Effect of Bonding Area Formation During Sintering on the Reaction Characteristics of Iron Ores

This study aims to understand the effect of sintering at 1623 K on the reaction characteristics of iron ores. By investigating the reaction characteristics of nine different iron ores with disparate properties, new reactivity indices including the iron ore reactivity index (IRI) and iron ore blending reactivity index (IBRI) independent of the sample size are derived based on the melt penetration depth of preformed cubicalironore tablets. Furthermore, the effect of sintering on the reactivity of iron ore is also identified. Using a rapid heating/cooling infrared furnace equipment, duplicate iron ore reaction tests are conducted to increase the reproducibility of the results. The case of a high IBRI in the sintering process increases the product yield and average particle size of the sinter. When the IBRI increases by 0.1, the product yield increases by 0.4% and the average size of the sintered ore increases by 0.1 mm. The results show that the degree of reaction between iron ore and additives can be estimated during the iron ore blending step and be easily applied in managing commercial-scale sinter production and quality.