A nearly $3 million federally funded project will develop an induction smelting process to produce pig iron from low-cost, low-grade ores, adding a continuous smelting step to direct reduced iron (DRI) processing. The technology is intended to remove impurities and increase productivity while expanding the types of domestic iron ore that can be used for steelmaking.
The University of Minnesota Duluth will lead the project with Metcovery II LLC and the National Laboratory of the Rockies as partners. The project has been awarded $2,997,738 in federal funding through the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Critical Minerals and Energy Innovation. Award and cost-share amounts are subject to change pending negotiations.
The project, titled Induction Smelting of DRI-Processed Low Grade Ores for Steelmaking, will develop technology to produce pig iron from lower-cost, low-grade ores. Conventional direct reduced ironmaking typically requires more expensive high-grade ores. The additional smelting step is designed to remove impurities from lower-grade material, creating another pathway for its use in DRI-based ironmaking. The process will allow smelting to occur continuously rather than in batches, increasing productivity.
The project is one of 56 selected for a total of $117 million in DOE funding aimed at developing technologies to lower production costs and improve energy productivity across U.S. industrial sectors.
Press release is available in its original form here.
