Dolomite Powder for Steel Industry
Dolomite is a mineral with a specific gravity of 2.8 to 2.9 and a Mohs hardness of 3.5 to 4. Minerals can have any color, including colorless, white, pink, green, grey, brown, or black. It has a white streak. It has a vitreous or pearly sheen. Transparent to translucent are the two extremes of diaphaneity. Natural dolomite powder is a vegan source of calcium and magnesium carbonates. Dolomite can cleave perfectly, rhombohedral, or in three ways. Conchoidal fracture and brittle tenacity characterize it. Rhombohedral cleavage, when present in powder form, weakly effervesces in diluted HCl acid. It has a hexagonal crystal structure.
At 20 degrees Celsius, calcined dolomite has a density of roughly 3.5 tons/cum, a bulk density of roughly 0.85 tons/cum, and a pH value between 12 and 13. It's around 9% soluble in water. Dolomite that has been calcined has a melting point of about 2800 °C. Calcium hydroxide is created when calcium magnesium oxide and water react exothermally (CaO.MgO + H2O = Ca(OH)2 + MgO + 276kcal/kg CaO). Although the process is sluggish, MgO also exothermally interacts with water.
In the case of limestone powder and dolomite, the impurities in the minerals include other carbonates minerals, such as siderite, silica (quartz, chert), clay minerals, mineralization (fluorite, galena, and sphalerite), organic waste, and others (pyrite, iron oxides, etc.)
Both dolomite and limestone can be calcined by heating them in a vertical kiln or a rotating kiln. The decarbonization reaction occurs during calcining. CaCO3 + heat = CO2 + CaO (high calcium lime) and CaCO3.MgCO3 + heat = 2CO2 + CaO are the reactions that occur in the temperature range of 800°C to 1,000°C for limestone and in the temperature range of 700°C to 900°C for dolomite (calcined dolomite).
These minerals are utilized either in their raw or calcined state. Limestone and dolomite are used in the manufacturing of sinter, and pellets, and as fluxing materials directly in the blast furnace in the process of creating iron. In the production of steel, dolomite and limestone are utilized as lime or calcined dolomite in both the primary (basic oxygen furnace) and secondary (electric arc furnace) processes.
The protection of the refractories and maintaining the basicity for aiding in dephosphorization are both achieved through the use of lime during the steelmaking process. While CO (carbon monoxide) removal from the bath is facilitated by oxygen lancing, other elements like Si, Mn (manganese), and P also oxidize and are absorbed in the slag layer. While bottom-blown converters can also add pulverized lime through tuyeres, top-blown converters mainly use lump lime. Dephosphorization and desulfurization are encouraged by the large specific surface area and strong reactivity of soft charred lime. Higher-quality lime enables decreased lime use and increased productivity throughout the steelmaking process.
With dolomite-based compounds, the liner is fettled and repaired during the steelmaking process. Dolomite which has been calcined is also used in converters to maintain MgO levels in the slag used to make steel. In the event of slag splashing, it also functions as a slag modifier. Additionally, refractory bricks made from burned dolomite are used to line various steelmaking vessels.
We also manufacture dolomite mesh powder, dolomite minerals powder, dolomite marble powder, white dolomite powder, grey dolomite powder, dolomite calcium powder, natural dolomite powder, etc.
