DIRECT ORE REDUCTION AND REDUCING GAS

Direct reduction plants based on reforming of natural gas, LPG, or distillates are highly integrated units, in which process optimization has resulted in an energy consumption about 50 pct higher than the theoretical minimum. Integration of the ore reduction and the reducing gas processes may involve recycle of top-gas either to the reformer feed or to the shaft furnace. The latter solution appears advantageous because the reformer can operate independently of disturbances in the shaft furnace.