Method for producing metallic iron

Abstract

A method for producing metallic iron with a low phosphorus concentration from a raw material containing iron oxide and phosphorus as ingredients is disclosed. The method includes a high-temperature reduction step of heating a raw material containing oxide that includes iron oxide and phosphorus, as ingredients, under a reducing gas atmosphere to generate metallic iron resulting from reduction of the iron oxide and a slag phase formed of an unreduced portion of the oxide, and to cause the slag phase to contain the phosphorus. It is preferable that the raw material be iron ore, or ingredient-adjusting-material-added iron ore obtained by adding and mixing an ingredient-adjusting material into iron ore, the basicity of the raw material be 4.0 or less, and a crushing and separation process or a heating and melting process be applied to the mixture subjected to the reduction treatment.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.