℃ for 20 min, which shows the reduction reaction by H2 is very fast. The increase of metallization ratio with gas velocity performs quite good linearity, which shows that a higher velocity of reducing gas can be used to improve the productivity of the reactor when H2 is used as reducing gas. With the increase of charge height, the metallization ratio decreases, but the utilization ratio of gas increases. The reaction temperature can be reduced to 700-750℃ from 800-850℃ when H2 is used as reducing gas.

Reduction Kinetics of Fine Iron Ore Powder in Mixtures of H_2-N_2 and H_2-H_2O-N_2 of Fluidized Bed

Reduction kinetics of fine iron ore powder in different gas mixtures were investigated in high-temperature fluidized bed at a scale of kilograms. Influence of processing parameters, such as particle size, gas flow velocity, height of charge, temperature, compositions of gas mixture, and percentage of inert components, on reduction ki- netics was experimentally determined under the condition of fluidization. The equations for calculating instantaneous and average oxidation rates were deduced. It was found that an increasing H2 O percentage in the gas mixture could obviously decrease the reduction rate because the equilibrium partial pressure of H2 decreased with increasing content of Hz O in the gas mixture and then the driving force of reduction reaction was reduced. When the H2 content was high, .the apparent reaction rate was so rapid when the average size of iron ore fines was less than 1 mm that the re- action temperature can be as low as 750 ℃ ; when the average size of iron ore fines was more than 1 mm, a high re- action temperature of 800 ℃ was required. In addition, it was also found that the content of H2O should be less than 10% for efficient reduction.

Optimization of iron ore blending based on replacing Australian low alumina limonite

Mauritanian iron ore powder(OM)has advantages of high iron grade,low aluminum content,and low loss on ignition,which can be used as a new mineral to replace low alumina limonite that has been exhausted in Australia.However,it will have a certain negative impact on sintering because of its high SiO_(2) content.The mechanism of SiO_(2) content affecting the sintering behavior was first studied through FactSage 7.2.Then,the liquid fluidity,penetration,and high-temperature performance of different iron ore powders were compared.Finally,the optimization of ore blending structure was studied by the micro-sintering method and the sinter pot test.The results show that the increase in SiO_(2) content can reduce the assimilation temperature.The low penetration of OM can lead to an increase in the amount of liquid,and the high SiO_(2) content of OM increases the viscosity of the liquid phase.What is more,the increase in SiO_(2) also increases the formation of silicate and fayalite phase and inhibits the formation of silico-ferrite of calcium and aluminum(SFCA).To optimize ore blending structure,OM and the low SiO_(2) powder OD from Australia were used together,which improves the content of SFCA by 2.04%and decreases the contents of calcium silicate and fayalite by 0.63%and 4.99%,respectively.The results of the sinter pot test indicated that the properties of sinter have been improved.

Reduction of 1-3 mm Iron Ore by CO on Fluidized Bed

The reduction-degree of the sample increases and the utilization ratio of gas decreases when the reaction lasts longer time,which indicates that the reaction is faster at the beginning of reduction,while it becomes slower in subsequent process.The higher the reaction temperature,the higher the utilization ratio of gas and the reduction-degree are,but the difference of utilization ratio among the different temperatures becomes smaller with time.The utilization ratio of gas can reach about 8% and the reduction-degree is 80% for 20 min reduction at 850 ℃,indicating that the reduction reaction by CO is very fast at high temperature.The higher the reaction temperature,the higher the apparent reaction rate constant is,but the difference of apparent reaction rate constant among the different temperatures becomes bigger.The apparent activation energy is about 59.11 kJ/mol in the fluidized bed experiment.The increase of reduction-degree with gas velocity shows quite good linearity,indicating that at high temperature even higher velocity of reducing gas can be used to improve the productivity of reactor when CO is used as reducing gas.With the increase of charge height,the metallization ratio and the reduction-degree decrease,but the utilization ratio of gas increases.

Shift From Coke to Coal Using Direct Reduction Method and Challenges

Ironmaking involves the separation of iron ores. It not only represents the first step in steelmaking but also is the most capital-intensive and energy-intensive process in the production of steel. The main route for producing iron for steelmaking is to use the blast furnace, which uses metallurgical coke as the reductant. Concerns over the limited resources, the high cost of coking coals, and the environmental impacts of coking and sinter plants have driven steelmakers to develop alternative ironmaking processes that can use non-coking coals to reduce iron ores directly. Since the efficiency and productivity of modern large capacity blast furnaces will be difficult to surpass, blast furnaces will continue to retain their predominant position as the foremost ironmaking process for some time to come. The alternative ironmaking processes are therefore expected to play an increasingly significant role in the iron and steel industry, especially in meeting the needs of small-sized local and regional markets. It is likely that the importance of direct reduced iron （DRI） and hot metal as sources of virgin iron will continue to increase, especially in the developing countries where steelmaking is, and will be, primarily based on electric arc furnace （EAF） minimills. Consequently, the challenges that are faced by the new technology have to be embraced.