Metals and mining firm,Tenova HYL and Diproinduca Canada Ltd., has entered into a commercial alliance agreement for the development and commercialisation of the DRB (Direct Reduced Briquettes) technology for the recycling of iron ore fines in Direct Reduction (DR) plants.
The companies explained that low value iron ore by-products in DR plants include the fines from scrubbing systems of material handling, iron ore screening and the sludge mainly produced in the scrubbing systems of the reduction and cooling gas circuits of DR installations. Currently these disposed of at a cost or are sold at low priced by-products.
DRB technology, however, is intended to recover and recycle these fines, which have the cost of the iron ore on site, by producing briquettes that can be fed directly into the DR reducing reactor to produce DRI.
In this way, the companies said that the overall yield is significantly increased, the operating costs are reduced and the disposal logistics costs of the DR plants are eliminated.
This DRB technology is based on the production of briquettes made from the recovered iron ore fines from various sources, suitable for production of DRI with the same quality of the DRI actually being produced in the DR plant.
The partners said that the technology has been developed and tested over the past two years with successful results in industrial plant (i.e. 3M5 Plant at Ternium Monterrey, Mexico).
Tests results are claimed to have shown an average metallization of 94 – 95 % with carbon content of about 3% and low fines generation, all at the same level of the DRI actually produced from iron ore pellets, reflecting the excellent behavior of the briquettes in terms of porosity and mechanical strength during the reduction process inside the industrial reactor.
Currently, a demonstration plant has been installed in Monterrey, Mexico, with the purpose of recycling fines from screening and sludge, at the DR plant at Ternium facilities.
“In the current struggling steel market scenario, in which each dollar counts, this exciting technology will provide DR plant users a technology for reducing by-products, increasing the yield and ultimately optimising their operating costs, which obviously is the target of steelmakers anywhere,” commented Pablo Duarte, commercial director, Tenova HYL.
