Iron production in Low Shaft Furnace Pilot Plant with Non-Coking Coals (National Metallurgical Laboratory)

Developments of engineering and scientific technology have brought in their wake revolutionary changes in the production of iron and steel. The convectional blast furnace which is sine-que-non for economic iron production requires high grade raw-materials such as hard but porous metallurgical coke and either lumpy iron ore or sintered iron ore. The reserves of high grade raw materials are gradually decreasing all over the World and alternative methods of iron-making are being actively investigated. While India has plentiful reserves of rich iron ores, such processes have special significance in India due to poor reserves of coking coal and their occurrences over small geographical region. Among such alternative processes, the Low Shaft Furnace Process has got several attractive heights which widens the choice of raw materials and allows utilization of furnace gas of high thermal value.