Merchant Pig Iron Production
Ferrowest’s preferred technology for the production of MPI is the ITmk3® process from Kobe Steel that has excellent potential for the Yalgoo Iron Project. The ITmk3® process is in the final stages of commercialization at full scale in Minnasota USA. The Company’s choice of this technology is contingent on this first plant commissioning successfully, which is expected to be determined this year.
ITmk3® is the so called third generation of iron making. The first generation is the blast furnace and the second generation is gas-based direct reduction of iron oxides. ITmk3® is a coal based reduction process which utilises the well proven and commercialised rotary hearth furnace (RHF) technology used for decades in the mineral processing industry worldwide. ITmk3® produces metallic iron nuggets in a single and energy efficient process that generate approximately one third less green house gases than other technologies.
The ITmk3® process utilises pulverised coal as a reductant which is mixed with iron ore concentrates (magnetite or haematite) and a binder to form a ‘greenball’ pellet. The ‘greenball’ pellets are dried prior to loading into the rotary hearth furnace where reduction of the iron oxide pellets to metallic iron takes place (driving off the oxygen from the iron oxide).
After reduction, the furnace temperature is raised in the melting zone and the iron melts to form iron nuggets and slag nodules, which are quickly cooled in the next zone. During the cooling process the slag nodules separate from the iron nuggets and the nuggets are recovered using a magnetic belt.
The ITmk3® process is an elegantly simple process as shown in the flow sheet with a one-step furnace operation that requires less energy and capital, with lower operating costs than existing iron making technology. Consequently, a high quality iron product is produced at a lower total cost than other technologies.
[ Click on the image to enlarge ]
