CDE bags $1million repeat order from Adhunik Metaliks for iron ore washing plant

After the success of the first CDE installation at their Rourkela plant, Adhunik Metaliks - one of India's largest steel producers has placed a repeat order for their Jamshedpur plant. This order is a result of the impressive results in reduced Alumina and Silica levels and a higher Fe content achieved in their ore through CDE's Iron Ore Washing plant. The washing plant installed at Adhunik's Rourkela plant, has successfully washed about 2 Lakh tons of low grade ore and this washed ore has been effectively utilised for their DRI & Sinter plant. Utilisation of low grade ore by applying the washing process significantly helped Adhunik in sourcing the Iron Ore from various mines in Barbil-Joda, Koira region which was otherwise dependant on very few mines who could provide the required high grade ore for their Kilns. Moreover, feeding of washed ore with comparatively less Alumina, Silica ensures better productivity and improved campaign life in their kiln.

In India, iron ore is loaded with contaminants like silica, alumina and clay. This reduces the overall Fe value of the material which is a barrier to the cost effective use of this material in steel production. In any steel making process, be it sponge iron production, blast furnaces, sinter plants or pelletisation plants, there is a requirement to achieve a high Fe grade value and low values for unwanted contaminants within the feed material.

Steel producers generally look for Fe values of 62% in the ore feed to allow for cost effective processing. This is where the CDE ore washing system can be crucial in achieving these levels.  

The CDE washing process involves the removal of contaminants from the iron ore particles. Our research on various feed materials has shown that the highest levels of contaminants exist in the finest particle sizes and these contaminants are of a much lower density than the target product. By efficiently removing the -60 micron material a high level of silica, alumina and clay can be removed and a significantly higher Fe value as a percentage of the total feed can be achieved.

The presence of contaminants has a negative effect on the steel production process as they are a direct cause of high production costs.

*           Low Fe value in the ore feed means higher quantities of the ore feed in order to produce the amount of ore oxide required, which takes up space in the plant, thus increasing production costs

*           Silica requires extremely high temperatures in order for it to be burned off. Therefore, the more silica that exists in the raw material, the more energy is used in producing the ore oxide.

*           Alumina creates waste build up inside the plants. The resulting cleaning and maintenance of the plant is another very expensive process.

Reducing the presence of these contaminants in the feed material makes the processing of the iron ore more viable as a result of the cost reduction that is a direct result of washing. The reduction of contaminant levels within the feed can often be overlooked as people focus solely on the increase in Fe value that washing can bring. The reduction in the level of contaminants within the feed has a direct positive impact on the Fe grade of the material.

This process has been proven on a number of ore washing installations throughout India and we have delivered increases in the Fe value from 54% to 62%, which brings considerable efficiencies in steel production. This process offers significant advantages not only for steel producers, but also for those involved in the trading of iron ore on the world market as the commercial value of the ore is substantially increased as a result of the increase in Fe value.

The nature of the iron ore varies extensively in different regions of the country. Therefore, in order for a system to be successful, it has to take into account these individual variations and build the system accordingly.

This is the only way to ensure best possible results from the processing system. The main difference between the CDE ore washing systems and the systems offered by others to process iron ore is that the CDE system has been specifically developed to tackle the individual characteristics of the feed material with a focus on achievement of the required results. The other available systems have been designed for applications which are vastly different from iron ore processing and will therefore fail to deliver the required results. Furthermore, the CDE system can be installed quickly, in very less space for a considerably small investment. CDE provides an individual approach to the specific requirements of the market to ensure optimum performance, based on the aims and objectives of the system.

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