The present invention relates to an eco-friendly and single step process for the preparation of high purity iron by using hydrogen plasma in a suitable smelting reactor furnace. Reduction of iron oxide in excess of 99% can be achieved by reducing the iron ore in hydrogen plasma smelting system. The product quality is greatly improved as there is no instance of coke inclusion which otherwise would have carried carbon, sulphur, phosphorous, silica, etc. with it. In addition, this greatly diminishes carbon dioxide emission thereby making the process highly eco-friendly in nature. Apart from these, the process produces water as the only by-product. The process takes care of the green house effect with the non-involvement of gases like carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide during the operation. Thus, the present process is developed to produce high pure iron in a hydrogen plasma reactor without using carbon as reductant which thereby reduces the carbon dioxide emission drastically.

Methods for producing steel using super-pure iron ore powder and hydrogen are provided. In the method, iron ore concentrate is purified to form super-pure iron ore powder. The super-pure iron ore powder is reduced with hydrogen introduced into a first furnace, which can be a hydrogen electric furnace, a hydrogen tube furnace, a hydrogen box furnace, an electromagnetic induction furnace, or a hydrogen thermal plasma furnace. The reduced iron product can be melted in the same or a different furnace, which can be a hydrogen electric furnace, belt furnace, an electromagnetic induction furnace, hydrogen thermal plasma furnace, or an electrical arc furnace. The reducing and melting steps result in a steel product. The present methods result in zero carbon dioxide emissions.

The present discloses a thermal energy recovery auxiliary system for temperature detection of molten steel in a steelmaking process, comprising an electric arc furnace, a water supply device, a power generation system, a piston type oxygen compression device, and one or more non-contact temperature measurement devices. A flue communicates with a side wall of the electric arc furnace. The water supply device includes a water supply tank, a water supply pipeline of an electrolytic cell, and a thermal energy recovery component. The power generation system includes a Seebeck-effect thermoelectric power generation component and an electrolytic cell. The piston type oxygen compression device forms a steam containment chamber and an oxygen containment chamber through a piston isolation. One end of each of the one or more non-contact temperature measurement devices communicates with the oxygen containment chamber and the other end of each of the one or more non-contact temperature measurement devices communicates with an interior of the electric arc furnace.

A method and system for carrying out non-thermal plasma direct reduction of ore ultrafines into resource material are described. In particular, the present invention is directed to a method for direct reduction of ultrafines using an integrated system including an ultrafines source and a non-thermal plasma source. The method includes delivering ultrafines to a reduction reaction zone; and applying, within the reduction reaction zone, a non-thermal plasma to the ultrafines.