New experiment to unlock secrets of manganese ore

Researchers have proposed a new experiment to answer questions about the properties of manganese ore mined in South Africa. Researchers have proposed a new experiment to find out which furnace conditions might reduce the breakdown of manganese during steel production.

An important step in steel production is to separate manganese from its ore by heating it in an electric-arc furnace. Unfortunately, during such heating manganese tends to decrepitate, or break down into dust, which can make the process inefficient and potentially explosive, due to a build up of gas.

This study proposes a new experimental method to see what conditions can reduce manganese ore decrepitation. The researchers propose to test this by using a rotary kiln, a kind of rotating furnace, to preheat the ore before it is processed in an electric-arc furnace.

The researchers will use ores from the Kalahari manganese fields of South Africa, and test how they decrepitate in a laboratory using a small rotary kiln. The study will test the level of decrepitation against different levels of rotation speed, temperature, speed of heating, the particle size of the ores, and the chemical composition of the ores.

The researchers have already done a preliminary study to determine the potential of the proposed experiment to produce results. They found promising findings that showed that when different manganese ores are preheated they decrepitate at different rates depending on their chemical composition.

Number of words: 270

Abstract

The lack of knowledge regarding the mineralogical and metallurgical properties of Mn ores is a common problem in the production of ferromanganese alloys. Decrepitation, which is the breakage of solid particles upon heating, is an important quality parameter of manganese ores which has not been adequately studied. This work will study the effect of different parameters on the decrepitation index when the ores are preheated in a rotary kiln. These parameters are the rotational speed, heating rate, temperature, and mineralogical composition. Three South African ores, two from the same mine, will be used for this study. The purpose of the paper is to report on method development.

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