Chapter One Materials Engineering Assist. Lect.

Nagham Altimime
Extraction of Ferrous Metals Materials Extraction Methods 1st Year / 2nd. Semester

Subject: Materials Extraction Methods

Stage: 1st. year \ Semester: 2nd.

Lecturer:
Assist. Lect. Nagham Mohammed Abdulkareem

Syllabus:
Chapter One: Extraction of Ferrous Metals
Chapter Two: Extraction of Nonferrous Metals
Chapter Three: Extraction of Nuclear Metals

References:
1) Basic Concepts of Iron and Steel Making, by Sujay Kumar Dutta •
Yakshil B. Chokshi
2) Extraction of Nuclear and Non-ferrous Metals, by Sujay Kumar Dutta •
Dharmesh R. Lodhari
Chapter One Materials Engineering Assist. Lect. Nagham Altimime
Extraction of Ferrous Metals Materials Extraction Methods 1st Year / 2nd. Semester

CHAPTER ONE
EXTRACTION OF FERROUS METALS

1. INTRODUCTION
Looking at the periodic table (Fig. 1.1), it is found that more than 70 elements are metals out of
118 elements. Not all the metals are equally important according to their uses. The steel (i.e.
refined impure iron) is the most used iron alloy; its production is more than 50 times total
production of combined all other metals. That is why iron and iron alloy form one group (i.e.
ferrous metals) by its own right, and other metals combination (except iron) forms other group
(i.e. non-ferrous metals).

General flow diagram for extraction of metal from ore is shown in Fig. 1.2. Extractive
metallurgy for iron and steel is known as Ferrous Extractive Metallurgy. Since extractive
metallurgy is a science of separating metals from their ores (by chemically) and subsequently
refining them to make pure form (to some extent), the production of hot metal/pig iron is a
partial step involved for extractive metallurgy of iron, and it is not completed until it (i.e. hot
metal) refines. Therefore, steelmaking is a refining process in which impurity elements are
oxidized from hot metal and steel scrap that are charged to the process.

Hence, ferrous extractive metallurgy has two-stage operations:

• Reduction stage, i.e. ironmaking stage (iron ore reduced to hot metal),
• Oxidation stage, i.e. steelmaking stage (hot metal refined to steel).

The nature and location of steelworks depend on many factors:

· The availability of raw material;

· Supply;
· Transport (particularly deep-water port facilities);
· Human resources and services availability;
· Markets; and often
· Government factors.
Chapter One Materials Engineering Assist. Lect. Nagham Altimime
Extraction of Ferrous Metals Materials Extraction Methods 1st Year / 2nd. Semester

Fig. 1.1 Periodic table of elements

Fig. 1.2 General flow diagram for extraction of metal from ore
Chapter One Materials Engineering Assist. Lect. Nagham Altimime
Extraction of Ferrous Metals Materials Extraction Methods 1st Year / 2nd. Semester

1.1 RAW MATERIALS

Impure iron is produced from reduction of iron ore by means of coke in a blast furnace. The
product is a liquid iron, known as hot metal (3.5–4.5% C, 0.5–1.25% Si, 0.5–0.75% Mn, etc.)
which is raw material for production of steel. Hot metal is refined by oxidation process to form
steel. Hot metal is solidified into a small sized ingots which are known as pig iron. From a bird’s
eye view, the pig iron casting looks like piglets which are feeding by their mother. That is why it
was named pig iron for solid impure iron. The pig iron is very brittle in nature due to high carbon
content, which makes it fit only as a casting of some components by adjusting composition. A
schematic view of a blast furnace is shown in Fig. 1.3. The raw materials used for blast furnace
ironmaking are mainly (i) iron ore, (ii) metallurgical coke, (iii) limestone, (iv) air and (v) water
(for cooling

1.1.1 IRON ORE

Iron very rarely occurs in the earth's surface as a metal. It is widely distributed, combined with
oxygen as iron oxides. In fact it is believed that iron makes up about 5% by weight of the earth's
crust. Geologists recognize various types of iron ore, classified chiefly according to iron (Fe)
content (see Table 1 below).

Types of iron ores are:

a) Hematite (Fe2O3): It is also called red ore of iron. The maximum theoretical iron
contains 70% and 30% oxygen (for pure Fe2O3). In actual deposits, the iron content
varies 50–65%. Its specific gravity is about 4.9–5.25. It is non-magnetic in nature and is
more reducible compared to other minerals of iron. Figure 1.3a shows the hematite iron
ore.
b) Magnetite (Fe3O4): It is called black ore of iron. Magnetite, combination of ferrous and
ferric oxides (i.e. Fe3O4 = FeO + Fe2O3). Magnetite contains 31.03% FeO and 68.97%
Fe2O3. In actual deposits, the iron content varies from 25 to 70%. This varies over a
wide range depending upon the impurity (i.e. gangue) content of the ore. A grey metallic
lustre is also observed. Its specific gravity is about 4.9–5.2. It is magnetic in nature, so it
can be easily separated from the gangue minerals by magnet. The main disadvantage of
the ore is that it has very poor reducibility. Many often magnetite ores required to be
agglomerated by sintering or pelletizing before charge into the blast furnace. Due to high-
temperature firing, Fe3O4 get converted into Fe2O3 and hence the poor reducibility of
magnetite ore is indirectly taken care of it. Figure 1.3b shows the magnetite iron ore.
c) Siderite (FeCO3): It is known as spathic iron ore. It contains 48.2% iron (for pure
mineral) with various colours mainly from ash grey to brown. It requires calcination
before charging into the blast furnace to eliminate CO2 from the ore. It is often mixed
Chapter One Materials Engineering Assist. Lect. Nagham Altimime
Extraction of Ferrous Metals Materials Extraction Methods 1st Year / 2nd. Semester

with other carbonates (like CaCO3,MgCO3). Its specific gravity is about 3.7 to 3.9.
Figure 1.3c shows siderite ore.
d) Limonite (FeO(OH). nH2O): It is called yellowish-brown ore. The ore contains actually
very low iron. The dehydration occurs by the pre-heating of the ore. Limonite is
relatively dense with a specific gravity varying from 2.7 to 4.3. Figure 1.3d shows
limonite ore.

Fig. 1.3 Iron ores: a hematite, b magnetite, c siderite and d limonite.

Table 1: Iron Ore Classification

Chapter One Materials Engineering Assist. Lect. Nagham Altimime
Extraction of Ferrous Metals Materials Extraction Methods 1st Year / 2nd. Semester

Preparation of Ore :
Variations in chemical composition and physical state of the ore influence its usefulness,
economic value, and the required smelting technique. For a rich lump ore, crushing and sizing to
between six and 35mm, and blending to overcome variations in chemical composition are the
only pre-treatments needed before feeding into a blast furnace.

However, if fine ore were to be used as feed to a blast furnace its powdery nature would
restrict the passage of the blast air up through the furnace, limiting its permeability. The problem
of using the fines is overcome by agglomerating the ore into sinter or pellets.

Granular fines are more suited for sintering whereas very fine material of close size range is
better for pelletising. Pellet plants are usually located at or near the ore source, because the hard
round pellets can withstand bulk handling, and there are transport economies in the upgraded
material. Sinter plants are usually located within the integrated steelworks, because sinter can
break up with excessive handling, and because of the availability of coke breeze which supplies
the heat required for the process.

As ironmaking technology has developed, and the efficiency demanded of modem plant has
increased, the majority of flux required in the blast furnace is precalcined (burnt) in the
agglomerated feed. Sinter is better suited to this practice than pellets.

Iron Ore Agglomeration

a) Sinter Process
Sintering is an important process of agglomeration. Sintering is a process of heating fine
materials (+3 mm sizes) to an elevated temperature without complete fusion such that the
small solid particles are in contact with one another adhere and agglomerate into larger,
more useful sizes.. It was quickly adapted to agglomerate fine ore and its use spread
rapidly. At the sinter plant, pre-blended fine ore is mixed with:
 coke breeze (small particles of coke from the screening plant);
 fine fluxes such as fine limestone, dolomite, quartzite, and serpentine;
 mill scale (small flakes of iron oxide from the rolling mills); and
 flue dust and precipitator dust (fine ore bearing particles) collected from the blast
furnace and BOS furnace exhaust gases.
This moistened mixture is coarsened by a granulation process and is then spread as a
layer up to 550 mm thick on a moving grate which travels like an endless belt. The grate
carries the mixture through a furnace, in which gas burners ignite the coke. The coke
burns in horizontal layers which proceed vertically downward as the air for combustion is
continuously drawn down through the mixture as it travels along the moving grate.
Chapter One Materials Engineering Assist. Lect. Nagham Altimime
Extraction of Ferrous Metals Materials Extraction Methods 1st Year / 2nd. Semester

During this process the layers reach temperatures of approximately 1300°C, fusing the
preblended fine ore mix together forming a solid clinker mass. This fused mix is broken
down into lumps, cooled and screened, forming a sinter product with a mean size of 23-
26 mm which is sent to the blast furnace on conveyors.
In modern practice, the combined iron plus coke burden is self fluxing and virtually
no limestone is required at the blast furnace. When the flux is added at the sinter plant,
the limestone is precalcined, the sinter strength and chemical reactivity are improved and
the sinter can be prepared at a lower temperature. Consequently the fuel rates
(consumptions) and productivities of both processes improve.

Fig. 1.4 Agglomerate product of iron ore a sinter and b pellets (Ø = 10–18 mm).

b) Pelletizing techniques
Pelletizing was first developed in Sweden. Since the late 1950's it has been extensively
applied to the very large deposits of iron bearing rock called "taconite" which underlie
much of the Mesabi Range in Minnesota (USA).
Low grade run-of-mine ore is crushed and ground to a very fine powder so that the iron
may be separated magnetically from the silica and other unwanted material. A binding
clay such as bentonite is added, also some fluxes, (if required), and the mixture is then
moistened and rolled into 14mm diameter balls in cylindrical balling drums. Initially the
"green" pellets are relatively weak, being cemented together only by the added water.
They are then baked at about 1315C in a shaft furnace, rotary kiln or grate system similar
to a sinter strand. Because of their regular size and shape, and their hard, dense nature,
pellets were considered an ideal feed material for blast furnace operations. However, with
changing conditions, sinter is increasingly regarded as the preferred agglomerated feed:
the sinter strength advantages on fluxing have been described, and the fuels commonly
used in the pellet roasting (heavy fuel or natural gas) are becoming increasingly
expensive.
Chapter One Materials Engineering Assist. Lect. Nagham Altimime
Extraction of Ferrous Metals Materials Extraction Methods 1st Year / 2nd. Semester

Pelletizing is usually associated with the chemical upgrading of an ore, but it may be
used to produce a useable feed from the fines of a high grade ore.

1.1.2 COAL
Main functions of coke in a blast furnace are as follows:

 It acts as a fuel to provide heat for (a) requirement of endothermic chemical reactions and
(b) melting of metal and slag.
 (ii) It acts as a reducer by producing of reducing gases (CO, H2) for the reduction of iron
oxides in ore.
 (iii) It provides the support the whole burden (in bosh region) during melting of iron-
bearing burden.
 (iv) It provides a permeable bed through which molten slag and metal droplets come
down into the hearth and help hot reducing gases flow upward direction for heating raw
materials as well as reduction of iron ore.
 (v) It provides the carbon for proper carburization of the hot metal.

To fulfill above functions, the coke should satisfy the following requirements:

• To be a good fuel coke, it should have maximum carbon content and minimum ash
content;
• To regenerate reducing gases and to produce heat, coke should have a high reactivity
with oxygen, carbon dioxide and water vapour;
• In bosh region, permeability of the charge is maintained by the coke alone because other
materials, except coke, are either semi-fused or molten stage. Hence, coke should be
remained solid until it burns at the tuyere level.

1.1.3 Fluxes
A flux is a substance which is added during smelting to help lower down the softening point of
the gangue materials of ore, as well as ash of coke; to reduce the viscosity to the slag and to
decrease the activity of some of its components for making stable in the slag phase. Slag is
formed by the combination of gangue and flux, which is product (i.e. molten oxides) of smelting
operation.

Limestone and dolomite act as fluxing material in blast furnace. It should contain less than 5%
insoluble (i.e. SiO2, Al2O3, Fe2O3).

The chemical formula of limestone is CaCO3. Limestone decomposes at 900–950 °C; marble
particles expand first and then shrink during the heating stage, microfractures are generated, and
the lump particle breaks into small particles. The chemical formula of dolomite is CaMg(CO3)2;
Chapter One Materials Engineering Assist. Lect. Nagham Altimime
Extraction of Ferrous Metals Materials Extraction Methods 1st Year / 2nd. Semester

it provides the MgO for blast furnace slag formation. Dolomite decomposes at two temperatures
(*700 and *950 °C), so the breakage is higher than limestone.

Calcined limestone (CaCO3) and dolomite (CaCO3 MgCO3) fluxed the gangue materials (i.e.
silica and alumina impurities) of ore and ash of coke to produce a low melting point (1300 °C)
fluid slag. Lime (CaO) has the secondary effect of adding part of the sulphur in the charge, and
sulphur is also introduced mainly as an impurity in the coke. Sulphur should be removed in the
slag phase rather than in the product iron.

1.1.4 Air Supply

One of the most important raw materials in BF practice is the air supply. Steam and gas are
operated by turbo-blower. The blast pressure normally ranges from 1 to 4 kg/cm2 at the tuyeres,
so that the turbo-blowers are designed to withstand pressure of 6–7 kg/cm2. The advantages of
the turbo-blowers appear to be:

• Smaller foundations and buildings are required,

• Less space is necessary,
• Maintenance costs are generally low,
• Higher blast pressures can be obtained,
• A more regular and smoother blast results,
• Blowers can be driven electrically.