Method for reducing iron oxides and for melting iron and installations therefor

An apparatus for producing liquid pig iron, comprising:

• an iron oxide reducing furnace;
• a melting furnace positioned to receive and melt iron oxides reduced in said reducing furnace;
• at least one supply pipe connecting said reducing furnace and said melting furnace such that a mixture of metallized iron may be transferred from said reducing furnace to said melting furnace;
• and
• at least one regulating flap valve provided in said at least one supply pipe, said at least one regulating flap valve being configured to allow sufficiently large accumulation of a mass of the mixture of metallized iron and to pour the mixture of metallized iron such that the mixture of metallized iron sufficiently penetrates the pig iron in a molten phase.

A method for producing liquid pig iron, comprising the steps of:

• providing at least one supply pipe connecting a reducing furnace and a melting furnace and having a plurality of regulatory flap valves configured to accumulate a mass of reduced iron oxides from a first reduction stage sufficiently large in the at least one supply pipe at a sufficient height such that the mass of the reduced iron oxides penetrates into liquid pig iron in the melting furnace forcefully when poured into the liquid pig iron in the melting furnace;
• reducing iron oxides to produce reduced iron oxides in the reducing furnace;
• accumulating the reduced iron oxides from the first reduction stage into the mass sufficiently large at the sufficient height in the at least one supply pipe;
• pouring the mass of the reduced iron oxides from the first reduction stage into the melting furnace to penetrate the liquid pig iron in the melting furnace forcefully;
• and
• melting the reduced iron oxides from the first reduction stage in the liquid pig iron in the melting furnace.