A method for manufacturing direct reduced iron wherein oxidized iron is reduced in a direct reduction furnace by a reducing gas, the direct reduction furnace including a reduction zone, a transition zone and a cooling zone, a carbon-bearing liquid being injected below the reduction zone.

A method of operating a network of plants comprising a blast furnace, a direct reduction furnace, a CO2 conversion unit wherein blast furnace top gas is subjected to a CO2 conversion step to produce a liquid carbon product which is injected into the direct reduction furnace.

A method for producing high carbon content metallic iron using coke oven gas, including: dividing a top gas stream from a direct reduction shaft furnace into a first top gas stream and a second top gas stream; mixing the first top gas stream with a coke oven gas stream from a coke oven gas source and processing at least a portion of a resulting combined coke oven gas stream in a carbon dioxide separation unit to form a synthesis gas-rich gas stream and a carbon-dioxide rich gas stream; delivering the synthesis gas-rich gas stream to the direct reduction shaft furnace as bustle gas; using the carbon-dioxide rich gas stream as fuel gas in one or more heating units; and delivering the second top gas stream to the direct reduction shaft furnace as bustle gas.

A method and apparatus for producing direct reduced iron (DRI), including: generating a reducing gas in a coal gasifier using coal, oxygen, steam, and a first coke oven gas (COG) stream as inputs to the coal gasifier; and delivering the reducing gas to a shaft furnace and exposing iron ore agglomerates to the reducing gas to form metallic iron agglomerates. The method further includes delivering a second COG stream directly to the shaft furnace.

A shaft furnace for producing metallic direct reduced iron (DRI) from iron-containing pellets or lumps and reducing gas disposed therein, including: a circumferential outer wall defining a top interior reducing zone, a middle interior transition zone, and a bottom interior cooling zone, wherein the iron-containing pellets or lumps travel downwards through the top interior reducing zone, the middle interior transition zone, and the bottom interior cooling zone as the iron-containing pellets or lumps encounter the upward-flowing reducing gas and one or more other gases; and a flow diverter disposed along a centerline of the circumferential outer wall including a convex-upwards upper tapering section disposed in the middle transition zone defined by the circumferential outer wall coupled to a convex-downwards lower tapering section disposed in the bottom cooling zone defined by the circumferential outer wall.

A method for producing direct reduction iron includes reducing an iron oxide raw material by a reducing gas containing hydrogen gas to generate direct reduction iron; removing water from an exhaust gas in the reducing and thus hydrogen gas is separated from the exhaust gas; carbonizing and cooling the direct reduction iron using a cooling gas containing carbon as an element, and separating hydrogen gas and methane gas from an exhaust gas in the carbonizing and cooling, wherein the cooling gas is methane gas, wherein the reducing gas further contains the hydrogen gas separated in the removing and the hydrogen gas separated in the separating, and wherein the cooling gas further contains the methane gas separated in the separating.

A method for operating a blast furnace plant having a blast furnace and an ammonia reforming plant, the method including the steps of feeding a stream of ammonia to the ammonia reforming plant, cracking the stream of ammonia in the ammonia reforming plant to produce a reducing gas, feeding an iron oxide containing charge and the reducing gas into the blast furnace, and reducing iron oxide inside the blast furnace by reaction between the iron oxide containing charge and the reducing gas, where the reducing gas comprises less than 15% of ammonia.

The invention relates to a process for direct reduction of iron ore to afford direct reduced iron, wherein the iron ore sequentially passes through a reduction zone for reducing the iron ore to direct reduced iron and a cooling zone for cooling the direct reduced iron, wherein in the reduction zone the iron ore is subjected to a flow of a reduction gas and wherein in the cooling zone the direct reduced iron is subjected to a flow of a cooling gas. The cooling gas in the cooling zone comprises H2 and CO2, wherein the ratio of the mole fractions of H2 to CO2 is greater than 1.8 and the mole fraction of CO2 is greater than 20 mol %.

The invention relates to a process for direct reduction of iron ore to sponge iron, wherein the iron ore passes through a reduction zone for reducing the iron ore to sponge iron. The reduction zone is subdivided into a pre-reduction zone supplied with a first reduction gas and into an end-reduction zone supplied with a second reduction gas. The first reduction gas has a different gas composition compared to the second reduction gas. A first reduction gas has a hydrogen proportion at least 5% by volume higher compared to the second reduction gas.

A process for direct reduction of iron ore to sponge iron is disclosed. The iron ore passes through a reduction zone for reducing the iron ore to sponge iron. A reduction gas is passed through the iron ore in the reduction zone. The reduction gas introduced into the reduction zone comprises at least one compound of carbon and hydrogen and/or at least one compound of carbon and oxygen and/or hydrogen. The process gas discharged from the reduction zone comprises hydrogen and at least one compound of carbon and oxygen and/or at least one hydrogen-containing compound. The process gas is supplied to at least a first process step in which at least one compound of the process gas and/or at least portions of the unavoidable impurities are separated and/or removed. After the first process step the process gas is subjected to processing such that hydrogen is obtained as a byproduct.