International Journal of Mineral Processing, 34 (1992) 149-159 149

Elsevier Science Publishers B.V., Amsterdam

Investigation on cold bonded pelletization of iron

ore fines using Indian slag-cement

D.K. Dutta a, D. BordoloP, S. Gupta a'l, P.C. Borthakura, T.M. Srinivasan b and
J.B. P a t i l b
alnorganic Chemistry Division, Regional Research Laboratory, CSIR, Jorhat 785 006, Assam, India
bResearch and Development Centre for Iron and Steel, Steel Authority of India Limited,
Ranchi 834 002, India
(Received December 3, 1990; accepted after revision March 26, 1991 )

ABSTRACT

Dutta, D.K., Bordoloi, D., Gupta, S., Borthakur, P.C., Srinivasan, T.M. and Patil, J.B., 1992. Inves-
tigation on cold bonded pelletization of iron ore fines using Indian slag-cement. Int. J. Miner. Pro-
cess., 34: 149-159.

Cold bonded pelletization of iron ore fines using ordinary portland cement binder is emerging as a
potential energy saving agglomeration process for proper utilization of Indian iron ore fines. The
possibility of substituting ordinary portland cement/clinker by cheaper low grade Indian granulated
blast furnace slag is investigated.
The strength development characteristics of pellets containing slag-clinker is similar to those con-
taining clinker as the binder. Around 50% of the ordinary portland cement required for making pellets
of desired properties can be stubstituted by slag. The crushing strength of the pellets is found to in-
crease with increase of diameter of the pellets. The green pellets on normal curing for 5-7 days de-
velop crushing strength of 60-90 kg/pellet which enhances to 125-175 kg/pellet or 140-220 kg/pei-
let, respectively on prolonging the normal curing to 28 days or subjecting to heat/steam treatment for
a few hours. Slag-clinkercontaining pellets are slightly less basic but are more reducible than those of
clinker containing pellets.

INTRODUCTION

In many industrial processes agglomeration of fines is essential for conser-

vation of resources and abatement of pollution. The iron and steel industries
in India are vitally concerned with agglomeration of iron ore fines. Indian
iron ores are relatively soft and friable; during mining and sizing processes
around 30-40% fines (particles below 8 mm size) are generated. The ore
washing plants also generate around 5 million tonnes of slimes per year. Be-
sides, there are huge deposits of naturally occurring iron ore fines (blue dust )

~Present address: Refractory Division, Central Glass and Ceramic Research Institute, Calcutta
700 032, India.

0301-7516/92/$05.00 © 1992 Elsevier Science Publishers B.V. All fights reserved.

JS(l ) K [~t [ i ~J I -~,I

with iron content of 55-65%. These fines and superfines arc not usuall.~ suit-
able for agglomeration through sintering.
Heat indurated pelletization on the other hand requires 80-85% fines be-
low 75/~m size and temperature of 1200 ~-1350 ° C. The heat requirement for
this process is considerably high; for hematite fines it amounts to around 10~'
kJ/tonne of pellets (Mayer, 1980). In the context of scarcity of fuel and its
rising cost, efforts are being continued worldwide to develop alternate energy
saving agglomeration process.
Several energy saving agglomeration processes have been developed. RRL-
Jorhat process (Iyengar et al., 1968 ), Grang cold process (Svensson, 1969 ),
and some other processes (Lotosh, 1973; Lotosh and Efimov, 1973)) are
based on the use of ordinary portland cement (OPC) as binder. Other pro-
cesses (Goksel, 1977; Hassler and Kihlstadt, 1977) are based on in situ for-
mation of binders like calcium-silicate-hydrate by the reaction of lime and
silica or other siliceous materials under hydrothermal condition. Formation
of calcium carbonate by the reaction between lime and carbondioxide is also
utilized for agglomeration of ore-fines (Imperato, 1968 ).
Pellets prepared by Grang cold process are found suitable as burden mate-
rial for blast furnace (Svensson, 1969). Research and Development Centre
for Iron and Steel, Steel Authority of India Limited, established the cement
(OPC) bonded iron ore pellets as suitable burden material for low and mod-
erate shaft furnace (Minerals and Metals Review, 1981 ). The pellets were
prepared by using around 9-10% cement followed by curing under normal
humid condition for about 28 days to attain crushing strength of around
130-160 kg/pellet. Pellets for use in conventional blast furnace may require
strength of 200 kg/pellet or more.
Use of comparatively cheap materials like slag-cement in place of OPC may
bring economical advantage in pellet making. India produces huge quantity
of blast furnace slag but only a fraction of the same is utilized for making slag-
cement. The slags are poorer in quality; low in lime (26-38%) and rich in
alumina (20-30%). Although poorer in quality, the slags could be activated
to make various cementitious binders (Dutta and Borthakur, 1990). Prelim-
inary investigation carried out earlier (Durra et al., 1986) indicated that
around 50% of the OPC requirement for pellet making could be substituted
by slag to obtain pellets of adequate crushing strength.
The present work discusses in detail the different aspects of cold bonded
pelletization of a typical Indian blue dust sample using various slag-clinker
binder. The physico-metallurgical properties of the pellets are also discussed.

EXPERIMENTAL

Run of mine sample of blue dust, ordinary portland cement clinker (clinker)
and granulated blast furnace slag (slag) were produced from Gua Mines,
COLD BONDED PELLETIZATIONOF IRON ORE FINES 151

M/S Orissa Cement Corporation and Rourkela Steel Plant, India respec-
tively. The chemical analysis of these raw materials performed by following
standard procedure are presented in Table 1. The clinker and the slag samples
were ground separately in a laboratory ball mill (5 kg capacity) to Blaine's
surface area of 3830 and 4200 cm 2 g-~ (determined by air permeability
method) respectively. The glass content i.e. 95% of the slag (determined by
polarising microscope) was considered to show good activity (Smolczyk,
1980).
Binders containing slag and clinker in the proportions of 1 : 1, 2:3 and 3: 2
were prepared. The cementitious properties like consistency, setting time, ex-
pansion and compressive strength were determined (Dutta et al., 1989) and
found to satisfy the Indian Standard (1976). The compressive strength de-
velopment of mortar cubes prepared using the binders with curing period are
presented in Fig. 1.
The blue dust sample was screened to + 2 mm, - 2 mm + 500 gm, - 500
#m + 75/tm and - 7 5 ~m size fractions. The + 2 m m fraction was ground to
pass through 75/~m sieve. Optimum granulometry was then determined by
the following procedure: 100 g of a mix containing different amount of
- 2 mm + 500/tm, - 500/~m + 75/~m and - 75/~m fractions was put into a
100 ml measuring cylinder and the mix was then carefully compacted without
disturbing the homogeneity by giving 150 number of mild stroke on a soft
base. The compaction density values (g m l - ~) determined for different mix
are presented in a triangular diagram (Fig. 2 ). Particle size distribution in
the range of 10-40% - 2 mm + 5 0 0 / ~ m , 20-80% - 5 0 0 / t m + 7 5 / z m and
20-50% - 75/tm possessing higher compaction density (2.19-2.38 g m l - 1)
was considered as the optimum granulometry. In the present work, a mix pos-
sessing compaction density value of about 2.20 g m l - 1 was used. The particle
size distribution of the mix is presented in Table 2.

TABLE1

Chemical composition o f raw materials

Constituents Blue dust Clinker Slag

(~t.%)
SiO2 7.51 21.40 34.10
A1203 2.52 4.55 27.30
Fe203 86.50 3.42 1.35
CaO 0.52 61.40 26.20
MgO - 3.57 6.50
MnO - - 1.96
SO3 - - 0.13
LOI l 1.20 1.80 -
Basicity ( C a O / S i O 2 ) - 2.86 0.77

~Loss on ignition.
152 D.K.I)I ] I%1 I AI.

500 jj-~
u

I
400
z

300

200
o.
z
/
o •",-SLAG:CLINKER(;':3)
lOO o-SLAG: CLINKER(1:1)
o-SLAG: CLINKER(3:2)

; ; 2;
CURING PERIOD(days)
Fig. 1. Compressive strength of mortar cubes of different slag-clinker compositions.

COARSE
(-2mm+500~)
I00

20 1 0 ~ 8 0

6 0 ~ O t , o
70~ 30

90~ 10
I 0 0 ~ ~ ,00
MEDIUM FINE
(-500AL+ 75gt) (-75 ~)

Fig. 2. Compaction density values of ore mix at different granuiometry.

Preparation of pellets and evaluation

The pellets were prepared in a disc pelletizer (diameter 75 cm, collar height
25 cm, angle of inclination 45 ° and rpm 36) using 88-90% ore mix, 10-12%
COLD BONDED PELLETIZATIONOF IRON ORE FINES 153

TABLE 2

Particle size distribution of the ore mix

Size range Weight Cumulative

(,um) (%) oversize
(%)
+ 2000 0.0 0.00
- 2 0 0 0 + 1700 !.48 1.48
- 1700+ 1400 i.05 2.53
- 1400+ 1000 4.23 6.76
- 1000+ 500 10.98 17.74
- 5 0 0 + 300 15.10 32.84
-300+ 180 !1.93 44.77
- 1 8 0 + 106 16.80 61.57
-106 + 75 5.65 67.22
-75+ 45 16.68 83.90
-45 16.10

cementitious binder and 8-9.5% water (with respect to dry weight of the raw
mix). The green pellets in the size range of 12-20 m m were screened out and
used in the present study.
The curing of the green pellets was carried out under ( 1 ) humid condition
at room temperature (20 °-30 ° C ) (normal curing), and/or (2) accelerated
curing condition - heating in the temperature range of 80°-200°C, and/or
(3) steam curing at 95 °-100 °C followed by drying.
The moisture content and drop strength (from 46 cm height on a steel plate)
of the green pellets as well as crushing strength, porosity and reducibility of
the cured pellets were determined by usual methods. The reducibility data are
expressed as percentage of oxygen removed.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

The properties of green pellets (diameter 16-19 m m ) prepared using var-

ious binders are presented in Table 3. The moisture content of the pellets
ranges between 8.3 and 9.2% and the drop strength lies in the range 3-5. The
crushing strength of the 1 day normal cured pellets is in the range 12-35
kg/pellet. In general, the higher the moisture content in the green pellets, the
higher is the 1 day strength. Crushing strength of I day normal cured pellets
increases with increase in binder content and is maximum in pellets contain-
ing 12% clinker. The strength of the pellets containing slag-clinker decreases
as the slag content in the binder increases. The presence of gypsum in the slag-
clinker composition (pellet No. 6 ) enhances the l day strength. This may be
attributed to the double activation of the slag; in addition ot the lime liber-
]34 i I K . t ) l ; I I "~[:i \ !

I.~BLE 3

('omposition and properties of green pellets

Pellel Binder Binder Moisture Drop (rushing strength ~ ( kg/pellet )

No. content content strength
(%) (% ) (average) Ave. Max. Min.

1, Clinker I0 - 18 20 I0
2. Slag:clinker 10 - - 12 15 10
(1:1)
3. Clinker 12 9.2 4 35 40 30
4. Slag:clinker 12 8.8 4 24 30 20
(2:3)
5. Slag:clinker 12 8.6 5 22 25 20
(1:1)
6. Slag: clinkerz 12 9.0 3 30 35 25
(1:1)
7. Slag: clinker 12 8.3 3 20 25 15
(3:2)
I Day normal cured pellets.

ZOO
2Clinker containing 3% gypsum (analytical grade ).

-I-

F~ ~oc

1,.9
Z
I
~T 3--o
~ NO

7-D
/.,- •

NORMAL CURING PERIOD (DAYS)

Fig. 3. Crushing strength characteristics o f pellets cured under normal condition.

ated during hydration, the added gypsum also activates the slag (Voinovitch,
1976).
The crushing strength development characteristics of the pellets (diameter
16-19 mm) under normal curing conditions are illustrated in Fig, 3. The
strength increases rapidly during the initial curing period and then the in-
crease is gradual. The trend of I day crushing strength development for pellets
prepared using different compositions of binders (except pellet No. 6 con-
C O L D B O N D E D P E L L E T I Z A T I O N O F I R O N O R E FI NES 155

taining gypsum) is also maintained at long curing period (28 days). For pel-
lets containing slag-clinker binders, the higher the clinker content the higher
is the crushing strength. This behaviour is parallel with the strength develop-
ment characteristics of mortar cubes prepared using different slag-clinker
compositions (Fig. 1 ). At intermediate stages of curing, the pellets containing
slag-clinker binder do not follow the same trend in respect of strength devel-
opment as those of mortar cubes. Possibly, the iron ore matrix has certain
influence on activation of the slag. The rate of strength development of the
pellets containing gypsum in the slag-clinker binder (pellet No. 6 ) is compar-
atively less than those containing slag-clinker alone as binder (pellet No. 5 ).
Presumably in the former pellets (pellet No. 6 ) the initially formed hydrated
products cover a certain fraction of the unhydrated binder and thus hinders
the rate of hydration.
The influence of curing conditions on strength development characteristics
of pellets (diameter 16-19 m m ) are presented in Fig. 4. The results indicate
that heat and steam treatments are kinetic factors for pellet hardening pro-
cess. The crushing strength of the 5-7 days normal cured pellets can be signif-
icantly raised by either heat or steam treatment for a few hours. The strength
thus achieved is even more than those of the 28 days normal cured pellets.
Steam curing is more effective on strength enhancement than heat treatment.
Pellets prepared even by using 10% binder on steam curing attain a strength

20C

-J

~oc
C9
Z

L~
Z

1 2 3 4 5 6

PELLET NUMBER

~NORMAL
CURING ~ CURING
ACCELERATED CURING
STEAM I
Fig. 4. Crushing strength characteristics of pellets under different curing conditions.
JS{~ D . K D!~| l ~ . E l - , \ l

of 140-160 kg/pellet in a period of 5-7 days. The effect of increasing clinker

content in pellets containing clinker alone as binder on strength enhancement
at various conditions is comparable. Increase of binder (clinker) from 10 to
12% enhances the strength by about 35-40 kg/pellet. The strength develop-
ment characteristics of pellets containing slag-clinker under heat/steam cur-
ing condition depends on the total binder content. Pellets prepared using 10%
slag-clinker ( 1 : 1 ratio ) show less strength than those containing clinker alone.
But pellets prepared by using 12% slag-clinker ( 1 : 1 ratio ) show higher strength
under heat/steam curing conditions than those containing clinker alone as
the binder. The reason for this difference in behaviour however is yet to be
found out. Pellets prepared using slag-clinker binder (12%) containing
40-50% slag on heat/steam curing attain crushing strength of 200 kg/pellet
or more but those containing 60% slag in the binder develop a strength of 190
kg/pellet. The influence of different curing conditions on strength develop-
ment is less pronounced in pellets containing gypsum in the slag-clinker binder.
The loss on ignition values of the pellets (Fig. 5) are found to increase
rapidly during the initial curing period indicating rapid hydration at the early
ages. Possibly, the major portion of the binder is hydrolysed during this pe-
riod ( 5-7 days). Heating of the initially cured pellets does not lead to hydra-
tion of the residual binder but accelerate the hardening process. Steaming on
the other hand leads to both hydration and hardening (Mironov, 1980).
Steaming of the initially cured pellets prevents loss of moisture and may cause
hydration of residual binder and temperature of steam accelerates the pellet
hardening process. The crushing strength of the steam cured pellets may
therefore be considered as the maximum attainable strength. On this basis,
the strength of 28 days normal cured pellets and those of 5-7 days normal

z 3
0

"J2 2--0 6-x

3-0 ?-I
,',-A

NORMAL CURING PERIOD (DAYS)

Fig. 5. Loss on ignition values of normal cured pellets.

COLD BONDED PELLETIZATIONOF IRON ORE FINES 157

cured pellets followed by heat treatment correspond respectively to 70-90%

and 85-95% of the maximum strength (Fig. 4).
The crushing strength of the pellets irrespective of curing conditions is found
to increase with increase in size. Figure 6 depicts the relationship between
size and strength for a typical batch composition (pellet No. 5 ) cured under
steaming. The strength enhancement is rapid upto 15-16 mm diameter of
pellets and then the enhancement is gradual.
The porosity data in Table 4 reveal that the steam cured pellets are less
porous than the normal cured, indicating the former to be richer in hydration
products. The porosity of the pellets in general decreases with increase of slag
content in the binder.
The chemical composition and reducibility of pellets are shown in Tables 5
and 6, respectively. Pellets, containing slag-clinker binder are richer in alu-
mina, silica, magnesium oxide; and poorer in lime and are less basic than

250

200

0
~, 150

0
~- 1oo

u
i i a i /

12 14 16 18 2 o
PELLET DIAMETER ( r a m )

Fig. 6. Crushing strength values of different sized pellets.

TABLE 4

Porosity of pellets

Pellet No. Porosity (%)

Normal cured i Steam cured

1. 23.3 22.2
2. 20.0 19.9
3. 23.8 21.3
4. 19.7 19.2
5. 19.4 18.5
6. 20.4 22.5
7. 19.2 19.0
'28 days.
158 DK.I)I ]t \~ I ,,\L

TABLE 5

Chemical composition of typical pellets

Constituents Pellet No.

(wt.%)

SiO: 8.70 9.34 9.60

A1203 2.76 3.67 3.77
Fe203 72.50 72.93 73.01
CaO 7.50 5.84 5.80
MgO 0.41 0.54 0.76
LOI 5.60 4.50 4.30
Basicity (CaO/SiO2) 0.86 0.62 0.60

L28 days normal cured.

TABLE 6

Reducibility of typical pellets

Pellet No. Reducibility

3~ 59.60
5~ 63.28
52 77.22
6t 82.02
62 84.50

~Normal cured for 28 days.

2Steam cured.

those containing clinker alone as the binder. The reducibility values of the
pellets containing slag-clinker binder are in the range 63.28-84.02% and are
higher than those prepared using clinker alone as the binder. The steam cured
pellets are more reducible than the normal cured pellets.

CONCLUSIONS

( 1 ) 40-50% of the ordinary portland cement requirement in making cold

bonded iron ore pellets can be substituted by granulated blast furnace slag as
produced in India.
(2) Curing of pellets under normal condition for 5-7 days, followed by
heat-steam curing for a few hours produces pellets exhibiting higher crushing
strength than those obtained under normal curing for 28 days.
(3) Slag-clinker containing pellets are less basic but are more reducible than
those containing clinker alone as binder.
COLD BONDED PELLETIZATION OF IRON ORE FINES 159

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

The authors thank Mr. K.N. Gupta, Deputy Director, national Metallurgi-
cal Laboratory, Jamshedpur, for extending facilities for evaluating some me-
tallurgical properties of pellets. The authors also thank Dr. J.N. Baruah, Di-
rector, Regional Research Laboratory, Jorhat for his encouragement and
permission to publish the work. Thanks are also due to Director, Research
and Development Centre for Iron and Steel, Steel Authority of India Limited,
for his permission to publish the work.

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Dutta, D.K. and Borthakur, P.C., 1990. Activation of low lime high alumina granulated blast
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Dutta, D.K., Bordoloi, D.K. and Borthakur, P.C., 1989. Possibilities of making blended and
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Imperato, L.G., 1968. Production and performance of carbonate bonded pellets. Trans. Metall.
Soc. AIME, p. 41.
Indian Standard., 1976. Specification for portland slag cement. Indian Standard No. 455.
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binder. Indian Patent No. 119163.
Lotosh, V.E., 1973. Steaming iron ore pellets. Steel USSR, 450.
Lotosh, V.E. and Efimov, A.L., 1973. Hardening of cement-binder pellets in a moisture atmo-
sphere at ordinary temperature. Steel USSR, p. 169.
Mayer, K., 1980. Pelletizing of Iron Ores. Springer, Berlin, 226 pp.
Minerals and Metals Review, 1981. March, 3: 53.
Mironov, S.A., Kurbatova, I.I. and Vysotsky, S.A., 1980. Hydration fo blast furnace cement
under different temperatures. 7th Int. Congr. Chem. Cem., Paris, Part 4, p. 229.
Smolczyk, H.G., 1980. Slag structure and identification of slags. 7th Int. Congr. Chem. Cem.,
Paris, Part 1, p. III 1/3.
Svensson, J., 1969. The grang cold pellet process. Steel Times, May, p. 362.
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