REDUCED IRON MANUFACTURING METHOD AND APPARATUS

摘要

A material mixture in which pulverized iron oxide and a pulverized solid reducer are mixed with each other is put as it is in a powdery state into a reducing furnace to form a bed of a substantially uniform thickness. The bed is compressed in some cases, and the iron oxide is reduced at high temperature maintaining the temperature in the reducing furnace at not lower than 1100 DEG C. Since the material mixture has not to be lumped, for example, pelletized, the reduced iron manufacturing cost can be lowered. This method can be easily executed by the reduced iron manufacturing apparatus of the invention. A high-quality hot metal can be manufactured by charging high-temperature reduced iron obtained by this method into a vertical furnace or a smelting melt-reducing furnace, and melting the same with a high thermal efficiency.