[pt] Um dos maiores problemas encontrados na indústria mineral é a perda de material ultrafino em processos convencionais de separação. A operação de floculação seletiva vem sendo estudada para a recuperação destes materiais. Por outro lado, o uso de biossurfactantes no processamento mineral, extraídos de microrganismos, vem apresentando bons resultados para a recuperação deste tipo de material, além de serem biodegradáveis e possuírem baixa toxicidade. Nesta pesquisa, tem-se como objetivo o estudo da floculação seletiva de partículas ultrafinas de hematita contidas em rejeito de minério de ferro usando o biossurfactante extraído da levedura Cândida stellata. Foi realizado um estudo de caracterização envolvendo análise granulométrica, análise química e difração raio-X (DRX). Para avaliar a interação do biossurfactante na superfície dos minerais de hematita e quartzo, foram desenvolvidos estudos de espectroscopia de infravermelho com transformada de Fourier (FTIR), potencial Zeta, microscopia eletrônica de varredura (MEV) e tensão superficial. Para os testes de floculação, realizados por jar test – teste de proveta, avaliou-se a influência do pH, concentração de sólidos e concentração de biossurfactante. A energia de interação foi avaliada através das teorias DLVO e DLVO Estendida (X-DLVO). As análises de espectroscopia no infravermelho (FTIR) e potencial zeta indicaram uma forte adsorção do biossurfactante na superfície da hematita, sendo que o ponto isoelétrico da hematita foi alterado de 5,35 para 3,25. No estudo de tensão superficial do biossurfactante indicou uma concentração micelar crítica (CMC) de 150 mg/L em pH 3, alcançando um valor próximo de 30 mN/m. Durante os ensaios de floculação foi alcançada uma recuperação de 99 por cento de hematita em pH 3, usando 75 mg/L de biossurfactante e uma concentração de sólidos de 0,50 por cento (1,25 g/500 mL). Pelo estudo da energia de interação entre as partículas, devido ao sinal negativo das interações de ácido-base de Lewis, as partículas de hematita flocularam após o contato com o biossurfactante, indicando que houve uma forte interação hidrofóbica entre elas. Os resultados obtidos neste trabalho indicam que o biossurfactante extraído da levedura Cândida stellata possui uma boa seletividade para a aglomeração das partículas ultrafinas de hematita. / [en] One of the biggest problems encountered in the mineral industry is the loss of ultrafine material in conventional separation processes. The selective flocculation operation has been studied to recover these materials. On the other hand, the use of biosurfactants in mineral processing, extracted from microorganisms, has been showing good results for the recovery of this type of material, in addition to being biodegradable and having low toxicity. In this research, the objective is to study the selective flocculation of ultrafine hematite particles contained in iron ore tailings using the biosurfactant extracted from the yeast Candida stellata. A characterization study was carried out involving particle size analysis, chemical analysis and X-ray diffraction (XRD). In order to evaluate the interaction of the biosurfactant on the surface of hematite and quartz minerals, studies of Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), Zeta potential, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and surface tension were developed. For the flocculation tests, performed by jar test, the influence of pH, solids concentration and biosurfactant concentration was evaluated. The interaction energy was evaluated using the DLVO and DLVO Extended (X-DLVO) theories. The infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and zeta potential analyzes indicated a strong adsorption of the biosurfactant on the hematite surface, with the hematite isoelectric point being changed from 5,35 to 3,25. In the surface tension study of the biosurfactant, it indicated a critical micellar concentration (CMC) of 150 mg/L at pH 3, reaching a value close to 30 mN/m. During the flocculation tests, a recovery of 99 percent of hematite at pH 3 was achieved, using 75 mg/L of biosurfactant and a solids concentration of 0,50 percent (1,25 g). By studying the interaction energy between the particles, due to the negative sign of the Lewis acid-base interactions, the hematite particles flocculated after contact with the biosurfactant, indicating that there was a strong hydrophobic interaction between them. The results obtained in this work indicate that the biosurfactant extracted from the yeast Candida stellata has a good selectivity for the agglomeration of ultrafine hematite particles.

Image segmentation through neural networks and deep learning have, in the recent decade, become a successful tool for automated decision-making. For Luossavaara-Kiirunavaara Aktiebolag (LKAB), this means identifying the amount of slag inside a furnace through computer vision.  There are many prominent convolutional neural network architectures in the literature, and this thesis explores two: a modified U-Net and the PSPNet. The architectures were combined with three loss functions and three class weighting schemes resulting in 18 model configurations that were evaluated and compared. This thesis also explores transfer learning techniques for neural networks tasked with identifying slag in images from inside a furnace. The benefit of transfer learning is that the network can learn to find features from already labeled data of another context. Finally, the thesis explored how temporal information could be utilised by adding an LSTM layer to a model taking pairs of images as input, instead of one. The results show (1) that the PSPNet outperformed the U-Net for all tested configurations in all relevant metrics, (2) that the model is able to find more complex features while converging quicker by using transfer learning, and (3) that utilising temporal information reduced the variance of the predictions, and that the modified PSPNet using an LSTM layer showed promise in handling images with outlying characteristics.

We are facing an important challenge, to reduce the greenhouse gas emissions to make sure that we limit global warming to 2 °C, preferably 1.5 °C. Drastic changes and developing new methods may be our only chance to keep global warming under 1.5 °C. The steel production in Sweden today accounts for 10% of the CO2 emission. The joint venture HYBRIT (Hydrogen Breakthrough Ironmaking Technology), between SSAB, LKAB and Vattenfall, aims to reduce the CO2 emission by developing a method that reduces iron ore pellets with hydrogen gas, leaving only water as off-gas. From simple thermodynamic calculations, it is evident that the reduction of iron ore using hydrogen gas is an endothermic reaction, requiring heat. Based on the calculated energy requirement, the temperature at the center of the pellet should not be the same as the temperature at the surface of the pellet but instead, decrease as the reduction reaction takes place. This report presents the temperature profile at the surface and in the center of a hematite pellet during hydrogen reduction at temperatures of 600 °C, 700 °C, 800 °C and 900 °C. Ideally, the results can be implemented in a model to better simulate the reduction reaction taking place inside a hematite pellet. The experiment consists of three sub-experiments, the first measures the temperature profile of the unreduced iron ore pellet in an argon gas atmosphere, secondly, the temperature profile and mass loss are measured during reduction, lastly, the temperature profile is measured for the reduced pellet in a hydrogen atmosphere. The mass loss measured during hydrogen reduction is used to calculate the degree of reduction. The results show that the reaction rate increases with increasing temperature and concentration of H2. Additionally, a higher reduction temperature gives the largest temperature decrease inside the pellet during reduction. At 900 °C, the temperature decrease is equal to 39 °C and at 600 °C, it is equal to 3 °C. The results prove that after a certain initial stage, gas diffusion and heat conduction through the product layers play important roles in controlling the reaction rate. There is even a period where a plateau of the reduction is observed, the reaction is mostly controlled by heat transfer. / Idag står vi inför en viktig utmaning, att minska utsläppen av växthusgaser och se till så att vi inte överskrider 2 °C uppvärmning, helst inte 1.5 °C. För att klara detta krävs drastiska förändringar och utvecklingar av nya metoder kan vara vår enda chans att uppnå 1.5-gradersmålet. Ståltillverkningen i Sverige idag står för 10% av CO2 utsläppen och för att bidra till att minska utsläppen av CO2 har företaget HYBRIT, vilket står för Hydrogen Brakethrough Ironmaking Technology, skapats. HYBRIT är en joint venture mellan SSAB, LKAB och Vattenfall som tillsammans vill skapa stål på ett mer miljövänligt sätt. Processen går ut på att reducera järnmalmspellets med hjälp av vätgas för att producera järnsvamp och ge ifrån sig vatten som avgas. Från enkla termodynamiska beräkningar är det lätt att inse att reduktionen med hjälp av vätgas är en endoterm process, som kräver energi. Det är genom denna kunskap som en kan föreställa sig att reduktionen av järnmalmspellets med hjälp av vätgas kommer bidra till en temperaturminskning. I denna rapport har temperaturprofilen inne i och på ytan av en hematitpellet mätts under tiden som den blivit reducerad med vätgas. Idealt kan resultaten implementeras i en modell för att bättre simulera reduktionsreaktionen som äger rum i en hematitpellets. Fyra olika reduktionstemperaturer har undersökts: 600 °C, 700 °C, 800 °C och 900 °C. Experimenten består av tre del-experiment, först mäts temperaturprofilen av den oreducerad hematitpelletsen i en argonatmosfär, sedan mäts viktminskningen och temperaturprofilen av pelleten medan den reduceras i en vätgasatmosfär, slutligen mäts temperaturprofilen av den reducerade pelleten i en argonatmosfär. Viktminskningen under reduktionen används för att beräkna reduktionsgraden under reduktionsförloppet. Resultaten visade att reduktionshastigheten ökade med ökande temperatur och koncentration av H2. Ökad temperatur gav även den största temperaturminskningen inne i pelleten då den reducerats med vätgas. Vid 900 °C uppmätes en temperaturminskning på 39 °C, varav reduktion vid 600 °C gav en temperaturminskning på 3 °C. Resultaten visar att efter en viss tids reduktion, spelar gasdiffusionen och värmeledningen genom produktlagret en viktig roll och är det som begränsar reduktions-hastigheten. Fortsatt, då hematitpelleten reducerades uppstod en platå där temperaturen var konstant och reaktionen till största delen var begränsad av värmeledningen genom produktlagret.

No description available.

No abstract provided. / Thesis / Master of Engineering (MEngr) / Scope and contents: This thesis describes the behaviour of iron ore-water suspensions under turbulent flow conditions. This work is divided into two parts. Part I deals with the regimes of transport under steady state flow conditions in circular and horizontal ducts. The heterogeneous flow regime is extensively analyzed; a sequential discrimination of models with an oriented design of experiments have permitted the determination of the best model to correlate hydraulic gradients for these suspensions. A critical discussion on the limit deposit conditions is also included. Part II describes the behaviour of clear water under oscillatory flow conditions. The study demonstrates that the quasi-steady state hypothesis, i.e., fully developed flow assumption, applied to pulsatile turbulent flow under the conditions studied. Observations on the behaviour of iron ore-water suspensions under pulsatile flow are also included. The experiments were carried out using a new air-pulsing technique.

Iron production accounts for substantial shares of global coal use and GHG emissions. LKAB is Europe’s largest iron company and Sweden’s fourth-largest emitter of GHGs. To reduce its emissions, LKAB might implement biomass in iron ore pelletisation. It is therefore important with information on how the biomass demand can be met and what the environmental implications may be, but available research focuses on contexts which are irrelevant for LKAB. This study aims to fill this knowledge gap by investigating the extent to which LKAB can replace coal with biomass in iron ore pelletisation by assessing the availability of biomass as well as its environmental and economic performance relative to coal.  The study includes slash, industrial residues, pellets, and willow. The biomass potential is assessed using statistics and calculations. The environmental performance is assessed based on an LCA combined with a qualitative sustainability assessment, covering land-use change (LUC), biodiversity, toxins, chemicals, eutrophication (toxic-chem-eut), and compliance with EU sustainability criteria. The economic performance is based on price statistics. In general, all assessed biomass sources can meet LKAB’s potential demand, but requires sourcing from different locations, at different prices, with different environmental impacts, and with different market effects. In northern Sweden (“Norrland”) slash is largely unused and has a very good potential to supply LKAB with biomass. Industrial residues have a good potential on the domestic level but lower potential regionally. The potential of domestically produced pellets is limited but the demand can be met by increased production or imports. Willow currently has a low potential, but there is good potential to increase domestic production. In general, the biomass fuels have substantially lower environmental impact than coal. The LCA indicates that slash and industrial residues have the lowest environmental impact, pellets has slightly higher, and willow has higher impact in most categories (also higher than coal in some categories, although lower in general). Slash, industrial residues, and pellets cause no impacts on LUC, biodiversity, and toxic-chem-eut. Industrial residues, pellets, and willow are compliant with EU sustainability criteria, but it is uncertain if slash complies due to a pending criteria revision. Willow has slightly positive impacts on biodiversity and toxic-chem-eut but slightly negative impacts on LUC. The cost for biomass relative to coal is uncertain due to price volatility. In 2020, coal had the lowest price, but its average price the past three years is twice the price for slash and industrial residues and on par with the price for pellets. If all fossil GHGs in iron production would be subjected to the EU emission trading scheme the economic competitiveness of biomass would increase. The study shows that increased use of biomass, both in LKAB and in general, can be achieved with reduced environmental impacts compared to coal. Future studies should map the effects of dynamic factors on environmental impact and costs, and quantify net environmental impacts, including spatial-specific changes. / <p>Betygsdatum 2023-07-07</p>

[pt] O presente trabalho tem como objetivo investigar a influência da substituição de frações de areia por rejeito de minério de ferro (RMF) no concreto. Estudaram-se a reatividade do rejeito com o cimento, as variações de porosidade, a trabalhabilidade e o efeito filler do material. Para isso uma série de ensaios químicos, físicos, mecânicos e térmicos foram conduzidos. O RMF foi caracterizado quanto à composição química, granulometria e massa específica. Constatou-se que o material é formado por sílica e hematita e possui massa específica muito próxima à da areia, embora seja uma ordem de grandeza mais fino. Para avaliar a reatividade do RMF confrontou-se os resultados de diversos experimentos. Foram realizados ensaios de compressão axial em pastas de cimento com substituição de 10 por cento, 20 por cento e 30 por cento de cimento por RMF, em diferentes idades. O RMF foi ensaiado quimicamente pelo método Chapelle modificado e o índice de atividade pozolânica foi determinado. Além disso, fragmentos de concreto com RMF, aos 28 e 90 dias, foram ensaiados por termogravimetria e os produtos de hidratação comparados à amostra de referência. O grau de cristalinidade do RMF foi determinado por difração de raios-X. Todas as evidências indicam que o material é inerte. O efeito do RMF na trabalhabilidade do concreto e da pasta de cimento foi avaliado por ensaio de abatimento (slump test) e espalhamento (flow table), respectivamente, e detectou-se um aumento da trabalhabilidade com o aumento da fração de RMF. A porosidade foi avaliada por ensaio de imersão em água no concreto com diferentes frações de RMF, e por ensaio de microtomografia computadorizada, na qual foi determinada a distribuição dos poros. De modo geral, detectou-se tendência de redução da porosidade com o acréscimo do RMF. A resistência mecânica do concreto foi avaliada para substituições de 10 por cento, 20 por cento e 30 por cento de areia por RMF e os resultados foram comparados à substituição das mesmas frações de areia por material inerte, na granulometria do RMF. O efeito filler causou um aumento da resistência, tendo o melhor resultado sido obtido com a fração de 20 por cento de RMF. Também foi avaliado o comportamento à flexão em prismas de concreto com adição de fibras de aço na fração de 30 kg/m cúbicos e 20 por cento de substituição de areia por RMF. Os resultados de cargas máximas, tensões residuais e tenacidade foram, em média, muito próximos nas amostras com RMF e de referência. / [en] The present work aims to investigate the influence of the replacement of sand fractions by iron ore tailings (IOT) on concrete. The reactivity of tailings in the presence of cement, the variation of porosity and workability, and the filler effect of the material were studied. For this purpose, a series of chemical, physical, mechanical and thermal tests were conducted. The IOT was characterized by its chemical composition, particle size and specific weight. It is found that the material is formed by silica and hematite and has a specific weight similar to that of sand, although its grains are ten times smaller. To evaluate the reactivity of the IOT, the results of several experiments were compared. Axial compression tests were performed on cement pastes with replacement of 10 percent, 20 percent and 30 percent cement by IOT at different ages. The IOT was chemically tested by the modified Chapelle test and the pozzolanic activity index was determined. In addition, IOT concrete fragments at 28 and 90 days were tested by thermogravimetry and the hydration products were compared to the reference sample. The degree of crystallinity of the IOT was determined by X-ray diffraction. All evidence indicates that the material is inert. The effect of IOT on the workability of concrete and cement paste was tested by slump test and flow table, respectively, and an increase in workability was detected by increasing the IOT fraction. Porosity was evaluated by the water immersion test on concretes with different IOT fractions, and by computed tomography, which determined the pore distribution. In general, a tendency to reduce porosity was observed as IOT fraction increased. The mechanical strength of the concrete was evaluated for 10 percent, 20 percent and 30 percent sand replacements by IOT and the results were compared to the replacement of the same sand fractions by inert material, in the IOT granulometry. The filler effect caused an increase in resistance, with the best result being the 20 percent IOT fraction. It was also evaluated the flexural behavior in prismatic concrete specimens with addition of steel fibers in the fraction of 30 kg/m cubic and 20 percent of sand substitution by IOT. The results of maximum loads, residual stresses and toughness were on average very similar in the IOT and reference samples.

The cut-off grade determines what rock mass are economic to mine. At the Dannemora mine, in eastern Bergslagen, Sweden, previously processed ore generated tailings (enrichment sand) with an iron content of 21-22 % that was backfilled into large open bodies (stopes) in the mine between 2013-2015. However, the tailings are now considered as ore reserves due to an upgraded processing plant that lowered the cut-off from 30 % Fe to 15 % Fe. Further, with the current lowered cut-off, Grängesberg Exploration Holding AB intends to restart production of iron ore in the Dannemora mine in new ore bodies. However, before starting full operation of excavating the ore bodies and extracting the large ore reserve of tailings, several challenges related to the rock stability need to be well assessed. The main goal of this project is therefore to investigate what would be the safest and most economical technique to extract the tailings that currently act as a stabilising rock mass against the side walls. Investigation of borehole data, drill cores, and geometric calculations, were conducted to characterise the stope host rocks in terms of risk for rock failure and leads to several statements. The results reveal that the host rock has a high strength (70-80 % RQD) and there is a low risk of spalling deformation at the extracted depths when the tailings will be removed. However, deformation as wedge failure could potentially occur when the stabilising tailings will be removed. Further, it is shown that the amount of tailings that can be extracted represent approximately more than one year of iron ore production in the mine. Analysis of the host rock shows that dilution of the tailings can be favourable if the caved wall rocks contain marble or skarn, with ore sections &gt; 15 % Fe. The workflow demonstrates that extraction of low diluted tailings should be done at sublevel 350 meters, before extraction of high diluted tailings at sublevel 442-446 meters. Backfilling must be done simultaneously in order to preserve the stability against the side walls as the tailings are removed. This project demonstrates that tailing extraction is possible, while maintaining the stability of the host rock. The workflow presented in this thesis could be used as an approach for similar mining operations aiming to extract backfilled material and once again process it. / En cut-off halt bestämmer vid vilken halt som en bergmassa innehållandes värdefulla metaller, blir ekonomiskt brytningsbar (malm). Vid Dannemoragruvan i östra Bergslagen, Sverige, har tidigare bearbetad malm bildat en icke värdefull restprodukt (anrikningssand), innehållandes en järnhalt om 21-22 %, som återfylldes i stora brytningsrum inuti gruvan mellan 2013-2015. Anrikningssanden har nu blivit ansett som malm igen då ett uppgraderat anrikningsverk sänkt cut-off halten från 30 % Fe, till 15 % Fe. Med den sänkta cut-off halten, undersöker Grängesberg Exploration Holding AB vidare hur en återstart av Dannemoragruvan, och utbrytning av ännu inte utbrutna malmkroppar, och uttag av den stora malmreserven av anrikningssanden, ska ske. Däremot måste flera utmaningar i form av bergstabilitet undersökas, innan uttaget av malmkropparna och den återfyllda anrikningssanden kan ske. Detta arbete siktar till att undersöka vilket tillvägagångsätt som skulle vara det säkraste och lönsammaste att extrahera anrikningssanden ifrån, då de agerar stabiliserande mot sidoväggarna i de stora brytningsrummen. Undersökning av borrhålsdata, borrkärnor, och geometriska beräkningar, utfördas för att karakterisera sidoberget till brytningsrummen för att förstå risken för bergdeformation. Resultaten visar på en stabil bergmassa (70-80 % RQD) med en liten risk för spjälkning (uppsprickning) vid de undersökta djupen. Risk för bergdeformation inträffar i stället som kilutfall när den stabiliserande anrikningssanden extraheras. Vidare beräknas det att ungefär mer än en årsproduktion av järnmalm kan extraheras i form av anrikningssand från de återfyllda brytningsrummen. Analys av sidoberget visar dessutom att utspädning av anrikningssanden genom blockutfall och uppsprickning, kan bli fördelaktigt om sidoberget innehåller marmor eller skarn med malmsektioner &gt; 15 % järn. Tillvägagångssättet för extrahering av anrikningssanden bör ske från djup 350 meter, innan den högre halten av utspädd anrikningssand extraheras från djup 442-446 meter. Återfyllning måste ske samtidigt för att bevara bergsstabiliteten mot sidoväggarna. Detta arbete visar att extrahering av anrikningssanden är möjligt, samtidigt som bergstabiliteten bevaras. Arbetsflödet skulle kunna användas som ett tillvägagångssätt för framtida gruvoperationer som söker att extrahera återfyllt material och åter anrika det.

Любое железорудное сырье представляет собой минеральную композицию железосодержащих фаз, состав, микроструктура и физико-механические свойства которой зависят от химического и фазового состава исходной шихты. Повышение качественных характеристик железорудных материалов является одним из наиболее эффективных способов улучшения технико-экономических показателей доменного процесса. Качество готовой продукции зависит от целого ряда технологических параметров, одним из которых является горячая прочность железорудного сырья. Сырье должно обладать высокой горячей прочностью и выдерживать без разрушения ряд фазовых превращений при восстановлении в доменной печи вплоть до отделения шлака от металла. Помимо этого, сырье должно обладать хорошей восстановимостью, то есть способностью легко отдавать кислород, связанный в оксиды газообразному восстановителю. Химический состав железорудного сырья оказывает существенное влияние на его восстановимость и горячую прочность. Поэтому управление химическим составом позволит подобрать оптимальный состав сырья для наилучших показателей плавки. Исследования горячей прочности сырья важны для существующего доменного процесса, так как образование мелочи во время восстановления негативно сказывается на газопроницаемости столба шихтовых материалов; более высокая восстановимость способствует сокращению времени пребывания железорудного сырья в доменной печи и росту доли косвенного восстановления окислов железа, что приведёт к снижению удельного расхода кокса; исследования в области восстановимости железорудного сырья способствуют развитию новых технологий и инноваций в металлургической отрасли, может привести к разработке новых методов восстановления и использования рудного сырья. / Any iron ore raw material is a mineral composition of iron-containing phases, the composition, microstructure and physico-mechanical properties of which depend on the chemical and phase composition of the initial charge. Improving the quality characteristics of iron ore materials is one of the most effective ways to improve the technical and economic performance of the blast furnace process. The quality of the finished product depends on a number of technological parameters, one of which is the hot strength of iron ore raw materials. The raw material must have high hot strength and withstand without destruction a number of phase transformations during reduction in a blast furnace up to the separation of slag from metal. In addition, the raw material must have good reducibility, that is, the ability to easily transfer oxygen bound into oxides to a gaseous reducing agent. The chemical composition of iron ore raw materials has a significant effect on its reducibility and hot strength. Therefore, chemical composition management will allow you to select the optimal composition of raw materials for the best melting performance. Studies of the hot strength of raw materials are important for the existing blast furnace process, since the formation of fines during recovery negatively affects the gas permeability of the column of charge materials; higher recoverability reduces the residence time of iron ore raw materials in the blast furnace and an increase in the proportion of indirect reduction of iron oxides, which will lead to a decrease in the specific consumption of coke; research in the field of recoverability of iron ore raw materials contributes to the development of new technologies and innovations in the metallurgical industry may lead to the development of new methods for the recovery and use of ore raw materials.

In the iron production processes, sinters and pellets are mostly used as raw materials due to their consistency with respect to physical and chemical properties. However, natural iron ores, as mined, are rarely used directly as a feed material for iron processing. This is mainly due to the fact that they have small contents of iron and high concentration of impurities. Moreover, they swell and disintegrate during the descent in the furnace as well as due to low melting and softening temperatures. This work involves an investigation of the parameters that influence the use of natural iron ores as a direct feed material for iron production. Furthermore, it points out ways in which these can be mitigated so as to increase their direct use in iron production. Natural iron ore from Muko deposits in south-western Uganda was used in this study. Initially, characterisation of the physical and chemical properties was performed, to understand the natural composition of the ore. In addition, investigations were done to study the low temperature strength of the ore and its behaviour in the direct reduction zone. Also, simulations were performed with three models using the experimental data from the direct reduction experiments in order to determine the best model for predicting the direct reduction kinetics of natural iron ores. Chemical analyses showed that the Muko ore represents a high grade of hematite with an Fe content of 68% on average. The gangue content (SiO2+Al2O3) in 5 of the 6 investigated iron ore samples was &lt; 4%, which is within the tolerable limits for the dominant iron production processes. The S and P contents were 0001-0.006% and 0.02-0.05% respectively. These can be reduced in the furnace without presenting major processing difficulties. With respect to the mechanical properties, the Muko ore was found to have a Tumble Index value of 88-93 wt%, an Abrasion Index value of 0.5-3.8 wt% and a Shatter Index value of 0.6-2.0 wt%. Therefore, the ore holds its form during the handling and charging processes. Under low temperature investigations, new parameters were discovered that influence the low temperature strength of iron oxides. It was discovered that the positioning of the samples in the reduction furnace together with the original weight (W0) of the samples, have a big influence on the low temperature strength of iron oxide. Higher mechanical degradation (MD) values were obtained in the top furnace reaction zone samples (3-25% at 500oC and 10-21% at 600oC). These were the samples that had the first contact with the reducing gas, as it was flowing through the furnace from top to bottom. Then, the MD values decreased till 5-16% at a 500oC temperature and 6-20% at a 600oC temperature in the middle and bottom reaction zones samples. It was found that the obtained difference between the MD values in the top and other zones can be more than 2 times, particularly at 500oC temperature. Furthermore, the MD values for samples with W0 &lt; 5 g varied from 7-21% well as they decreased to 5-10% on average for samples with W0 ≥ 5 g. Moreover, the MD values for samples taken from the top reaction zone were larger than those from the middle and bottom zones. During direct reduction of the ores in a H2 and CO gas mixture with a ratio of 1.5 and a constant temperature, the reduction degree (RD) increased with a decreased flow rate until an optimum value was established. The RD also increased when the flow rate was kept constant and the temperature increased. An optimum range of 3-4g was found for natural iron ores, within which the highest RD values that are realised for all reduction conditions. In addition, the mechanical stability is greatly enhanced at RD values &gt; 0.7. In the case of microstructure, it was observed that the original microstructure of the samples had no significant impact on the final RD value (only 2-4%). However, it significantly influenced the reduction rate and time of the DR process. The thermo-gravimetric data obtained from the reduction experiments was used to calculate the solid conversion rate. Three models: the Grain Model (GM), the Volumetric Model (VM) and the Random Pore Model (RPM), were used to estimate the reduction kinetics of natural iron ores. The random pore model (RPM) provided the best agreement with the obtained experimental results (r2 = 0.993-0.998). Furthermore, it gave a better prediction of the natural iron oxide conversion and thereby the reduction kinetics. The RPM model was used for the estimation of the effect of original microstructure and porosity of iron ore lumps on the parameters of the reduction process. / <p>QC 20130531</p> / Sustainable Technology Development in the Lake Victoria Region