Document Type

Honors Thesis

Publication Date

Summer 8-7-2026

Abstract

Fines are generated during the reduction, handling, and transportation of iron oxide pellets and lump ore. These fines present significant safety concerns due to their tendency to oxidize rapidly and combust spontaneously. In addition, they contribute to material losses and reduced revenue. However, DRI fines can be recycled through briquetting and reused in downstream steelmaking processes. Briquettes are produced by agglomerating and compacting direct reduced iron (DRI) fines with binders such as molasses and lime, calcium stearate, and bentonite. Although many different binders have been developed and studied for iron oxide agglomeration and induration, far fewer studies have been conducted to evaluate the effectiveness and efficiency of binders for cold-bonded briquetting (CBB) of DRI fines. This study focused on the improvement of the properties of DRI briquettes produced using molasses and lime binder. Industrial DRI and briquette samples were first characterized to establish baseline properties. Laboratory briquettes were then produced using the same binder system and addition rates as the industrial samples, achieving comparable physical and mechanical characteristics. Subsequently, the effects of binder dosage, DRI particle size distribution, curing conditions, and supplemental binders were investigated. Briquette performance was evaluated based on fines generation, crushing strength, tumble and abrasion indices, and melting behavior.

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