EP4345175A1 - Pastilles de fer directement reduit et leur utilisation - Google Patents
Pastilles de fer directement reduit et leur utilisation Download PDFInfo
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- EP4345175A1 EP4345175A1 EP22199176.3A EP22199176A EP4345175A1 EP 4345175 A1 EP4345175 A1 EP 4345175A1 EP 22199176 A EP22199176 A EP 22199176A EP 4345175 A1 EP4345175 A1 EP 4345175A1
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- dri
- pellets
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- carbon
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- 239000008188 pellet Substances 0.000 title claims abstract description 117
- XEEYBQQBJWHFJM-UHFFFAOYSA-N Iron Chemical compound [Fe] XEEYBQQBJWHFJM-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 title claims abstract description 84
- 238000001465 metallisation Methods 0.000 claims abstract description 54
- 229910052799 carbon Inorganic materials 0.000 claims abstract description 40
- OKTJSMMVPCPJKN-UHFFFAOYSA-N Carbon Chemical compound [C] OKTJSMMVPCPJKN-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 claims abstract description 36
- VNWKTOKETHGBQD-UHFFFAOYSA-N methane Chemical compound C VNWKTOKETHGBQD-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 claims description 72
- 230000009467 reduction Effects 0.000 claims description 50
- 239000007789 gas Substances 0.000 claims description 48
- 239000001257 hydrogen Substances 0.000 claims description 36
- 229910052739 hydrogen Inorganic materials 0.000 claims description 36
- 229910052742 iron Inorganic materials 0.000 claims description 32
- 238000000034 method Methods 0.000 claims description 25
- UQSXHKLRYXJYBZ-UHFFFAOYSA-N iron oxide Inorganic materials [Fe]=O UQSXHKLRYXJYBZ-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 claims description 17
- 238000004519 manufacturing process Methods 0.000 claims description 16
- 229910000831 Steel Inorganic materials 0.000 claims description 15
- 239000010959 steel Substances 0.000 claims description 15
- IJGRMHOSHXDMSA-UHFFFAOYSA-N Atomic nitrogen Chemical compound N#N IJGRMHOSHXDMSA-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 claims description 13
- 238000002844 melting Methods 0.000 claims description 10
- 230000008018 melting Effects 0.000 claims description 10
- SZVJSHCCFOBDDC-UHFFFAOYSA-N ferrosoferric oxide Chemical compound O=[Fe]O[Fe]O[Fe]=O SZVJSHCCFOBDDC-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 claims description 8
- 238000005255 carburizing Methods 0.000 claims description 7
- 230000006835 compression Effects 0.000 claims description 7
- 238000007906 compression Methods 0.000 claims description 7
- 229910052757 nitrogen Inorganic materials 0.000 claims description 6
- UGFAIRIUMAVXCW-UHFFFAOYSA-N Carbon monoxide Chemical compound [O+]#[C-] UGFAIRIUMAVXCW-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 claims description 5
- 229910002091 carbon monoxide Inorganic materials 0.000 claims description 5
- ATUOYWHBWRKTHZ-UHFFFAOYSA-N Propane Chemical compound CCC ATUOYWHBWRKTHZ-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 claims description 4
- 239000011261 inert gas Substances 0.000 claims description 4
- OTMSDBZUPAUEDD-UHFFFAOYSA-N Ethane Chemical compound CC OTMSDBZUPAUEDD-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 claims description 2
- 239000001273 butane Substances 0.000 claims description 2
- IJDNQMDRQITEOD-UHFFFAOYSA-N n-butane Chemical compound CCCC IJDNQMDRQITEOD-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 claims description 2
- OFBQJSOFQDEBGM-UHFFFAOYSA-N n-pentane Natural products CCCCC OFBQJSOFQDEBGM-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 claims description 2
- 239000001294 propane Substances 0.000 claims description 2
- 125000004435 hydrogen atom Chemical class [H]* 0.000 claims 2
- 239000003345 natural gas Substances 0.000 description 34
- UFHFLCQGNIYNRP-UHFFFAOYSA-N Hydrogen Chemical compound [H][H] UFHFLCQGNIYNRP-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 29
- 230000032683 aging Effects 0.000 description 20
- 238000009412 basement excavation Methods 0.000 description 13
- 238000003860 storage Methods 0.000 description 12
- 238000012360 testing method Methods 0.000 description 11
- 239000000203 mixture Substances 0.000 description 10
- 230000009257 reactivity Effects 0.000 description 10
- 238000010791 quenching Methods 0.000 description 8
- 238000004458 analytical method Methods 0.000 description 7
- 238000001816 cooling Methods 0.000 description 7
- 230000000694 effects Effects 0.000 description 7
- 238000011020 pilot scale process Methods 0.000 description 7
- 230000008569 process Effects 0.000 description 7
- 238000005299 abrasion Methods 0.000 description 6
- 239000000112 cooling gas Substances 0.000 description 6
- 230000007423 decrease Effects 0.000 description 6
- 238000002474 experimental method Methods 0.000 description 6
- 238000002441 X-ray diffraction Methods 0.000 description 5
- 230000003679 aging effect Effects 0.000 description 5
- 150000002431 hydrogen Chemical class 0.000 description 5
- 239000000463 material Substances 0.000 description 5
- XLYOFNOQVPJJNP-UHFFFAOYSA-N water Substances O XLYOFNOQVPJJNP-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 5
- QVGXLLKOCUKJST-UHFFFAOYSA-N atomic oxygen Chemical compound [O] QVGXLLKOCUKJST-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 4
- 229910001567 cementite Inorganic materials 0.000 description 4
- 239000000428 dust Substances 0.000 description 4
- 239000001301 oxygen Substances 0.000 description 4
- 229910052760 oxygen Inorganic materials 0.000 description 4
- 238000011946 reduction process Methods 0.000 description 4
- CWYNVVGOOAEACU-UHFFFAOYSA-N Fe2+ Chemical compound [Fe+2] CWYNVVGOOAEACU-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 3
- 230000008901 benefit Effects 0.000 description 3
- 238000002485 combustion reaction Methods 0.000 description 3
- 230000001627 detrimental effect Effects 0.000 description 3
- 238000000921 elemental analysis Methods 0.000 description 3
- QSHDDOUJBYECFT-UHFFFAOYSA-N mercury Chemical compound [Hg] QSHDDOUJBYECFT-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 3
- 229910052753 mercury Inorganic materials 0.000 description 3
- 238000010405 reoxidation reaction Methods 0.000 description 3
- 238000005070 sampling Methods 0.000 description 3
- 239000000126 substance Substances 0.000 description 3
- 238000010521 absorption reaction Methods 0.000 description 2
- 230000008859 change Effects 0.000 description 2
- 230000000052 comparative effect Effects 0.000 description 2
- 238000005260 corrosion Methods 0.000 description 2
- 230000007797 corrosion Effects 0.000 description 2
- 230000006698 induction Effects 0.000 description 2
- 238000011031 large-scale manufacturing process Methods 0.000 description 2
- 238000005259 measurement Methods 0.000 description 2
- 238000002161 passivation Methods 0.000 description 2
- 238000002459 porosimetry Methods 0.000 description 2
- 238000001556 precipitation Methods 0.000 description 2
- 238000012545 processing Methods 0.000 description 2
- 238000001179 sorption measurement Methods 0.000 description 2
- 238000009628 steelmaking Methods 0.000 description 2
- 230000007704 transition Effects 0.000 description 2
- 238000004438 BET method Methods 0.000 description 1
- 239000004484 Briquette Substances 0.000 description 1
- 229910001341 Crude steel Inorganic materials 0.000 description 1
- 241001183245 Pistorius Species 0.000 description 1
- NINIDFKCEFEMDL-UHFFFAOYSA-N Sulfur Chemical compound [S] NINIDFKCEFEMDL-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 1
- 229910021626 Tin(II) chloride Inorganic materials 0.000 description 1
- 238000010923 batch production Methods 0.000 description 1
- 230000009286 beneficial effect Effects 0.000 description 1
- 230000015572 biosynthetic process Effects 0.000 description 1
- 238000006243 chemical reaction Methods 0.000 description 1
- 238000005056 compaction Methods 0.000 description 1
- 239000004035 construction material Substances 0.000 description 1
- 238000010924 continuous production Methods 0.000 description 1
- 238000004320 controlled atmosphere Methods 0.000 description 1
- 238000013461 design Methods 0.000 description 1
- 238000011161 development Methods 0.000 description 1
- 230000018109 developmental process Effects 0.000 description 1
- 238000010586 diagram Methods 0.000 description 1
- 229910001873 dinitrogen Inorganic materials 0.000 description 1
- 238000009826 distribution Methods 0.000 description 1
- 238000011156 evaluation Methods 0.000 description 1
- 238000004880 explosion Methods 0.000 description 1
- 239000002360 explosive Substances 0.000 description 1
- 230000002349 favourable effect Effects 0.000 description 1
- 238000011049 filling Methods 0.000 description 1
- 230000004927 fusion Effects 0.000 description 1
- 230000005484 gravity Effects 0.000 description 1
- 238000010438 heat treatment Methods 0.000 description 1
- 235000000396 iron Nutrition 0.000 description 1
- -1 iron - Bromine-methanol Chemical compound 0.000 description 1
- LIKBJVNGSGBSGK-UHFFFAOYSA-N iron(3+);oxygen(2-) Chemical compound [O-2].[O-2].[O-2].[Fe+3].[Fe+3] LIKBJVNGSGBSGK-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 1
- KSOKAHYVTMZFBJ-UHFFFAOYSA-N iron;methane Chemical compound C.[Fe].[Fe].[Fe] KSOKAHYVTMZFBJ-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 1
- 229910052743 krypton Inorganic materials 0.000 description 1
- DNNSSWSSYDEUBZ-UHFFFAOYSA-N krypton atom Chemical compound [Kr] DNNSSWSSYDEUBZ-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 1
- 239000000155 melt Substances 0.000 description 1
- 238000010309 melting process Methods 0.000 description 1
- 229910052751 metal Inorganic materials 0.000 description 1
- 239000002184 metal Substances 0.000 description 1
- 238000012986 modification Methods 0.000 description 1
- 230000004048 modification Effects 0.000 description 1
- 238000007254 oxidation reaction Methods 0.000 description 1
- 239000011148 porous material Substances 0.000 description 1
- 238000002360 preparation method Methods 0.000 description 1
- 230000000171 quenching effect Effects 0.000 description 1
- 230000004044 response Effects 0.000 description 1
- 239000007787 solid Substances 0.000 description 1
- 239000011343 solid material Substances 0.000 description 1
- 238000010561 standard procedure Methods 0.000 description 1
- 235000011150 stannous chloride Nutrition 0.000 description 1
- 239000007858 starting material Substances 0.000 description 1
- 229910052717 sulfur Inorganic materials 0.000 description 1
- 239000011593 sulfur Substances 0.000 description 1
- AXZWODMDQAVCJE-UHFFFAOYSA-L tin(II) chloride (anhydrous) Chemical compound [Cl-].[Cl-].[Sn+2] AXZWODMDQAVCJE-UHFFFAOYSA-L 0.000 description 1
- 239000002341 toxic gas Substances 0.000 description 1
- 230000004584 weight gain Effects 0.000 description 1
- 235000019786 weight gain Nutrition 0.000 description 1
Images
Classifications
-
- C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
- C21—METALLURGY OF IRON
- C21B—MANUFACTURE OF IRON OR STEEL
- C21B13/00—Making spongy iron or liquid steel, by direct processes
- C21B13/0073—Selection or treatment of the reducing gases
-
- C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
- C21—METALLURGY OF IRON
- C21B—MANUFACTURE OF IRON OR STEEL
- C21B13/00—Making spongy iron or liquid steel, by direct processes
- C21B13/0033—In fluidised bed furnaces or apparatus containing a dispersion of the material
-
- C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
- C21—METALLURGY OF IRON
- C21B—MANUFACTURE OF IRON OR STEEL
- C21B13/00—Making spongy iron or liquid steel, by direct processes
- C21B13/0086—Conditioning, transformation of reduced iron ores
-
- C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
- C21—METALLURGY OF IRON
- C21B—MANUFACTURE OF IRON OR STEEL
- C21B13/00—Making spongy iron or liquid steel, by direct processes
- C21B13/02—Making spongy iron or liquid steel, by direct processes in shaft furnaces
-
- C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
- C21—METALLURGY OF IRON
- C21B—MANUFACTURE OF IRON OR STEEL
- C21B2100/00—Handling of exhaust gases produced during the manufacture of iron or steel
- C21B2100/60—Process control or energy utilisation in the manufacture of iron or steel
- C21B2100/64—Controlling the physical properties of the gas, e.g. pressure or temperature
Definitions
- the present disclosure relates to direct reduced iron pellets and uses of such pellets. More specifically, the disclosure relates to direct reduced iron pellets and uses of such pellets as defined in the introductory parts of the independent claims.
- Direct reduction is an increasingly prevalent means of processing iron ore to produce the crude iron required for steelmaking.
- direct reduction the ore is reduced in a solid-state reduction process at temperatures below the melting point of iron.
- Shaft-based direct reduction processes utilize pelletized iron ore as the feedstock and produce a porous crude iron product known as sponge iron or direct reduced iron (DRI).
- DRI direct reduced iron
- the cold DRI pellets (cDRI) produced by shaft-based direct reduction plants is not typically well suited for such purposes. Due to its high porosity, low density, large surface area and low thermal conductivity, it has a propensity to undergo rapid corrosion and reoxidation reactions. Many of these reactions are exothermic, leading to self-heating and eventually self-ignition and fires if not controlled. Corrosion and oxidation reactions of DRI can also produce hydrogen, an explosive gas which is lighter than air, and carbon monoxide, a highly toxic gas. These problems are compounded by the fact that DRI is typically relatively weak and tends to break down during handling to produce dust and fines. DRI dust tends to be even more reactive than the bulk DRI and has a high propensity to self-heat and cause fires. For example, DRI dust that is dispersed in air can ignite in a flash fire or explosion.
- Hot briquetted iron was developed in response to the difficulties in shipping and handling cDRI.
- HBI is produced by compressing DRI to briquettes at high temperature ( ⁇ 650 °C).
- the compaction of DRI into a dense briquette increases its strength and decreases its reactive surface area, meaning that HBI has a much lower reactivity, and therefore is safer and more practical to handle and ship than cDRI.
- Kim and Pistorius ( Kim G, Pistorius P.C., "Strength of Direct Reduced Iron Following Gas-Based Reduction and Carburization", Metallurgical and Materials Transactions B, 2020, volume 51, pages 2628-2641 ) describe a study of the effects of reducing gas composition, extent of reduction and carburization degree on the compressive strength of DRI pellets.
- Various industrial and laboratory-reduced DRI pellets were tested. Carbon monoxide in the reducing gas was found to contribute to pellet strength development, possibly by formation of "internal whiskers" in the DRI.
- the inventors of the present invention have identified a number of shortcomings with prior art means of producing DRI that is suitable to handle, transport and store.
- traditional cold DRI is not particularly amenable to such purposes, and extensive precautions must be taken when shipping such a product.
- the cold DRI typically requires passivation in a controlled atmosphere for a number of days post-production in order to decrease reactivity to a manageable extent, further adding to the expense of the process. Briquetting of DRI to produce HBI effectively addresses the reactivity problems, but at the cost of adding additional steps to the manufacturing process, resulting in additional expense.
- direct reduced iron pellets wherein the DRI pellets have an average metallization of greater than or equal to 97% and an average BET surface area of less than or equal to 0.5 m 2 /g.
- the DRI pellets are either essentially free of carbon, or the DRI pellets comprise less than or equal to 2 wt% carbon.
- Such DRI pellets may be obtained by using hydrogen as the reducing gas in the industrial direct reduction process. It has surprisingly been found that DRI pellets meeting the above specification demonstrate superior mechanical and ageing (reactivity) properties as compared to traditional DRI pellets produced using fossil-based direct reduction. More specifically, such DRI pellets demonstrate better cold compression strength, better tumbling index, slower ambient ageing and slower accelerated aging in water as compared to traditional DRI produced using fossil-based reducing gases. Such DRI pellets may possess low reactivity already upon discharge from the DR shaft, and may not necessarily require any further specific passivation procedure.
- the DRI pellets may have an average metallization of greater than or equal to 98%, such as an average metallization of greater than or equal to 99%, such as an average metallization of greater than or equal to 99.5%.
- the DRI pellets may have average BET surface area of less than or equal to 0.4 m 2 /g. A low surface area is expected to correlate to reduced reactivity of the DRI pellet.
- the DRI pellets may have an average porosity of less than or equal to 60%. Low porosity is expected to correlate to reduced reactivity of the DRI pellet. This also serves to further distinguish the DRI pellets from pellets produced in laboratory scale that are not amenable to large-scale production and do not necessarily possess the same beneficial attributes.
- the DRI pellets may have an average porosity of less than or equal to 58%, such as less than or equal to 56%.
- the DRI pellets may have an average total iron content of greater than or equal to 94 wt%, such as greater than or equal to 96 wt%, such as greater than or equal to 98 wt%.
- Use of such low-residual DRI allows for the production of low-residual steels such as exposed auto sheets, whilst still providing great leeway for use of higher-residual scrap in the melt.
- the DRI pellets may comprise on average less than or equal to 3 wt% FeO.
- Low wüstite content has been found to correlate with excellent mechanical properties, specifically high DRI compressive strength.
- the DRI pellets may comprise on average less than or equal to 2 wt% FeO, such as less than or equal to 1 wt% FeO, such as less than or equal to 0.5 wt% FeO.
- the DRI pellets may comprise on average less than or equal to 0.5 wt% Fe 3 O 4 .
- Low magnetite content has been found to correlate with excellent mechanical properties, specifically high DRI compressive strength.
- the DRI pellets may be obtainable by direct reduction in a countercurrent flow direct reduction shaft, in a reducing gas comprising hydrogen greater than 90 vol% hydrogen, and optionally steam and inert gas.
- the reducing gas may consist essentially of hydrogen, and optionally steam and inert gas. It has been found that direct reduction in hydrogen under appropriate conditions provides DRI with superior mechanical and ageing (reactivity) properties as compared to DRI produced using a fossil-based reducing gas such as natural gas or syngas.
- the reducing gas may have a temperature of greater than or equal to 750 °C at a reducing gas inlet of the direct reduction shaft. It has been found that higher reducing gas temperatures assist in providing appropriate conditions for the production of the superior highly metallized DRI.
- the reducing gas may have a temperature of greater than or equal to 800 °C at a reducing gas inlet of the direct reduction shaft, such as greater than or equal to 850 °C, such as greater than or equal to 900 °C, such as greater than or equal to 950 °C.
- the DRI pellets may comprise less than or equal to 1.5 wt% carbon, such as less than or equal to 1.0 wt% carbon. Since carburization is not an integral part of the direct reduction process, the carbon content may be controlled independently of other properties such as metallization. This is an advantage since the carbon in DRI is typically lost during a subsequent melting process, and it may therefore be desirable to provide a DRI containing only the carbon strictly required for subsequent processing steps.
- such pellets may be obtainable by carburization in a carburizing gas subsequent to direct reduction. It has been found that performing carburization subsequent to reduction is hydrogen is not detrimental to the mechanical and ageing properties of the DRI, in contrast to performing simultaneous reduction and carburization in a carburizing gas (i.e. traditional fossil-based direct reduction). In some cases a carbon-containing DRI may be desirable, for example as a drop-in replacement for DRI produced by traditional fossil-based direct reduction.
- the carburizing gas may comprise or consist essentially of a gas selected from methane, ethane, propane, butane, carbon monoxide, hydrogen, nitrogen and combinations thereof, with the proviso that it comprises at least 5 vol% of a carbonaceous component, such as at least 10 vol%, such as at least 20 vol%, such as at least 30 vol%.
- the DRI pellets may have an average cold compression strength of greater than 160 daN as measured by the method of ISO 4700:2015.
- the DRI pellets may have a tumbling index of greater than or equal to 96% as measured by the method ISO 3271:2015.
- the tumbling index may be greater than or equal to 97%, such as greater than or equal to 98%.
- the DRI pellets may have a loss of metallization of less than 1% upon storage for 28 days sheltered from precipitation at ambient temperature.
- the DRI pellets may have a loss of metallization of less than 1% upon such storage.
- DRI pellets according to the first aspect as a feedstock in a melting furnace for the production of steel.
- the DRI pellets may not be briquetted prior to such use.
- the melting furnace may be located at a distance of at least 100 kilometres from the location of production of the DRI pellets. Since the DRI according to the first aspect has superior mechanical and ageing properties as compared to traditional DRI pellets (type (B) DRI), it is eminently transportable without the need for prior briquetting to HBI (type (A) DRI).
- the melting furnace may be located at a distance of at least 500 kilometres from the location of production of the DRI pellets, such as at least 1000 kilometers.
- the DRI pellets may be stored for a duration of at least 30 days prior to feeding to the melting furnace. Since the DRI according to the first aspect has superior mechanical and ageing properties as compared to traditional DRI pellets (type (B) DRI), it is eminently storable and is convenient to handle without the need for prior briquetting to HBI (type (A) DRI).
- the DRI pellets may be stored for a duration of at least 60 days prior to feeding to the melting furnace, such as a duration of at least 90 days, such as a duration of at least 120 days.
- direct reduced iron pellets wherein the DRI pellets have an average metallization of greater than or equal to 97% and an average porosity of less than or equal to 60%.
- the DRI pellets are either essentially free of carbon, or the DRI pellets comprise less than or equal to 2 wt% carbon. Effects and features of this aspect are to a large extent analogous to those described above in connection with the first aspect. Embodiments mentioned in relation to the first aspect are largely compatible with this aspect.
- the present invention is based upon the surprising discovery that highly metallized DRI pellets produced using hydrogen as reducing gas by continuous shaft-based direct reduction on an industrial scale have superior attributes that make such pellets highly suitable for storage, handling and transport. These superior attributes are improved mechanical strength and improved resistance to aging as compared to DRI pellets produced using traditional fossil-based reducing gases. This is in contrast to received wisdom whereby carbon incorporated in the DRI during reduction is considered to improve the strength and ageing of the DRI.
- the properties of the various DRIs tested are determined using standard methods known in the art. Where several methods are in conventional use for determining a single property, variations in the determined property are typically within the limits of experimental error.
- Metallization is defined in a manner conventional within the art as (Fe metallic / Fe total ) x 100. Metallization was determined using X-ray diffractometry (XRD), but may also be determined using other methods. Such other methods include:
- Composition of the tested DRIs, such as carbon-content may be determined using elemental analysis (LECO analysis). Relevant standards for such determination include:
- the pilot facility comprises a direct reduction shaft having a total height of approximately 9.3 meters, a widest diameter of approximately 1.22 meters and a total volume of approximately 7.6 cubic meters. Considering only the section of the shaft constituting the reducing zone, this zone has a height of approximately 3.0 meters and a diameter of approximately 0.94 m.
- the shaft is of a conventional design. That is to say that it is a solid-gas countercurrent moving bed reactor, whereby a burden of iron ore is charged at an inlet at the top of the reactor and descends by gravity towards an outlet arranged at the bottom of the reactor.
- the DR shaft comprises a reducing zone, an isobaric (transition) zone, and a conical cooling zone tapering towards an outlet of the DR shaft.
- the shaft has a nominal production capacity of approximately 1 ton DRI/h.
- the operational pressure in the reactor may be varied up to about 4 barg.
- a heated reducing gas may be introduced into the reducing zone in order to reduce the iron ore burden.
- the reducing gas may for example comprise or consist essentially of hydrogen, carbon monoxide, natural gas, and mixtures thereof.
- Reducing gas flow may be varied from about 1500 Nm 3 /h to about 3000 Nm 3 /h, and inlet temperature may be varied from about 550 °C to about 1000 °C.
- a cooling gas may be circulated in the cooling zone in order to cool the DRI after reduction and prior to discharge.
- Suitable cooling gases include, for example, nitrogen , hydrogen or a combination thereof if a carbon-free DRI is to be produced, or natural gas (diluted as appropriate) if a carbon-containing DRI is to be produced. Cooling gas flow may be varied from about 400 Nm 3 /h to about 1000 Nm 3 /h.
- cooling gas is circulated in the cooling zone and the hot DRI is instead discharged to a separate shaft where it is cooled and optionally carburized using a circulating gas.
- a separate shaft arrangement is disclosed in WO2021/225500 A1 , which is hereby incorporated by reference.
- Cold compression strength is a measure of the compressive load required to cause breakage of pellets. Such compressive loads may for example arise during handling, transport or storage.
- the cold compression strength was determined for a number of DRI samples produced in the DR pilot plant under various conditions using either natural gas or hydrogen as reducing gas.
- Mean CCS was determined from measurement of 60 pellets for each sample, in accord with the method of ISO 4700:2015 "Iron ore pellets for blast furnace and direct reduction feedstocks - Determination of the crushing strength". The results are shown in Table 1 and Figure 1 . Table 1 Example no. CCS (daN) Metallization (%) C (%) Pressure (barg) Red. gas Red.
- the DRI of examples 1, 2, 4, 5 and 14 was produced in single-shaft operation whereby a cooling gas was provided to the cooling zone of the DR shaft.
- the DRI of all other examples was produced in dual-shaft operation whereby cooling and optionally carburization was performed in a separate shaft.
- Examples 4 and 13 were cooled in natural gas and thus contain carbon. All other examples were cooled in a non-carburizing cooling gas such as nitrogen or hydrogen.
- Figure 1 shows a plot of the metallization values, CCS values and carbon content (x 10) of the various examples.
- Line 101 marks a metallization value of 97%.
- Line 103 marks a mean CCS value of 160 daN. It can be seen that for a metallization greater than approximately 97% a high mean CCS value is obtained, above about 160 daN in the present examples. Conversely, metallization below approximately 97% gives a lower mean CCS, below about 160 daN in the present examples.
- Metallization correlates to a certain extent with reduction temperature, with higher reduction temperatures typically giving higher metallization, although, as demonstrated by example 7, a high reduction temperature is no guarantee of high metallization.
- the chosen operational point before the quench used hydrogen as reducing gas had a reducing gas temperature of 935°C to the reactor, a system pressure of 3 barg and a reducing gas flow of 2450 Nm 3 /h.
- the DRI was cooled in with a flow of 775 Nm 3 /h nitrogen.
- the operational point before the quench had a stable period of approximately 28 hours.
- Key quality parameters of the DRI obtained at the reactor outlet are shown in Table 2 below (as determined by XRD). It can be seen that performing H2-bsed direct reduction under these specified conditions in a pilot direct reduction shaft as described under "setup" permits the production of DRI having very high total Fe and metallization.
- Such a DRI has the advantageous mechanical and ageing attributes as disclosed herein.
- FIGS 2a and 2b illustrate the microstructure of the H2-reduced (2a) and NG-reduced (2b) pellets. It can be seen that the H2-reduced pellets contain very little residual oxides, and any oxides remaining are mainly located between grains. However, NG-reduced pellets still contain considerable amounts of wüstite located inside each grain, indicating that NG-based reducing gas has difficulty in permeating to the grain centres.
- the excavation experiments indicate that the presence of oxides such as wüstite and magnetite are detrimental to the compressive strength of DRI, and that reduction in a carbon-containing reducing gas may exasperate the detrimental effects of these oxides.
- the experiments demonstrate that it is possible to obtain DRI having very high metallization and nearly no residual oxides by using hydrogen as reducing gas, whereas comparative experiments using natural gas as reducing gas resulted in DRI having more typical values for metallization and residual oxides.
- the tumbling and abrasion indexes of a number of DRI samples were obtained.
- the tumbling index provides an indication of the susceptibility of DRI pellets to break due to abrasion during handling and transportation.
- the tumble and abrasion indices of the tested DRIs and iron ore pellets were determined using the methods of ISO 3271:2015 "Iron ores for blast furnace and direct reduction feedstocks - Determination of the tumble and abrasion indices".
- FIG. 3 shows the results of these tests, as well as the metallization and carbon content of the various tested samples.
- the exact metallization and carbon content of Sample A (industrial reference), Sample C (NG excavation) and Sample D (H2 excavation) are unknown.
- To the left, natural gas based DRI are presented.
- the lowest value of 90.4 % > 6,3 mm after tumbling (TTH) is for Sample A, which is a purchased industrial DRI reference produced using fossil-based direct reduction and having rather high metallization degree and carbon content (exact composition unknown).
- This value can be compared to the pilot produced fossil-based reference, Sample B, with a TTH value of 95.3 % after tumbling.
- Sample C From the excavation performed after campaign K2 a sample of not fully reduced NG-DRI, Sample C, has also been tested as a comparison. It can be seen that the lesser degree of metallization appears to correlate with lower tumbling index.
- Example D For the hydrogen-reduced DRI, presented to the right in the graph, an excavation sample with not fully reduced H2-DRI is included (Sample D). This result is lower than the rest of the hydrogen-reduced samples that have metallization in excess of 98% and are produced using differing process conditions (Samples E-L).
- Differing process conditions include i.a . varying reducing gas temperature between 800 to 900 °C and carbon-contents (carbon-free or post-carburized with natural gas to a carbon content of 1 %C).
- the results from the tumbling of highly-metallized hydrogen reduced DRI is in all cases a tumbling index TTH of between 98 to 99 % TTH. By comparison, these values are much superior to those obtained from natural gas-reduced DRI (Samples A-C), and are even superior to the iron ore pellets used for direct reduction.
- the abrasion index (ATH) is also shown, representing the percentage of a sample after tumbling that is less than 0.5 mm. It can be generally stated that the abrasion index inversely correlates to the tumbling index.
- Changes in composition and metallization were determined by periodically sampling a number of pellets from each bag and analysing the pellets using XRD and LECO elemental analysis. A mean change in composition and metallization could then be determined for each period in time.
- H2-reduced DRI's were subjected to accelerated aging tests in water.
- the batches tested were the high-metallized H2-reduced DRI's as described in the aging experiments above (both carbon-free and carburized), as well as a further batch: Mid-metallized H2-reduced DRI (metallization approx. 96%, red. temp. 800 °C).
- each DRI was put into separate buckets that were then filled with water until the DRI was completely covered. Samples were taken after 3 days, 2 weeks and 4 weeks, and analysed by XRD and LECO elemental analysis as previously described. Before the water-drenched samples could be prepared for analysis, they were dried at 105 °C for 24 h.
- the high-metallized H2-DRI had very little propensity to gain weight over the test period, regardless of whether it was stored indoors or outdoors.
- the mid-metallized H2-DRI stored outdoors was shown to gain weight in a linear fashion throughout the test period, resulting in a total weight gain of approximately 0.4-0.5 % at the end of the test period.
- the mid-metallized H2-DRI stored indoors was found to relatively rapidly gain approximately 1.2 % in weight (after approx. 1 week), but did not gain any further weight after this initial increase.
- hydrogen-reduced DRI was found to age more slowly than natural gas-reduced DRI.
- increase in metallisation was found to lead to less rapid ageing, both in ambient tests and in accelerated (water) tests.
- Carbon content of the hydrogen-reduced DRI was not found to have any significant effect on ageing, at least for the highly-metallized H2-DRI's that were tested.
- the porosity of the tested DRIs is determined by the methods of ISO 15901-1:2016 "Evaluation of pore size distribution and porosity of solid materials by mercury porosimetry and gas adsorption - Part 1: Mercury porosimetry".
- the mercury temperature was 20.0 °C and the pressure range was 0.10 to 61,000.00 psia.
- the BET surface area of the tested DRIs is determined by the methods of ISO 9277:2010 "Determination of the specific surface area of solids by gas adsorption - BET method”. Krypton at 77K analysis bath temperature was used in BET surface area determination.
- Examples labelled Ln were obtained by lab-scale reduction of iron ore pellets in a flow of the relevant reducing gas heated to the relevant temperature.
- the iron ore pellets used are the same type as used in the pilot scale studies. Clear differences can be observed between the properties of laboratory-produced DRI produced by batch process and pilot DRI obtained by large-scale continuous process in a pressurized shaft. Pilot-produced DRI in general has a lower BET surface area and lower porosity than laboratory-produced DRI, typically porosity ⁇ 60% and BET surface area ⁇ 0.5 m 2 /g. On the contrary, laboratory produced DRI typically has porosity > 60% and BET surface area > 0.6 m 2 /g.
- pilot scale DRI can be distinguished from laboratory scale DRI by porosity and BET surface area.
- pilot scale high metallized hydrogen-reduced DRI is primarily distinguished from pilot scale natural gas-reduced DRI by its high metallization and corresponding lack of the oxides magnetite and wüstite. If the pilot scale high metallized hydrogen-reduced DRI is not carburized it may also be readily distinguished from pilot scale natural gas-reduced DRI by its lack of carbon.
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EP22199176.3A EP4345175A1 (fr) | 2022-09-30 | 2022-09-30 | Pastilles de fer directement reduit et leur utilisation |
PCT/EP2023/077066 WO2024047259A1 (fr) | 2022-09-30 | 2023-09-29 | Boulettes de fer de réduction directe et leur utilisation |
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EP22199176.3A EP4345175A1 (fr) | 2022-09-30 | 2022-09-30 | Pastilles de fer directement reduit et leur utilisation |
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Citations (5)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
EP0428098A2 (fr) * | 1989-11-14 | 1991-05-22 | HYLSA S.A. de C.V. | Procédé de perfectionnement pour la réduction de minerais de fer |
EP1073772A1 (fr) * | 1998-02-20 | 2001-02-07 | HYLSA, S.A. de C.V. | Procede et appareil pour produire du fer de reduction directe grace a une utilisation optimale d'un gaz reducteur |
EP2024521A2 (fr) * | 2006-04-24 | 2009-02-18 | HYL Technologies, S.A. de C.V. | Procédé et appareil pour produire une éponge de fer |
EP2961854B1 (fr) * | 2013-02-27 | 2017-09-27 | HYL Technologies, S.A. de C.V. | Procédé de réduction direct avec amélioration de la qualité du produit et du rendement du gaz de transformation |
WO2021225500A1 (fr) | 2020-05-04 | 2021-11-11 | Hybrit Development Ab | Procédé de production de fer cémenté |
-
2022
- 2022-09-30 EP EP22199176.3A patent/EP4345175A1/fr active Pending
-
2023
- 2023-09-29 WO PCT/EP2023/077066 patent/WO2024047259A1/fr unknown
Patent Citations (5)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
EP0428098A2 (fr) * | 1989-11-14 | 1991-05-22 | HYLSA S.A. de C.V. | Procédé de perfectionnement pour la réduction de minerais de fer |
EP1073772A1 (fr) * | 1998-02-20 | 2001-02-07 | HYLSA, S.A. de C.V. | Procede et appareil pour produire du fer de reduction directe grace a une utilisation optimale d'un gaz reducteur |
EP2024521A2 (fr) * | 2006-04-24 | 2009-02-18 | HYL Technologies, S.A. de C.V. | Procédé et appareil pour produire une éponge de fer |
EP2961854B1 (fr) * | 2013-02-27 | 2017-09-27 | HYL Technologies, S.A. de C.V. | Procédé de réduction direct avec amélioration de la qualité du produit et du rendement du gaz de transformation |
WO2021225500A1 (fr) | 2020-05-04 | 2021-11-11 | Hybrit Development Ab | Procédé de production de fer cémenté |
Non-Patent Citations (1)
Title |
---|
KIM GPISTORIUS P.C.: "Strength of Direct Reduced Iron Following Gas-Based Reduction and Carburization", METALLURGICAL AND MATERIALS TRANSACTIONS B, vol. 51, 2020, pages 2628 - 2641, XP037299405, DOI: 10.1007/s11663-020-01958-x |
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