Coking coal and iron ore are necessary ingredients in the production of steel. When heated in a blast furnace, the two materials form a slag – a material that acts as a fluxing agent. Together, the coal and iron ore create a molten form of iron which is released in its liquid state, ready to be shaped into various products. It is due to this stage of the manufacturing process that coking coal and iron ore are so important in the production of steel.
Coking coal, also known as Metallurgical coal, is a variety of coal that is largely used to produce coke. Coke is an essential material used in the blast furnace process for smelting iron ore. Coking coal is mined from the earth and is mostly used for industrial purposes such as steelmaking. The majority of coking coal production comes from Australia, the United States and China. Coking coal is divided into many grade categories and is sorted according to its ash, sulphur and moisture content.
Iron ore is another key element for steel production. Iron ore is a sedimentary rock containing a large concentration of iron oxides. This is the source of iron ore used to produce steel. Iron ore is mined primarily in Brazil, Australia, the United States and China, with other countries such as India, Canada and South Africa producing much smaller quantity. The raw material is processed and sorted into two different varieties – magnetite and hematite. Magnetite is a naturally occurring form of iron ore with a higher iron content while hematite also contains iron but of a lower grade.
The combination of coking coal and iron ore is then used to produce steel in a blast furnace. This process begins with the insertion of coking coal into the furnace, where it is subjected to intense heat. This causes the coal to give off its volatile compounds such as carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide, which combine with other elements such as oxygen and nitrogen from the air to form the by-product coke. The coke then provides the essential ingredients needed to smelt and melt the iron ore into its liquid state. This molten form of iron can then be cast into shapes, ready to be processed into a range of steel products.
Therefore, coking coal and iron ore are indispensable elements in the production of steel, because without them none of the furnaces or casting operations would be possible. Both the raw materials must be of the highest quality, as this will ensure the steel is of the right standard, ready to be used in a range of applications.
