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The Extraction of Iron

1) Iron is extracted from iron ore in a blast furnace along with coke as the reducing agent and limestone as the flux. 2) In the blast furnace, hot air is blown in to burn the coke, producing carbon monoxide which reduces the iron ore into molten iron. 3) The limestone combines with impurities like silica in the ore to form a molten slag that floats on top of the molten iron and is tapped off separately.

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421 views2 pages

The Extraction of Iron

1) Iron is extracted from iron ore in a blast furnace along with coke as the reducing agent and limestone as the flux. 2) In the blast furnace, hot air is blown in to burn the coke, producing carbon monoxide which reduces the iron ore into molten iron. 3) The limestone combines with impurities like silica in the ore to form a molten slag that floats on top of the molten iron and is tapped off separately.

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Ashleigh Jarrett
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© © All Rights Reserved
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THE EXTRACTION OF IRON

Iron is the most abundantly produced metal on earth; most of it is converted to steel, an iron
alloy. In the production of iron, we require the following raw materials

Raw Materials
 Iron Ore - Iron is found most commonly in the ore as iron oxide. Different types of iron
ores contain different iron compounds, but the most common iron ores are hematite
(Fe2O3) and magnetite (Fe3O4)
 An energy source
 A reducing agent - The reducing agent used is usually coke (carbon) or hydrogen gas
 A flux - The 'flux' is a substance (usually limestone) that forms a slag with silicates and
other impurities that can easily be removed from the final product.

Blast Furnace
A blast furnace is a closed system into which iron-bearing materials (iron ore lump, sinter and
pellets), flux (slag formers such as limestone) and reducing agents (i.e. coke) are
continuously fed from the top of the furnace shaft through a charging system that prevents the
escape of blast furnace gas.

Stages of the Extraction of Iron


1) Dried hot iron ore, limestone and coke are fed into the top of the blast furnace.

2) Near the base of the furnace, hot air is blown in. The coke burns in the hot air, producing
carbon dioxide and heat:
C(s) + O2(g) → CO2(g)

3) The carbon dioxide is reduced to carbon monoxide by the hot coke being fed in:
CO2(g) + C(s) → 2CO(g)

4) The newly formed carbon monoxide reduces the hot iron ore to molten iron:
For hematite:
Fe2O3(s) + 3CO(g) → 2Fe(l) + 3CO2(g)

For magnetite:
Fe3O4(s) + 4CO(g) → 3Fe(l) + 4CO2(g)

The molten iron, Fe(l), will run to the bottom of the furnace.

5) Limestone (CaCO3, calcium carbonate) breaks down at high temperatures in the furnace to
calcium oxide and carbon dioxide:
CaCO3(s) → CaO(s) + CO2(g)

6) The calcium oxide combines with sand (silicon dioxide), the main impurity in iron ore, to
form a molten slag (calcium silicate) that can be tapped off separately:
CaO(s) + SiO2(s) → CaSiO3(l)
The molten slag is immiscible with the molten iron and floats on top of it, so they can be run
off separately.

The iron formed in the blast furnace is usually allowed to cool in shallow trays called 'casts.'
For this reason, this type of iron is called cast iron or pig iron and contains impurities such as
carbon, phosphorous and sulphur. Because of its impurity, it is very brittle and is usually
converted to steel.

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