Influence of Temperature and Holding Time on Number and Size of Metal Particles During Solid-Phase Reduction of Iron by Carbon

There is a lack of complete understanding of the mechanism and kinetics of reduction of metals from oxides. This paper presents results and methods of a series of experiments on direct reduction of metals by solid carbon in the form of graphite from a complex oxide with a low iron content in a laboratory muffle furnace at temperatures of 1300, 1400, 1500, 1600 °C and holding time of 1, 3, 5, 7 hours. The statistical analysis of amount and average size of reduced iron particles inside the oxide was studied. Dependence of amount and average size of the reduced iron particles on temperature and time of reduction is presented. The phenomena of iron crystals’ growth, occurring as a result of changes in the crystal lattice of oxide, was studied under experimental conditions. The influence of temperature and holding time on iron particles’ nucleation and their growth in the crystal lattice of a complex oxide were compared. Investigation of mechanism of metals’ reduction from complex oxides and influence of experimental conditions on the nucleation and growth enables to identify new patterns in the process of reduction of metals from their oxides, in general.