Production of (Mn,Fe)-Carbide Containing Low Phosphorus by Carbothermic Reduction of Mn Oxide and Fe Oxide

The dephosphorization process for high P iron ores have recently been studied employing several methods. However, the researches of phosphorus removal about the high P manganese ores have seldom done as many as which of the high P iron ores. As a potential approach for the removal of phosphorus contained in the composite, the formation of (Mn,Fe)-carbide by the carbothermic reduction of the oxides of manganese and iron was investigated at 1200°C in H2 employing thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). It was confirmed that the phosphorus did not dissolve into the manganese iron carbide, even though it has the high reactivity with Fe and Mn. According to EPMA line mapping, (Mn,Fe)-carbide and (Mn,Fe)-phosphide coexist in the reduced particle. The current results could be applied for a promising treatment of dephosphorization of high phosphorus ores due to the low solubility of phosphorus in carbide.