The invention relates to a method for producing an agglomerate, which is used as a blast furnace feed material, by mixing a fine material containing metal and/or metal oxide, a mineral binder, which comprises a mineral raw material and a lime-based material, and optionally other additives to form a mass and solidifying the mass to form an agglomerate, wherein a raw material comprising a silicon oxide fraction of at least 40 wt %, a fine grain fraction of less than 4 m of at least 20 wt %, and a grain size fraction of less than 1 m of at least 10 wt % is used as the mineral raw material. The invention further relates to a blast furnace feed material that can be produced by means of the method according to the invention, and to a pre-mixture for producing the blast furnace feed material.

In the present pelletizing apparatus, the induration of iron ore concentrate pellets is achieved in a tunnel furnace heated by plasma torches, wherein the generation of CO2 by the conventional iron ore pelletizing processes is reduced by using electricity powered plasma torches instead of burning natural gas, heavy oil or pulverized coal in burners, thereby reducing considerably industrial pollution of the atmosphere.

Methods for extraction and recovery of rare earth elements are disclosed. In one aspect, heap leaching with a leach solution comprising sulfuric acid is used to extract rare earth elements including yttrium and light and heavy rare earth elements.

Composition comprising at least one calcium-magnesium compound and a second compound chosen in the group consisting of B.sub.2O.sub.3, NaO.sub.3, calcium aluminate, calcium silicate, calcium ferrite such as Ca.sub.2Fe.sub.2O.sub.5 or CaFe.sub.2O.sub.4, Al, Mg, Fe, Mn, Mo, Zn, Cu, Si, CaF.sub.2, C, CaC.sub.2, CaSi, CaMg, CaFe, FeMn, FeSi, FeSiMn, FeMo; TiO.sub.2, an oxide or a hydroxide of molybdenum, copper, zinc, and their mixture, in the form of compacts formed with compacted and shaped particles of calcium-magnesium compounds, having a Shatter Test Index of less than 20% and the manufacturing process thereof.

Composition comprising at least one calcium-magnesium compound and a second compound chosen in the group consisting of B.sub.2O.sub.3, NaO.sub.3, calcium aluminate, calcium silicate, calcium ferrite such as Ca.sub.2Fe.sub.2O.sub.5 or CaFe.sub.2O.sub.4, Al, Mg, Fe, Mn, Mo, Zn, Cu, Si, CaF.sub.2, C, CaC.sub.2, CaSi, CaMg, CaFe, FeMn, FeSi, FeSiMn, FeMo; TiO.sub.2, an oxide or a hydroxide of molybdenum, copper, zinc, and their mixture, in the form of compacts formed with compacted and shaped particles of calcium-magnesium compounds, having a Shatter Test Index of less than 20% and the manufacturing process thereof.

In the present pelletizing apparatus, the induration of iron ore concentrate pellets is achieved in a tunnel furnace heated by plasma torches, wherein the generation of CO2 by the conventional iron ore pelletizing processes is reduced by using electricity powered plasma torches instead of burning natural gas, heavy oil or pulverized coal in burners, thereby reducing considerably industrial pollution of the atmosphere.

In the present pelletizing apparatus, the induration of iron ore concentrate pellets is achieved in a tunnel furnace heated by plasma torches, wherein the generation of CO2 by the conventional iron ore pelletizing processes is reduced by using electricity powered plasma torches instead of burning natural gas, heavy oil or pulverized coal in burners, thereby reducing considerably industrial pollution of the atmosphere.

An arrangement for heating a process gas of an iron ore pelletizing plant, including a heating chamber including a gas inlet, a gas outlet, a wall extending from the gas inlet to the gas outlet, and a heating chamber port arranged in the wall at a point intermediate to the process gas inlet and the process gas outlet, a burner assembly connectible to a source of gaseous fuel and a source of oxidant gas, and a precombustion chamber. The precombustion chamber includes a burner port and a wall extending from the burner port to the heating chamber port. The burner assembly is arranged in the burner port of the precombustion chamber and, in operation, the burner assembly introduces the gaseous fuel, the oxidant gas and/or combustion products thereof into the precombustion chamber. The burner assembly includes a fuel lance, wherein a nozzle of the fuel lance includes outlet holes, and wherein at least one of the outlet holes is arranged at an angle relative to a longitudinal axis of the fuel lance.

The invention relates to a method for producing a ferroalloy containing nickel. From a fine-grained raw material containing iron and chromium and a fine-grained raw material containing nickel, a mixture is formed with binding agent, the mixture is agglomerated so that first formed objects of desired size are obtained. The objects formed are heat treated in order to strengthen the objects so that the heat treated objects withstand conveyance and loading into a smelter furnace. Further, the objects are smelted under reducing circumstances in order to achieve ferrochromenickel, a ferroalloy of a desired composition containing at least iron, chromium and nickel.

The invention relates to a method for producing a ferroalloy containing nickel. From a fine-grained raw material containing iron and chromium and a fine-grained raw material containing nickel, a mixture is formed with binding agent, the mixture is agglomerated so that first formed objects of desired size are obtained. The objects formed are heat treated in order to strengthen the objects so that the heat treated objects withstand conveyance and loading into a smelter furnace. Further, the objects are smelted under reducing circumstances in order to achieve ferrochromenickel, a ferroalloy of a desired composition containing at least iron, chromium and nickel.