Starting a smelting process
AssigneeTechnological Resources Pty. Limited
InventorsJacques Pilote, Rodney James Dry, Hendrikus Koenraad Albertus Meijer
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Abstract
A method of starting a molten-bath based melting process includes establishing a sufficiently large and stable “hot zone” for ignition of oxygen and coal in a main chamber of a smelting vessel by independent means, i.e. independently of and before supplying cold oxygen and coal into the main chamber.
Claims21
A method of starting a molten-bath based process for smelting a metalliferous feed material to form a molten metal in a smelting apparatus, with the apparatus including a smelting vessel that includes a main chamber that contains frozen materials and a bath of molten metal, and with the method including the steps of:
- (a) inserting an external ignition source into the main chamber of the smelting vessel to form a hot zone in the main chamber;
- (b) commencing supplying a cold oxygen-containing gas into the main chamber and igniting combustible material in the main chamber,
- (c) commencing supplying a carbonaceous material into the main chamber and increasing the temperature in the main chamber and melting the frozen materials in the main chamber, and
- (d) commencing supplying metalliferous material into the main chamber and smelting the metalliferous material and producing molten metal in the main chamber.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.