A method for off-gas composition control, wherein the off-gas results from a smelting apparatus for smelting a metalliferous feed material, wherein the smelting apparatus includes a smelting vessel, a smelt cyclone mounted on the smelting vessel and in connection with the inside of the smelting vessel and an off-gas duct connected to the smelt cyclone, wherein the method provides that an oxygen containing gas containing 95% oxygen or more is injected into the smelt cyclone and that the feed material is injected into the smelt cyclone with a carrier gas other than nitrogen gas.

A flash ironmaking system and a flash ironmaking method are provided. The flash ironmaking system includes a pulverized coal gasifier; a drying pre-reduction kiln; and a flash furnace having a horizontal bottom in which a molten iron layer region, a slag layer region and a carburizing bed layer region are sequentially formed, a reduction tower, a concentrate nozzle, and a flue.

A smelting apparatus that includes (a) a smelting vessel (4) that is adapted to contain a bath of molten metal and slag and (b) a smelt cyclone (2) for pre-treating a metalliferous feed material positioned above and communicating directly with the smelting vessel The apparatus also includes an oft-gas duct (9) extending from the smelt, cyclone for discharging an off-gas from the smelt cyclone. The off-gas duct has an inlet section (18) that extends upwardly from the smelt cyclone and is formed to cause off-gas to undergo a substantial change of direction as it flows through the inlet section of the off-gas duct.

A flash ironmaking drop tube furnace includes a primary reaction section having a refractory, an induction coil around the refractory, insulation located between the refractory and the induction coil, and a susceptor located inside the refractory, the susceptor being formed of a material that is heated by induction when electrical current flows through the induction coil, and having at least one interior channel through which particles can pass. The furnace further includes a muffle, located below the primary reaction section; an outer shell surrounding the muffle; at least one heater located adjacent to the muffle; insulation located between the at least one heater and the outer shell; at least one particle feeder that feeds a predetermined volume of particles into the furnace above the primary reaction section; and an inlet port for injecting gas into the furnace, the inlet port being located so that the gas flows through the susceptor and muffle in parallel with the particles.

Smelting metalliferous feed material process forming molten metal in smelting apparatus including smelt cyclone above and communicating with smelting vessel to contain molten metal and slag bath, including: partially reducing and melting feed material in smelt cyclone, allowing the molten partially reduced feed material flow downwardly into vessel, supplying oxygen-containing gas and carbonaceous material to vessel, smelting molten partially reduced feed material in molten metal and slag bath in vessel forming molten metal discharged from vessel and reaction products projected upwardly from molten bath, at least partially combusting combustible materials in reaction products in vessel space above molten bath, supplying oxygen-containing gas to smelt cyclone. Further combusting reaction products in smelt cyclone, discharging from smelt cyclone offgas including reaction products, supplying oxygen-containing gas into offgas duct upstream high temperature section combusting remaining offgas combustible materials while sufficiently hot for safe ignition and avoiding downstream burner-managed incineration.

An improved direct smelting system and process using a smelt reduction vessel (SRV), and optionally, a cyclone converter furnace (CCF). The improved system and process utilizes a fast quench system in which hot process offgas containing molten material is quench-cooled from greater than 1400? C. (2552? F.) to no more than 600? C. (1112? F.) in a time-of-flight of no greater than 1 second. The quenching occurs using water spray injection and vaporization to cool, stress and break solid slag into slag pieces small enough to remove from the quenching system. The improved system eliminates plant availability problems associated with (i) accretion formation in the offgas train as hot process offgas cools down in a conventional (slow) manner to allow for steam-raising for power generation or other heat recovery purposes, and (ii) trigger mechanisms causing slag foaming events in the SRV that propagate up the offgas train.

A flash ironmaking system and a flash ironmaking method are provided. The flash ironmaking system includes a pulverized coal gasifier; a drying pre-reduction kiln; and a flash furnace having a horizontal bottom in which a molten iron layer region, a slag layer region and a carburizing bed layer region are sequentially formed, a reduction tower, a concentrate nozzle, and a flue.

A process and apparatus for direct smelting metalliferous material is disclosed. The invention concentrates injection of solid feed materials comprising metalliferous material and carbonaceous material into a direct smelting vessel during the course of the process into a relatively small region within a metal layer in a molten bath in the vessel in order to generate a substantial upward movement of molten material and gas from the metal layer into a region in the vessel that is above the molten bath. In particular, the invention injects the solid food materials with sufficient momentum and/or velocity via an opposed pair of lances that are oriented within the vessel and arranged to form overlapping plumes of injected material in the molten bath.

A method of operating a smelt cyclone, wherein the supply of feed material and/or the supply of oxygen containing gas through an array of tuyeres into the smelt cyclone is controlled in order to control accretions of metalliferous feed material at the inside of the smelt cyclone.

Method and apparatus for producing direct reduced iron (DRI) powder or molten iron from iron ore fines by mixing said iron ore fines with hydrogen and oxygen and igniting the mixture in a flame reactor with flame temperatures controlled to produce solid iron powder or molten iron.