Flash Ironmaking System Using Pulverized Coal Gasification
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current ironmaking technologies, such as blast furnaces, are inefficient, energy-intensive, and environmentally harmful due to the need for sintering and coke usage, leading to high costs and pollution.
Innovation Solution
A flash ironmaking system that includes a pulverized coal gasifier, a drying pre-reduction kiln, and a flash furnace, where pulverized coal is mixed with oxygen and steam to produce crude coal gas, which is then used to pre-reduce iron ore, resulting in a more efficient process with reduced environmental impact through heat recovery and dust removal.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If traditional blast furnace ironmaking is used, then iron production can be achieved, but the process requires sintering and coke usage leading to long process duration, low efficiency, high energy consumption, and environmental pollution
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by pre-reducing iron ore in a drying pre-reduction kiln before charging it into the flash furnace. This pre-treatment prepares the iron ore in advance, reducing the complexity and duration of the main ironmaking process in the flash furnace, thereby improving overall productivity while shortening total process time.
Solution Approach 2:
The ironmaking process is segmented into distinct stages: a drying pre-reduction kiln for preliminary treatment and a flash furnace for final reduction. This segmentation allows each unit to specialize in specific tasks, improving efficiency of individual stages and enabling parallel operations, thus reducing overall process duration while maintaining high productivity.
2Productivity
If traditional blast furnace ironmaking is used, then iron production can be achieved, but energy consumption is high
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes key process parameters by using pulverized coal injection with oxygen enrichment in the flash furnace, replacing traditional coke-based reduction. This parameter change enables more efficient combustion and reduction reactions, significantly reducing energy consumption while maintaining or improving ironmaking productivity compared to traditional blast furnace methods.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the mechanical/chemical process of coke combustion and indirect reduction in blast furnaces with a direct injection system where pulverized coal is injected with oxygen and steam to generate crude coal gas in-situ for immediate reduction. This substitution eliminates the need for separate sintering and coke making processes, reducing overall energy consumption while improving efficiency.
3Productivity
If traditional blast furnace ironmaking is used, then iron production can be achieved, but investment cost and equipment cost are high
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and eliminates the complex sintering plant and coke making facilities from the traditional blast furnace system. By using pulverized coal directly in the flash furnace with oxygen injection, the system removes unnecessary equipment, reducing capital investment and equipment costs while maintaining high ironmaking productivity through the simplified direct reduction process.
4Productivity
If traditional blast furnace ironmaking is used, then iron production can be achieved, but environmental pollution is severe
Solution Approach 1:
The patent converts potentially harmful emissions into beneficial products by using oxygen-enriched combustion of pulverized coal to generate crude coal gas containing carbon monoxide and hydrogen. These gases, which would normally be pollutants, are utilized as reducing agents in the flash furnace. The process also incorporates dust collection equipment to capture and reuse particulate matter, transforming environmental hazards into useful resources while improving productivity.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The flash ironmaking system significantly improves efficiency, lowers equipment costs, and reduces environmental pollution by enhancing thermal energy utilization and waste heat recovery, while producing clean iron with lower energy consumption.
Implementation Method 1
mixing pulverized coal, pure oxygen and steam to obtain a crude coal gas containing carbon monoxide and hydrogen
Implementation Method 2
pulverized coal gasifier defining a material inlet and a coal gas outlet, and configured to mix pulverized coal, pure oxygen and steam to obtain a crude coal gas
Implementation Method 3
drying pre-reduction kiln defining a wet iron ore inlet, a block coal inlet and a charging material outlet, and configured to dry and pre-reduce wet iron ore and block coal
Implementation Method 4
drying and pre-reducing wet iron ore and block coal to obtain pre-reduced iron ore
Implementation Method 5
feed the pre-reduced iron ore, the crude coal gas and a fuel containing pure oxygen and pea coal to the reduction furnace chamber to obtain metal iron and a flue gas
Implementation Method 6
a heat recovery boiler connected to an upper end of the flue and configured to recover heat of a flue gas discharged from the flue
Data Source
AI summary
A flash ironmaking system and a flash ironmaking method are provided. The flash ironmaking system includes a pulverized coal gasifier; a drying pre-reduction kiln; and a flash furnace having a horizontal bottom in which a molten iron layer region, a slag layer region and a carburizing bed layer region are sequentially formed, a reduction tower, a concentrate nozzle, and a flue.