Silico-ferrite of Calcium and Aluminum (SFCA) Iron Ore Sinter Bonding Phases: New Insights into Their Formation During Heating and Cooling

The formation of silico-ferrite of calcium and aluminum (SFCA) and SFCA-I iron ore sinter phases during heating and cooling of synthetic iron ore sinter mixtures in the range 298?K to 1623?K (25?°C to 1350?°C) and at oxygen partial pressure of 5?×?10^?3 atm has been characterized using in situ synchrotron X-ray diffraction. SFCA and SFCA-I are the key bonding phases in iron ore sinter, and an improved understanding of their formation mechanisms may lead to improved efficiency of industrial sintering processes.?During heating, SFCA-I formation at 1327?K to 1392?K (1054?°C to 1119?°C) (depending on composition) was associated with the reaction of Fe₂O₃, 2CaO·Fe₂O₃, and SiO₂. SFCA formation (1380?K to 1437?K 1107?°C to 1164?°C]) was associated with?the reaction of CaO·Fe₂O₃, SiO₂, and a phase with average composition 49.60, 9.09, 0.14, 7.93, and 32.15?wt pct Fe, Ca, Si, Al, and O, respectively. Increasing Al₂O₃ concentration in the starting sinter mixture increased the temperature range over which SFCA-I was stable before the formation of SFCA, and it stabilized SFCA to a higher temperature before it melted to form a Fe₃O₄?+?melt phase assemblage (1486?K to 1581?K 1213?°C to 1308?°C]). During cooling, the first phase to crystallize from the melt (1452?K to 1561?K 1179?°C to 1288?°C]) was an Fe-rich phase, similar in composition to SFCA-I, and it had an average composition 58.88, 6.89, 0.82, 3.00, and 31.68?wt pct Fe, Ca, Si, Al, and O, respectively. At lower temperatures (1418?K to 1543?K 1145?°C to 1270?°C]), this phase reacted with melt to form SFCA. Increasing Al₂O₃ increased the temperature at which crystallization of the Fe-rich phase occurred, increased the temperature at which crystallization of SFCA occurred, and suppressed the formation of Fe₂O₃ (1358?K to 1418?K 1085?°C to 1145?°C]) to lower temperatures.