Non-isothermal gas-based direct reduction behavior of high chromium vanadium-titanium magnetite pellets and the melting separation of metallized pellets

Abstract

The non-isothermal reduction behavior of high chromium vanadium-titanium magnetite (HCVTM) pellets by gas mixtures was investigated using different heating rates (4, 8, and 12 K/min) and varied gas compositions (H2/CO = 2/5, H2/CO = 1/1, and H2/CO = 5/2 volume ratios); the pellets were then used for melting separation. It was observed that the temperature corresponding to the maximum reduction ratio increased with the increasing heating rate. The HCVTM pellets reached the same final reduction ratio under a given reducing gas composition, although the heating rates were different. Under the same heating rate, the gas mixture with more H2 was conducive for obtaining a higher reduction ratio. The phase transformations during the non-isothermal reduction were ordered as follows: Fe2O3 → Fe3O4 → FeO → Fe; Fe9TiO15 + Fe2Ti3O9 → Fe2.75Ti0.25O4 → FeTiO3 → TiO2; V1.7Cr0.3O3 → V2O3 → Fe2VO4; Fe1.2Cr0.8O3 → Cr2O3 → FeCr2O4. The non-isothermal reduction kinetic model was established based on the unreacted core model with multiple reaction interfaces. The correlation coefficients were greater than 0.99, revealing that this kinetic model could properly describe the non-isothermal reduction of the HCVTM pellets by gas mixtures. Iron containing V and Cr along with the Ti-rich slag was obtained through the melting separation of the metallized HCVTM pellets. The mass fractions and recovery rates of Fe, V, and Cr in the iron were 93.87% and 99.45%, 0.91% and 98.83%, and 0.72% and 95.02%, respectively. The mass fraction and recovery rate of TiO2 in the slag were 38.12% and 95.08%, respectively.