Comparative study of Cr, V and W recovery from a self-reduction briquette and a steel-briquette system

The objective of this study was to analyze the recycling possibility of the electric arc furnace dust (EAFD) in the form of a briquette. This paper studied the kinect behavior of the briquette's self-reduction and in contact with molten steel (steel-briquette system) and it was aimed at finding the optimal briquette composition used to recover elements such as Cr, V and W. Thermodynamic simulations with FactSage were carried out to validate the experimental results. The EAFD material as-received was magnetically separated to the form of a magnetic electric arc furnace dust (MEAFD) then characterized analytically and microstructurally. Analytical characterization demonstrated that the EAFD was rich in Cr, W and V. Microstructural analyses revealed the presence of oxides and spinel phases. Three different compositions of briquettes were prepared for the experiments: the first with 84% of MEAFD and 16% C; the second with 82% of MEAFD and 18% C; and the third with 80% of MEAFD and 20% C. Reduction experiments at the temperature of 1500 °C were carried out to study the reduction rate differences in the briquettes and the steel-briquettes systems. Reduction experiments showed that the fastest reaction occurred in the briquette with 20% C for both systems. Among the wide experimental dataset analyzed, the optimal measured recovery was 48.1% Cr, 72.7% W and 47.5% V (in wt%).