Patent Application
20250101543
This application claims the priority benefit of French Provisional Patent Application Serial No. FR 2200765 filed Jan. 28, 2022, the entirety of which is incorporated herein by reference.
The disclosed technology generally provides for an iron or aluminum-ore composite and method of preparing a composite with a water-soluble binding polymer for agglomeration of iron or aluminum ore fines and residues in the briquetting and/or pelletization process.
Common briquetting and/or pelletizing processes require the use of mixed binders, such as lime, molasses, or bentonite. In turn, undesired elements, such as phosphorus, silicon, acid gangue, and/or additional slag are introduced into the briquette or pellet. Due to the current binding materials available in the pelletization and briquetting processes, these undesired elements that are introduced reduce the quality and the market value of the briquettes and pellets that are ultimately produced.
Thus, what is needed in the art is a composition and method for the briquetting and/or pelletization process which avoids the introduction of these undesired elements to improve briquette and/or pellet quality.
The disclosed technology generally provides for an iron or aluminum-ore composite and method of preparing an iron or aluminum-ore based composite.
In one aspect of the disclosed technology, an iron or aluminum-ore based composite is provided.
In various embodiments, the iron or aluminum-ore based composite comprises i) a plurality of iron or aluminum ore particles, the iron or aluminum ore particles comprising iron or aluminum ore fines and/or iron or aluminum ore residues; ii) at least one water-soluble polymer, the polymer being either a liquid or a solid, wherein said polymer is prepared by polymerizing (i) at least one anionic monomer (a) selected from acrylic acid, a salt of acrylic acid, methacrylic acid, a salt of methacrylic acid, and/or combinations thereof; and (ii) an acrylamide monomer of the formula:
wherein m and n independently represent a number between 150,000 and 250,000.
In some embodiments, the composite comprises a moisture content of less than about 15% wt. relative to the total weight of the composite. In some embodiments, the composite is in the form of a pellet or in the form of a briquette. In some embodiments, the composite does not comprise molasses, but may contain starch, and/or starch derivatives.
In some embodiments, the polymer has a Mw molecular weight ranging from approximately 14×106 to 18×106 Daltons.
In some embodiments, polymer (i) is not neutralized, or (ii) is totally or partially neutralized. In some embodiments, the totally or partially neutralized polymer is neutralized by NaOH, KOH, ammonium derivatives, ammonia, amino-alkali substances, and/or combinations thereof. In some embodiments, the amino-alkali substances comprise triethanolamine or 2-amino-2-methyl-propanol (AMP).
In yet another aspect of the disclosed technology, a method of preparing an iron or aluminum-ore based composite is provided. In some embodiments, the method comprises (a) contacting a plurality of iron or aluminum ore particles with at least one water-soluble binding polymer to form an agglomeration, and (b) forming a composite.
In some embodiments, contacting the plurality of iron or aluminum ore particles with the binding polymer does not increase the amount of phosphorus present in the composite. In some embodiments, contacting the plurality of iron or aluminum ore particles with the binding polymer does not increase the amount of silicon present in the composite.
In some embodiments, forming a composite comprises feeding the agglomeration into a mixer and press to form a plurality of briquettes and/or pellets. In some embodiments, forming a composite is carried out in the absence of molasses, starch, and/or starch derivatives.
In some embodiments, the composite comprises a moisture content of less than about 15% wt. relative to the total weight of the composite.
The disclosed technology generally provides for an iron or aluminum-ore composite and method of preparing a composite, and more specifically, an iron or aluminum-ore composite and method of preparing a composite with a water-soluble binding polymer for agglomeration of iron or aluminum ore fines and residues in the briquetting and/or pelletization process, where the resulting briquettes and/or pellets can be used as feed to the blast furnace.
In one aspect of the disclosed technology, an iron or aluminum-ore based composite is provided. The composite comprises a plurality of iron or aluminum ore particles and at least one water-soluble binding polymer. With the use of the water-soluble binding polymer composition and method as disclosed herein, less moisture is present in the composite briquettes and/or pellets that are produced, resulting in less moisture being present in the blast furnace during production, and thus less energy required. Since the energy requirement is reduced, the amount of carbon dioxide emissions is ultimately reduced as well. Further, by replacing the conventional binding materials with the disclosed water-soluble binding polymer composition, the quality of the briquettes/pellets are significantly improved.
The iron or aluminum ore particles comprise iron or aluminum ore fines and/or iron or aluminum ore residues. It should be understood that the iron or aluminum ore fines and/or residues as described herein can be obtained from a variety of different sources. The iron or aluminum ore particles can be recovered from, for example, but not limited to, mini-mills (e.g. steel dust with electrostatic precipitation in electric arc furnace), integrated plants from raw material management (storage/transfer/grinding/sizing), from blast furnace (hydrocyclones) and from converters (coarse, dust).
In some embodiments, the water-soluble binding polymer is a liquid, and in some embodiments, the water-soluble binding polymer is a solid. In some embodiments, the water-soluble binding polymer is prepared in the absence of acrylamide and/or an acrylamide derivative, and in other embodiments, the water-soluble binding polymer is prepared with an acrylamide and/or an acrylamide derivative.
The water-soluble binding polymer as disclosed herein is prepared by polymerizing (i) at least one anionic monomer (a) selected from acrylic acid, a salt of acrylic acid, methacrylic acid, a salt of methacrylic acid, and/or combinations thereof, and (ii) an acrylamide of formula:
wherein m and n independently represent a number between 150,000 and 250,000.
In some embodiments, the Mw molecular weight of the polymer may be between about 14×106 and 18×106 Daltons. In other embodiments, the Mw molecular weight may be between about 15×106 and 17×106 Daltons.
In some embodiments, the polymer (i) is not neutralized, or (ii) is totally or partially neutralized. In such embodiments, wherein the polymer is totally or partially neutralized, the polymer is neutralized by NaOH, KOH, ammonium derivatives, ammonia, amino-alkali substances, and/or combinations thereof. In some embodiments, the amino-alkali substances can comprise triethanolamine or 2-amino-2-methyl-propanol (AMP).
The iron or aluminum-ore based composite is in the form of a pellet or in the form of a briquette. In some embodiments, the composite does not comprise molasses, but can comprise starch, and/or starch derivatives. Because the iron or aluminum-ore composite of the disclosed technology does not include molasses, undesired elements, such as, for example, phosphorus and silicon, are not introduced into the briquette or pellet, thus improving the quality of the briquettes and/or pellets obtained.
In some embodiments, the iron or aluminum-ore based composite comprises a moisture content of less than about 15% wt. relative to the total weight of the composite. In some embodiments, the moisture content is less than about 12% wt. relative to the total weight of the composite, and in other embodiments, the moisture content is less than about 10% wt. relative to the total weight of the composite.
In yet another aspect of the disclosed technology, a method of preparing an iron or aluminum-ore based composite is provided. The method comprises (a) contacting a plurality of iron or aluminum ore particles with at least one water-soluble binding polymer to form an agglomeration, and (b) forming a composite.
The method first provides for contacting a plurality of iron or aluminum ore particles with at least one water-soluble binding polymer to form an agglomeration. The binding polymer may be applied to the iron or aluminum ore particles by intimate mixing. Upon contact of the binding polymer and the iron or aluminum particles, an agglomeration of these particles is facilitated.
In some embodiments, the water-soluble binding polymer of the present method is prepared by adding a prepared liquid solution of the acrylamide and/or an acrylamide derivative, and in other embodiments, the water-soluble binding polymer is prepared with a solid acrylamide and/or an acrylamide polymer.
In some embodiments, forming a composite is carried out in the absence of molasses, and possibly, but not necessarily, in the absence of starch, and/or starch derivatives. Since formation of the composite does not include these substances, undesired elements, such as, for example, phosphorus and silicon, are not introduced into the briquette or pellet. It should be understood that any recovered iron or aluminum ore composites may include trace amounts of phosphorus and/or silicon based on the source of the iron or aluminum ore residues or recovered fines. However, the disclosed method does not increase the amount of phosphorus and/or silicon that is ultimately present in the final composite.
In some embodiments, contacting the plurality of iron or aluminum ore particles with the binding polymer does not increase the amount of phosphorus present in the composite that is formed. In some embodiments, contacting the plurality of iron or aluminum ore particles with the binding polymer does not increase the amount of silicon present in the composite that is formed.
In some embodiments, forming a composite comprises feeding the agglomeration into a mixer and press to form a plurality of briquettes and/or pellets.
The composite as described herein comprises a moisture content of less than about 15% wt. relative to the total weight of the composite. In other embodiments, the composite comprises a moisture content of less than about 12% wt. relative to the total weight of the composite, and in other embodiments, the moisture content is less than about 10% wt. relative to the total weight of the composite.
In the foregoing specification, the technology has been described with reference to specific embodiments thereof. While embodiments of the disclosed technology have been described, it should be understood that the present disclosure is not so limited and modifications may be made without departing from the disclosed technology. The scope of the disclosed technology is defined by the appended claims, and all devices, processes, and methods that come within the meaning of the claims, either literally or by equivalence, are intended to be embraced therein.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| FR2200765 | Jan 2022 | FR | national |
| Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| PCT/US2023/060993 | 1/20/2023 | WO |
