The Journey From Ore to Steel
Iron and Steel and manufactured using the two main raw materials: iron ore and metallurgical coal. These are mined, processed and the converted to iron and steel through different process routes like blast furnace, direct reduced iron, basic oxygen furnace and electric arc furnace.
Raw Materials
Iron Ore
The VIBRANT ENGINEERS defines iron ore... magnetite (Fe3O4) and hematite (Fe2O3). Iron-ore is generally classified into three based on its quality as:
- High-grade ore with more 60% Fe content
- Medium grade ore with 55-60% Fe content
- Low-grade ore with less than 55% Fe content
Iron ore is the major raw material in steelmaking... Almost all of the iron ore (95-98%) is used in steelmaking.
Metallurgical Coal
Coal is considered one of the world’s most affordable energy fuel... Coking coal is used for the production of coke, while non-coking coal is used for purposes like power generation.[3] Over 70% of the global steel produced from iron ore is largely dependent on coal.[6]
Stages of Mining
Exploration
Mining begins with geological exploration to investigate the quality and quantity of deposits available...
Extraction
Most iron ore mining involves the use of the ‘open pit’ method... To mine metallurgical coal, vertical mine shafts are sunk...
Transportation
The excavators then load the mined materials onto huge haul trucks or conveyors that carry the materials to processing plants...
Processing
In this stage, the raw materials are first stacked according to their grade... The ore is processed further and sintered or pelletised...
Environmental Impacts
Mining of iron ore is a highly energy intensive process and causes air pollution... Acid drainage once caused can remain for thousands of years even after the mining activities have been stopped.