Sustainable Pre-reduction of Ferromanganese Oxides with Hydrogen: Heating Rate-Dependent Reduction Pathways and Microstructure Evolution

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Autori principali: Bajpai, Anurag, Ratzker, Barak, Shankar, Shiv, Raabe, Dierk, Ma, Yan
Natura: Preprint
Pubblicazione: 2025
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author Bajpai, Anurag
Ratzker, Barak
Shankar, Shiv
Raabe, Dierk
Ma, Yan
author_facet Bajpai, Anurag
Ratzker, Barak
Shankar, Shiv
Raabe, Dierk
Ma, Yan
contents The reduction of ferromanganese ores into metallic feedstock is an energy-intensive process with substantial carbon emissions, necessitating sustainable alternatives. Hydrogen-based pre-reduction of manganese-rich ores offers a low-emission pathway to augment subsequent thermic Fe-Mn alloy production. However, reduction dynamics and microstructure evolution under varying thermal conditions remain poorly understood. This study investigates the influence of heating rate on the hydrogen-based direct reduction of natural Nchwaning ferromanganese ore and a synthetic analog. Non-isothermal thermogravimetric analysis revealed a complex multistep reduction process with overlapping kinetic regimes. Isoconversional kinetic analysis showed increased activation energy with reduction degree, indicating a transition from surface-reaction to diffusion-controlled reduction mechanisms. Interrupted X-ray diffraction experiments suggested that slow heating enables complete conversion to MnO and metallic Fe, while rapid heating promotes Fe- and Mn-oxides intermixing. Thermodynamic calculations for the Fe-Mn-O system predicted the equilibrium phase evolution, indicating Mn stabilized Fe-containing spinel and halite phases. Microstructural analysis revealed that slow heating rate yields fine and dispersed Fe particles in a porous MnO matrix, while fast heating leads to sporadic Fe-rich agglomerates. These findings suggest heating rate as a critical parameter governing reduction pathway, phase distribution, and microstructure evolution, thus offering key insights for optimizing hydrogen-based pre-reduction strategies towards more efficient and sustainable ferromanganese production.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2507_10451
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Sustainable Pre-reduction of Ferromanganese Oxides with Hydrogen: Heating Rate-Dependent Reduction Pathways and Microstructure Evolution
Bajpai, Anurag
Ratzker, Barak
Shankar, Shiv
Raabe, Dierk
Ma, Yan
Materials Science
The reduction of ferromanganese ores into metallic feedstock is an energy-intensive process with substantial carbon emissions, necessitating sustainable alternatives. Hydrogen-based pre-reduction of manganese-rich ores offers a low-emission pathway to augment subsequent thermic Fe-Mn alloy production. However, reduction dynamics and microstructure evolution under varying thermal conditions remain poorly understood. This study investigates the influence of heating rate on the hydrogen-based direct reduction of natural Nchwaning ferromanganese ore and a synthetic analog. Non-isothermal thermogravimetric analysis revealed a complex multistep reduction process with overlapping kinetic regimes. Isoconversional kinetic analysis showed increased activation energy with reduction degree, indicating a transition from surface-reaction to diffusion-controlled reduction mechanisms. Interrupted X-ray diffraction experiments suggested that slow heating enables complete conversion to MnO and metallic Fe, while rapid heating promotes Fe- and Mn-oxides intermixing. Thermodynamic calculations for the Fe-Mn-O system predicted the equilibrium phase evolution, indicating Mn stabilized Fe-containing spinel and halite phases. Microstructural analysis revealed that slow heating rate yields fine and dispersed Fe particles in a porous MnO matrix, while fast heating leads to sporadic Fe-rich agglomerates. These findings suggest heating rate as a critical parameter governing reduction pathway, phase distribution, and microstructure evolution, thus offering key insights for optimizing hydrogen-based pre-reduction strategies towards more efficient and sustainable ferromanganese production.
title Sustainable Pre-reduction of Ferromanganese Oxides with Hydrogen: Heating Rate-Dependent Reduction Pathways and Microstructure Evolution
topic Materials Science
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2507.10451