Thermal beneficiation of refractory iron ore

Thermal beneficiation refers to the processes where iron ores are pretreated at high temperatures to achieve desired liberation in subsequent separation. During these processes, the weakly magnetic iron ores are typically converted into ferromagnetic magnetite by magnetizing roasting or metallic iron by deep reduction, which can be readily separated from gangue by magnetic separation. Thermal beneficiation is recognized as the most promising method for upgrading refractory iron ore and has therefore received increasing attention and many variants of thermal beneficiation processes have been developed. Compared with conventional beneficiation methods, thermal beneficiation is characterized by a high Fe grade product at high Fe recoveries and low production costs. This chapter focuses on the fundamental and laboratory research, industrial applications, and future developments of thermal beneficiation processes.