After more than a decade of intensive research in China, scientists there have developed a revolutionary new iron-making technology that could make far-reaching changes in the global steel-manufacturing industry.
Professor Zhang Wenhai, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, in a paper published in the peer-reviewed journal Nonferrous Metals in November, reported that he and his team have developed a method of injecting finely ground iron ore powder into an extremely hot furnace, triggering an “explosive chemical reaction,” according to the involved engineers.
The result is a display of bright red, glowing liquid iron droplets that rain down and collect at the bottom of the furnace, forming a stream of high-purity iron that can be directly used for casting or “one-step steelmaking.” Known as flash ironmaking, the method “can complete the ironmaking process in just three to six seconds, compared to the five to six hours required by traditional blast furnaces,” the study reports, writes South China Morning Post on Dec. 8. This equates to a 3,600-fold increase in the speed of steelmaking.
The new method also works exceptionally well for the low- or medium-yield ores that are abundant in China. Existing iron production methods depend heavily on high-yield ores, and China spends a large amount of money importing such ores from Australia, Brazil, and Africa.
