The transition to hydrogen-based reduction processes within the iron and steelmaking industry will generate new types of slag compositions that require valorization routes. Using slags as supplementary cementitious materials (SCMs) addresses the carbon dioxide emissions of the cement industry since the SCM requires neither calcination nor clinkering. Conventionally, ironmaking slags from the blast furnace (BF) are recycled as SCMs, i.e., ground granulated BF slag (GGBS). Ideally, future slags from electric arc furnaces (EAFs) operating on hydrogen-based direct reduced iron should be valorized analogously. Since the hydrogen-based process route is not yet realized in an industrial scale, the literature lacks data to support this valorization route, and additionally, literature on scrap-based EAF slags is scarce. Therefore, the present study aimed to offer insights into the utilization of ore-based EAF slags as SCMs based on an industrial slag sample from an EAF operating on hot briquetted iron. The slag was remelted, modified, and water-granulated in laboratory scale, and its performance as an SCM was compared to water-granulated ladle slag and two commercial GGBS. The results showed promising reactivities measured using the R³ isothermal calorimeter-based testing protocol. Based on the comparison to GGBS, the study indicated that generating reactive and appropriate SCMs from EAF slags will partly be a challenge in balancing the crystallization of the MeO-type solid solution rich in magnesia and addressing the iron oxide content in the amorphous phase. Graphical Abstract

Depending on the operation of the blast furnace (BF), the main outlet of zinc from the furnace is more or less via the BF dust and sludge. As the dust is recycled to the BF, the sludge has to be de-zinced prior to recycling to prevent the accumulation of zinc in the BF. De-zincing and recycling of the low-zinc fraction via sinter have been reported. However, no research concerning recycling of upgraded BF sludge via cold-bonded briquettes has been performed. In the present study, a fine-grained BF sludge with low zinc content, generated by a BF operating on a ferrous burden of 100% pellets, was upgraded using the tornado process. The process simultaneously dried and separated the BF sludge into a high-zinc and a low-zinc fraction. The feasibility of recycling the low-zinc fraction to the BF using cold-bonded briquettes was studied on a laboratory-scale BF shaft simulator. On comparison with a reference briquette, the experiments indicated that 10 wt% of the upgraded BF sludge can be added to the briquette without negatively affecting the reducibility. Higher additions were found to render the briquette less reduced compared to the reference under test conditions corresponding to the central part of the BF. The strength of the briquettes was not compromised with the addition of the upgraded BF sludge, and a decision to study the briquettes in the LKAB experimental blast furnace was made in order to evaluate the behavior under actual BF conditions.

Ore-based steelmaking generates various residues including dusts, sludges, scales and slags. Recycling of these residues within the process or via other applications is essential for sustainable production of steel. In blast furnace (BF) ironmaking, the gas-cleaning equipment generally recovers the particles in the off-gas as dust and sludge. Traditionally, the dry dust is recycled via the sinter or, in the case of pellet-based BF operation, via cold-bonded briquettes and injection. As the BF sludge mainly consists of iron and carbon, this residue is of interest to recycle together with the BF dust. However, depending on how the BF is operated, these two residues are more or less the major outlet of zinc from the furnace. Thus, to limit the recycled load of zinc, both materials cannot be recycled without dezincing the sludge prior to recycling. Dezincing and recycling of the low-zinc fraction of BF sludge via sinter have been reported whereas recycling via cold-bonded briquettes has not been performed. In the present study, cold-bonded briquettes containing the low-zinc fraction of dezinced BF sludge were charged as basket samples to the LKAB Experimental Blast Furnace (EBF). The excavated basket samples from the quenched EBF suggested that additions of up to 20 wt.% of upgraded BF sludge was feasible in terms of reducibility and strength. Based on these results, BF sludge were added to cold-bonded briquettes and charged in industrial-scale trials. The trials indicated that the annual generation of BF sludge, after dezincing, could be recycled to the BF.

Copper in discarded slag decreases the profits and copper recovery during the pyrometallurgical extraction processes. The copper losses to slag can be reduced by using a settling furnace, in which mechanically entrained copper droplets separate from the slag under the action of gravity. The settling rate of entrained droplets can be increased by modifying the slag composition and, thus, the slag properties, which are known to influence the settling rate. The knowledge of industrial CaO slag modification in a reduced iron silicate slag with a Fe/SiO₂ ratio close to unity is limited. An industrial trial was thus conducted in an electric settling furnace, where the slag had been pretreated in a fuming furnace, to investigate the effect of CaO slag modification on the final slag copper content. Slag samples were collected from the ingoing and outgoing slag and from within the furnace of batches modified with CaO up to about 16 wt %. The trial was evaluated by comparing the final slag copper content and the copper recovery in the settling furnace. The results indicate that the settling becomes more efficient with the CaO modification as the final slag copper content decreased with increasing CaO content.

Brownmillerite is connected to chromium leaching when present in steel slags. To prevent chromium leaching, brownmillerite in slag should be prevented. Two methods for decreasing brownmillerite content in low-alloy electric arc furnace (EAF) slag were investigated: decreasing the basicity and increasing the cooling rate. The methods were tried on both laboratory scale and in full-scale production. In the laboratory scale experiments, chromium leaching decreased as the basicity decreased until brownmillerite was no longer present, slower cooling resulted in increased chromium leaching, and faster cooling decreased chromium leaching. In full-scale production, basicity modified single batches, with a basicity below 2.2, generally leached less chromium than slag batches with higher basicity, thus verifying the correlation between basicity and chromium leaching seen in laboratory scale experiments. The cooling process in the full-scale experiments was achieved either by letting the slag cool by itself in the air or by water spraying. The water-sprayed slag, which cooled faster, had less chromium leaching than the air-cooled slag. The full-scale production experiments confirmed that both decreasing basicity below 2.2 and increasing the rate of cooling could be used to decrease chromium leaching.

Ore-based ironmaking generates a variety of residues, including slags and fines such as dust and sludges. Recycling of these residues within the integrated steel plant or in other applications is essential from a raw-material efficiency perspective. The main recycling route of off-gas dust is to the blast furnace (BF) via sinter, cold-bonded briquettes and tuyere injection. However, solely relying on the BF for recycling implicates that certain residues cannot be recycled in order to avoid build-up of unwanted elements, such as zinc. By introducing a holistic view on recycling where recycling via other process routes, such as the desulfurization (deS) station and the basic oxygen furnace (BOF), landfilling can be avoided. In the present study, process integration analyses were utilized to determine the most efficient recycling routes for off-gas dust that are currently not recycled within the integrated steel plants of Sweden. The feasibility of recycling was studied in experiments conducted in laboratory, pilot, and full-scale trials in the BF, deS station, and BOF. The process integration analyses suggested that recycling to the BF should be maximized before considering the deS station and BOF. The experiments indicated that the amount of residue that are not recycled could be minimized.