COREX®

EFFICIENT AND ENVIRONMENTALLY

FRIENDLY SMELTING REDUCTION

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ECONOMICALLY AND ECOLOGICALLY HOT ADVANTAGES OF COREX
METAL PRODUCTION • Product quality – hot metal
quality suitable for all steel
applications

• Economic benefit – low

investment and operational
costs due to the elimination of
coking and sinter plants

• Ecologic benefit – lowest

process-related emission rates

YOUR CHALLENGE OUR SOLUTION • Resource preserving – use of

The conventional blast furnace route Corex is besides FINEX® the only a wide variety of iron ores and
is too costly and energy-intensive reliable alternative to the conventional especially non-coking coals
to keep pace with dynamic market blast furnace route. It frees from
changes, where even short- and the need to invest in the erection, • Beneficial by-products –
medium-term fluctuations show their operation and maintenance of generation of a highly valuable
dramatic impact on iron production. coking and sinter plants because export gas for various purposes
The need to use coke and sinter makes these additional facilities are not (electric power generation,
it much more difficult to fulfill ever needed at all. Because it combines DRI production, or natural gas
stricter environmental regulations and two decisive advantages, adaptable substitution)
achieve economical competitiveness energy management/production and
based on long-term sustainable outstanding ecological compatibility,
growth. Rising energy demand, Corex provides you with the key
continuous price increases for natural technology for producing hot metal
gas and raw materials, and steadily in an economically and ecologically
decreasing quality of iron ore due sustainable manner. The ability to use
to the global resource depletion are a wider spectrum of raw materials with
formidable challenges today. Radical Corex will make you less dependent on
changes are inevitable and are forcing price trends for raw materials. As an
operators to revamp their production industrially and commercially proven
routes and explore promising solutions solution, it already provides a number
to continue developing their iron of plant operators worldwide with all
making business successfully and the advantages to fulfill prospective
responsibly. requirements for the iron and steel
industry. And how well prepared are
you?

COKING PLANT

SINTER PLANT COREX

BLAST FURNACE

The Corex process combines coking plant, sinter plant and blast furnace into a single iron making
unit.

2 3
COREX
THE ALTERNATIVE TO THE CONVENTIONAL
BLAST FURNACE ROUTE

Conventional BF route Corex route

NOVEMBER 1989 NOVEMBER 1995 JANUARY 1999 NOVEMBER 2007
Commissioning of the Commissioning Introduction of the Corex C-3000 The BAOSTEEL group started
Fine ore Coking coal Non-coking coal Lump ore/pellets C-1000 plant at ISCOR of the first Corex module on the market. up the first Corex C-3000
Pretoria Works (South C-2000 plant at JUNE 1999 plant at its Luojing Works in
Africa). POSCO‘s Pohang Commissioning of the MIDREXTM Shanghai (China).
Works (Korea). DR plant based on Corex gas for
Export MARCH 2014
ArcelorMittal South Africa - Saldanha
gas Commissioning of a Corex
Works.
gas based MIDREXTM DR
AUGUST 1999 plant at JSW (India)
Sinter plant Coking plant Commissioning of Corex C-2000 plant
No. 1 at JSW (India).
Reduction zone

Top gas Melting,

gasification zone
MARCH 2011
The BAOSTEEL group started up the
DECEMBER 1998 second Corex C-3000 plant at its
Commissioning of the APRIL 2000 Luojing Works in Shanghai (China).
Corex C-2000 plant Commissioning of 2011
at ArcelorMittal South the Corex C-2000 Commissioning of the two Corex
Hot Hot
Hot Oxygen Africa - Saldanha plant No. 2 at JSW C-2000 plants at ESSAR STEEL Ltd. in
metal metal Works. (India). Hazira (India)
blast
and slag and slag

The reduction process of Corex Milestones of Corex

MAIN DIFFERENCES FROM THE BLAST FURNACE ROUTE HIGH FRACTION OF LUMP ORE
The main differences between Corex and a conventional The typical iron oxide mix for Corex is 30% lump ore and
blast furnace route are: 70% pellets. Operational results proved stable operations
• Non-coking coal can be used directly as a reducing agent with a lump ore fraction up to 80%. In addition, no sinter
and energy source – and therefore no sinter plant – is necessary for optimal
operation.
• Up to 80% of the iron oxide fraction can be lump ore; no
sintering is required USE OF PURE OXYGEN
• Pure oxygen instead of nitrogen-rich hot blast While blast furnace operators aim to enrich the hot blast
with oxygen, Corex already uses high-purity oxygen,
DIRECT USE OF NON-COKING COAL resulting in nearly nitrogen-free top gas. Due to its high
As the coal is chared inside the melter gasifier, even calorific value, this gas can be recycled for reduction work
non-coking coal can be used, making a coking plant or used for heat or energy generation. Depending on the
unnecessary. The high dome temperature exceeds steelworks demand, additional value can be created with
1,000°C, resulting in entire cracking of the coal‘s relieved the produced gas.
hydrocarbons and avoiding the formation of tar.

Corex ArcelorMittal South Africa, Saldanha Works – profitable and environmental friendly iron making

4 5
A LOOK INSIDE
EFFICIENCY AT WORK

Lump ore/pellets/
additives

Export gas

Coal,
coal briquettes

Ø 5.5m Ø 7.3m Ø 7.8m Ø 9.4m Ø 9.6m Ø 11.5m

C-1000 C-2000 C-3000

C-0.5M C-0.8M C-1.0M C-1.3M C-1.5M
C-1.5M C-2.0M

40 - 60 t/h 80 - 100 t/h 100 - 125 t/h 125 - 160 t/h 160 - 180 t/h 210 - 240 t/h
Hot metal
Oxygen
and slag 600,000 - 800,000 - 1,000,000 - 1,300,000 - 1,700,000 -
PCI 800,000 t/a 1,000,000 t/a 1,300,000 t/a 1,500,000 t/a 2,000,000 t/a

The Corex process Available Corex modules

PROCESS DESCRIPTION ECOLOGICAL AND PROFITABLE RECYCLING SAVES RESOURCES EXTENDED RAW MATERIAL SPECTRUM
With Corex, all metallurgical work is carried out in two The reduction gas exiting the melter gasifier mainly Due to an increased gas utilization which is based on In terms of raw materials, the main advantage of Corex
separate process reactors – the reduction shaft and the consists of CO and H2 laden with fine coal, ash, and iron gas recycling, gas production in the melter gasifier can technology compared to the blast furnace route is the
melter gasifier. Iron ore (lump ore, pellets, or a mixture dust. This dust is largely removed from the gas stream be significantly lowered, which is directly reflected in direct use of non-coking coal as the fuel/reducing agent
thereof) is charged into the reduction shaft, where it is in a hot gas cyclone and is then recycled to the process. lower fuel and oxygen consumption. Slag production is and lump ore as the iron oxide feed. While the use of
reduced to direct reduced iron (DRI) by the reduction gas Oxygen is injected into the melter gasifier when the coal subsequently reduced by more than 20%. fine coal via pulverized coal injection is available for both
in counterflow. Discharge screws convey the DRI into the is combusted, resulting in the generation of a highly technologies, coal briquetting is applicable to the Corex
melter gasifier, where final reduction and melting take efficient reduction gas. The top gas is subsequently cooled TYPICAL CONSUMPTION FIGURES only. By coal briquetting it is possible to mix low-quality,
place in addition to all other metallurgical reactions. Hot and cleaned in a scrubber, after which it is available as low-cost coal fines with coals of higher grades. This results
Standard Recycle
metal and slag are tapped as in conventional blast furnace a highly valuable export gas with a net calorific value of in lower coal cost and a substantially wider spectrum of
option
practice. approximately 8000 kJ/m³ (STP) suitable for a wide range coals to be utilized in Corex. This important economic
of applications (e.g., power generation, DRI production, Fueldry 940 770 [kg/tHM] advantage will counter limited raw material availability and
DIRECT AND EFFICIENT natural gas substitution, and heating within the steel prospective price increases in the future.
Additives 265 185 [kg/tHM]
From the coal route perspective, coal is directly charged works).
into the melter gasifier. It is gasified by injecting oxygen Oxygen 520 455 [m³/tHM] CUSTOMIZED PLANT OPERATION
into the melter gasifier, resulting in the generation of a INCREASED GAS UTILIZATION The implemented recycling circuit allows the operator
highly efficient reduction gas. This gas exits the melter A recycling system consisting of a compressor station and to adjust the system according to on-site requirements
gasifier and is cleaned, cooled, and then blown into CO2 removal makes it possible to utilize more export gas TYPICAL CONSUMPTION FIGURES – to minimize coal consumption or to maximize export
the reduction shaft, reducing the iron ore to DRI in for metallurgical work. This raises gas utilization to a higher gas generation – in order to respond to the steelworks
Standard Recycle
countercurrent flow as described above. level and makes the overall process even more economic demand. The reduced volume of export gas lowers the
option
and environmentally friendly. investment required for Corex export gas application, e.g.,
Due to the high temperatures prevailing in the dome of Slag 340 265 [kg/tHM] a downstream power plant.
the melter gasifier (in excess of 1,000 °C), the higher
Export gas 1,650 1,410 [m3/tHM]
hydrocarbons released from the coal during devolatilization
8,000 7,500 [kJ/m3]
are immediately dissociated to carbon monoxide and
hydrogen. Undesirable by-products such as tars and
phenols are destroyed and therefore cannot be released to
the atmosphere.

6 7
A LOOK INSIDE
EFFICIENCY AT WORK

Alternative Electrical energy for export:

1 x Corex plant 1 x Corex gas based
134 MWel C-1.0M MIDREXTM DR plant
Conventional power plant
1,070,000 MWh/a
Corex export gas
451 MWth Combined cycle power plant 178 MWel
(CCPP) 1,424,000 MWh/a
Heater
Electrical energy
10 MWel
Coal Corex export gas DR export gas
973 MWth CO2 33,000 m3 (STP)/h
removal
Oxygen
66,000 m3(STP)/h
Oxygen plant 28 MWel
Corex
Hot metal DRI
1,000,000 t/a 860,000 t/a
Hot metal 125 t/h 108 t/h
1,000,000 t/a
125 t/h

Production of electricity (Basis: e.g. Corex C-1.0M Plant) Production of DRI (Basis: Corex C-1.0 M Plant)

TYPICAL THERMAL ENERGY BALANCE

ADJUSTABLE EXPORT GAS GENERATION (FOR 1 MTPA HOT METAL) PRODUCTION OF DRI
Depending on the composition of coal and the decision Plant setup Standard Recycle Another way to benefit from the surplus reduction potential
whether gas recycling is applied or not, the amount and option is to reheat and utilize the export gas in a downstream
the composition of the export gas can vary within definite direct reduction plant. According to the desired product
limits. The specific gas properties of the Corex export Energy input 973 790 [MWth] mix, even more additional DRI can be produced compared
gas are compatible with natural gas, allowing for a wide to hot metal, thus raising the gas yield for iron making to a
Energy 522 450 [MWth]
variety of in-plant uses, including power generation by new level never imagined before.
consumption
combined-cycle technology and DRI production. For the
chemical industry, this gas can also serve as a feed stock Energy output 451 340 [MWth] LOWEST SPECIFIC CONSUMPTION RATES
for numerous applications. A decrease of 25% in the fuel rate and an increase of up
TYPICAL ELECTRICAL ENERGY BALANCE* (FOR 1 to 20% in gas utilization compared to best-performing
PRODUCTION OF ELECTRICAL ENERGY MTPA HOT METAL) modern blast furnaces are decisive driving factors,
Regardless of the recycling decision and plant setup, Standard Recycle especially when present and future mandatory CO2
with its excellent calorific value the Corex export gas is option reductions for the iron and steel industry are taken into
excellent suited for power generation. When used in a account. Even the calorific value of the direct reduction
combined-cycle power station, the export gas is converted Power generation 216 155 [MWel] export gas is higher than blast furnace top gas and, similar
to electrical energy with efficiencies up to 48%. Depending to the Corex export gas, it can be utilized efficiently for
Internal power 38 45 [MWel]
on particular site conditions, a tailor-made production various purposes.
consumption and
route including power generation fulfills all requirements
oxygen plant
for optimized energy management. Beyond that, operators COREX/DR COMBINATION DRIVING FACTORS
benefit from value created by surplus electricity, which can Power export 178 110 [MWel]
be used to supply public demand. DRI production 850 [kg/tHM]
* Conversion ratio thermal energy:electricity 1:0.48
Fueldry 530 [kg/tIron]

CO2 emissions < 1250 [kg/tIron]

8 9
PROFITABLE AND ENVIRONMENTALLY FRIENDLY
PREPARED FOR PRESENT AND FUTURE IRON
MAKING CHALLENGES

Corex
BFmin 3,783
BFmax
2,027
1,080

553

g/tHM
361
300

35
16 14

Dust SO2 NOX

Emission comparison - Blast furnace / Corex, (Source: BAT for the production of iron and steel – EU Joint Research Center) Corex Baosteel, Shanghai Baosteel Pudong Iron & Steel Shanghai, China

WHAT IS ENVIRONMENTALLY FRIENDLY? GREEN IS NOT ALWAYS EXPENSIVE LOWER PRODUCTION COSTS
Corex and the blast furnace route are coal-based processes Minimizing the emission values for the blast furnace Because coking and sinter plants are not needed with
reducing iron ore to sponge iron, which is subsequently route requires the highest investment for environmental Corex, production and investment cost are reduced
melted into hot metal. In both processes, the same product protection, disregarding all reasonable economic aspects. substantially. The extent of the savings depends, of course,
is generated out of almost the same raw material. A This can already be seen in the case of blast furnace dust on the local plant site and other specific conditions. Given
question that arises – and not only from an economic point emissions, where efficient but costly filter systems are the recent dramatic increase in cost for metallurgical coal
of view – is “how do these production routes deal with installed in the sinter and coking plant. The Corex values and energy, the Corex can typically save operators up to
unwanted impurities?” are already far better than expected future standards. 10% in hot metal production costs in comparison to the
Moreover, the full development potential of Corex has not traditional blast furnace route.
A certain amount of environmentally harmful substances yet been realized with respect to a further reduction of
are inevitable based on the raw material mix. Hence, emissions.
the objective of a sustainable iron making process is
to discharge these substances in an environmentally GASEOUS EMISSIONS
compatible condition, or destroy them in the process itself. Thanks to the in-situ coking of the coal in the melter
Since the Corex Process captures most of the pollutants in gasifier, a large portion of sulfur is captured in the slag,
an inert state in the slag and the released hydrocarbons are dramatically decreasing emissions of gaseous SO2 or H2S.
destroyed in the dome of the melter gasifier, no additional Furthermore, pure oxygen is used instead of the hot air
investment or operational costs are incurred for a complex blast, significantly reducing nitrogen emissions in the form
gas or disproportional waste water conditioning plant. of NOx and providing the advantages already mentioned
regarding dust emissions.

Essar Steel, India

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COREX SUCCESS STORIES
SELECTED REFERENCES

COREX ESSAR COREX JSW

Customer: Essar Steel Ltd., Hazira, India Customer: Jindal South West Steel Ltd. (JSW), Toranagallu, India
The challenge: Relocation of the two Corex plants from Asan Bay, Korea to Hazira, India and to successfully carry out a brownfield The challenge: Economical iron making basis for a new steelworks in an isolated area with limited access to fuel gas.
implementation into the existing steel plant infrastructure. Our solution: Corex-DR combination consisting of two Corex C-2000 plants with a total annual output of 1.6 million tons of hot metal and a
Our solution: 2 x Corex C-2000 plants with an annual production of 1.7 million tons of hot metal per year in blast furnace quality with highly MIDREXTM DR plant with an annual output of 1.2 million tons of DRI
valuable export gas for substituting natural gas for DR production.

OUTLINE CUSTOMER BENEFIT OUTLINE CUSTOMER BENEFIT

In 2007 Essar Steel decided to relocate the Corex plant • Lower investment and operation costs compared to the At Jindal South West Steel Ltd. (JSW), the two Corex • Lower production costs compared to JSW‘s
erected for HANBO STEEL, Korea to their existing steel conventional blast furnace route C-2000 plants formed the iron making basis for steel benchmarking blast furnaces
works at Hazira, India. Beside production of high quality production. As a special feature, plant wastes, such as
• Economical and environmentally friendly production of • Synergistic combination of Corex and blast furnaces
hot metal to be used in two new EAFs to improve the steel Corex, limestone/dolomite fines, and LD slag, are recycled
hot metal
quality, one main target was to substitute natural gas at into the two Corex modules, either directly or indirectly • Stable operation and production of additional DRI in
the existing MidrexTM DR plants. A special challenge was to • Reduced DRI production cost in the adjacent MidrexTM through the pellet/sinter plants. The synergy of Corex and separate Midrex® plant
integrate the Corex plants into the existing steel works due plants due to substitution of high natural gas by Corex blast furnace helped JSW steel to maximize the utilization
to very tight space availability. export gas of solid waste and thereby reduced the cost of hot metal. In ENVIRONMENTAL BENEFIT
• Lower dependency on the local power and gas supply addition, Corex export gas is used for the production of DRI • Efficient recycling of metallurgical waste material
and as a backup in blast furnace stoves, boilers, and the
• Production of valuable export gas for power generation
ENVIRONMENTAL BENEFIT sinter and pellet plant.
• Considerably reduced SO2 and NOx emissions
• Reduced phenol, sulfide and ammonium contamination of
waste water
• Resource preservation due to alternative raw material
consumption

12 13
WE TAKE THE RESPONSIBILITY LIFECYCLE MANAGEMENT
ALWAYS AT YOUR SIDE ROUND THE CLOCK, ROUND THE GLOBE

Bayi Steel
China
Baosteel
1 x C-3000 China
1 x C-3000

Essar Steel
India
2 x C-2000

Jindal South West

(JSW)
India
2 x C-2000 and
1 x DR plant

ArcelorMittal
South Africa
1 x C-2000 and
1 x DR plant

Corex plants in operation and under construction

THERE IS ALWAYS A GOOD REASON FOR COREX PRIMETALS TECHNOLOGIES LIFECYCLE SERVICES But thanks to our comprehensive expertise and integrated
Corex fulfills all additional requirements beyond an As a plant operator, you have conflicting needs. On the one approach to solutions, you benefit both in the short
economical and reliable iron making unit. Examples include hand, your performance is measured each quarter against and long term from our lifecycle services. In the short
JSW in India, where two Corex plants were erected for a short-term profitability expectations. On the other hand, term: Backed by our extensive experience with many
steelworks in an isolated area with no access to natural gas you have to think on a totally different timescale compared reference plants, we provide you with the certainty of fast,
or electricity; Baosteel in China, where a new steelworks with the capital market. Depending on the lifetime of your dependable production start-up and shorter amortization
was erected in a water protection area with a demand plant, you have to take 15 years or more into account. At periods. In the long term: Our master plan guarantees
for electricity; and ArcelorMittal South Africa, where a the very least, that’s 60 full quarters. competitive performance for your plant in every phase
Corex-DR combination forms the iron making basis for of its lifecycle. Whether we’re providing 24/7 technical
a steelworks in an environmentally restricted area with a support, optimizing maintenance, or making permanent
zero-emission restriction specified by law. The expansion plant improvements, we’re always working to ensure the
to a Corex-DR combination plant at JSW underlines the cost-effective operation of your plant.
flexibility of Corex to respond to actual market demands in
the iron and steel business.

NEW INVESTMENT IMPLEMENTATION OPERATION MODERNIZATION

• On-site assessments • Start-up support • E&A spares and • Migration packages

components
• Consulting • Plant documentation • System upgrades
• Service contracts
• Feasibility studies • Technological • System add-ons
assistance • Technical assistance
• Financing • Expansion packages
engineering • Training packages • Individual training
packages
• Maintenance packages

14 15
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