In situ observation of the structural change of the iron ore sintering bed and its applications

Void structure of the sinter cake is an important factor since it is closely related to the yield, strength and other physical properties of the product sinter. Therefore, a reliable method to control the void structure has been required. The sinter cake is a result of the sintering of the packing bed of the raw materials. Hence, the observation/analyses of the structural change of the sintering bed is essential to control the void structure. Efforts has been made to understand the characteristic of the change by various ways' such as the bed-quenching method. However, information has not been sufficient. In this study, the structural change of the sintering bed was observed by using an X-ray CTS. The several routes to form large voids were confirmed. Further,the results will be shown for the cases using the different iron ores. Based on the results, the concept of a new agglomeration process to realize both of the control the bed structure and fast sintering will be described.