The risks involved in marine transport of direct reduced iron in bulk

Every year bulk carriers transport millions of tons of direct reduced iron (DRI) by sea, which involves considerable risk of fires and even explosions. In order to study this type of dangerous goods carriage and the reactions that can take place, we designed an experiment to simulate conditions on board. DRI was deposited in three watertight metallic recipients of different sizes, leaving the upper portion unfilled to simulate a small hold. Seawater was added and air was circulated to induce a reaction, resulting in an increase of temperature inside the reactor recipients. The maximum temperatures in the reactors were: 82, 85 and 95 C. The variables that influenced the reaction were its thermal isolation, the amount of seawater added, the ventilation (i.e. oxygen supplied) and the ambient temperature.