Cold-agglomerated briquettes as alternative of ferrous burden for blast furnaces

The key factor in reducing CO 2 emissions in the steel industry depends on decreasing fossil fuel consumption in reduction reactors, whether through process optimization or the adoption of disruptive technologies, such as the use of hydrogen and new methods for obtaining primary iron.In this context, cold-agglomerated briquettes stand out as a sustainable alternative, as they require less fossil energy to be produced and exhibit suitable properties for use in blast furnaces.The binder technology developed allow the production of a material with physical, chemical, and metallurgical characteristics compatible with the requirements of these reactors, after curing at low temperatures.This technology has been proven through industrial tests in blast furnaces of various sizes.This paper presents the evaluation of two types of cold-agglomerated iron ore briquettes: one to replace acid pellets and another, with appropriate proportions of CaO and MgO, designed to replace semi-fluxed pellets and sinter.The latter has unique high temperatures properties compatible to high-performance ferrous burden with potential to decrease CO 2 emissions by up to 10% in hot metal production.