Method of producing reduced iron compacts in rotary hearth-type reducing furnace, reduced iron compacts, and method of producing molten iron using them

Abstract

There is provided a method of producing reduced iron compacts with high crushing strength, low powderization and a high reduction rate in a solid reduction-type firing reducing furnace such as a rotary hearth-type reducing furnace, as well as reduced iron compacts obtained by the method and a method of melt-reducing the reduced iron compacts in a blast furnace. In the method of producing reduced iron compacts, the atomic molar ratio of carbon to oxygen chemically combined with iron, manganese, nickel, zinc and lead, in raw material powder comprising a mixture of iron oxide-containing powder and carbon-containing powder, or the ferric oxide content of the raw material powder, is in a specified range, the compact is produced so as to give a porosity in a given range, and the compact is put on the hearth of a reducing furnace equipped with a rotating hearth and is heated for heating reduction by the heat from the combustion gas in the upper part of the furnace, for firing reduction at above a prescribed temperature.