Characterisation of low grade iron ores of Bursua iron ore mines

Barsua mines, the captive iron ore mines under Steel Authority of India Limited, have a substantial deposit of low-grade iron ore. The present work has been
undertaken to analyse and characterise six different types of iron ores comprising of
(i) Hard laminated ore, (ii) Soft laminated ore (iii) Lateritic ore, (iv) Friable ore,
(v) Mineable transitional ore, and (vi) Limonitic ore.
Iron ore samples have been collected from Bursua mines in Sundargarh district in
Odisha, which supplies iron ore mainly to Rourkela Steel Plant. It is found that the quality
of ore is of low grade having present substantial quantity of gangue minerals, alumina in
particular.
The principal aim of the study was to find the beneficiation amenability of the low grade
ore for recovering more than 90% iron minerals having the product grade of at least 62%
Fe. The chemical analysis of iron ore samples was carried out by means of wet chemical
method as well as X-ray Fluorescence analytical technique (XRF). The granulometry of
six iron ore samples has been assessed in terms of size fractions of the material. Thermo-
Gravimetric/Differential Thermal Analyses have also been performed to estimate the
gravimetric and thermal changes at different temperatures. The phase analysis of the ore
samples has been carried out using X-ray diffraction technique. The analytical results
obtained for all six different types of iron ore have been discussed in the paper.