About ferrochrome

Ferrochromium or ferrochromium (FeCr) is an iron alloy,an alloy of chromium and iron,usually containing 50-70% chromium.Ferrochrome is produced from chromite ore by arc carbothermal reduction.Most of the global production comes from countries with rich domestic chromite resources such as South Africa, Kazakhstan and India.The numbers from Russia and China are increasing.Steel production, especially the production of stainless steel with a chromium content of 10-20%,is the largest consumption and main application of ferrochrome.

Usage 

More than 80% of the world's ferrochromium is used to produce stainless steel.In 2006,the production of stainless steel was 28 million tons.The appearance and corrosion resistance of stainless steel depend on chromium.The average chromium content in stainless steel is approx.18%.Also used to add chromium to carbon steel.Ferrochromium from South Africa,known as "charge chrome", is made from a low-carbon ore containing chromium and is most commonly used in stainless steel production.Alternatively,high-carbon ferrochromium produced from high-grade ores found in Kazakhstan (and elsewhere) is more commonly used in specialty applications,such as engineering steels,with high Cr/Fe ratios and minimal levels of other elements (sulfur,phosphorus,titanium,etc.).Production of finished metals is important in small electric arc furnaces compared to large blast furnaces.

Production

Ferrochromium production is essentially a carbothermal reduction operation at high temperature.Chromite (oxides of Cr and Fe) is reduced by coal and coke to form iron-chromium alloys.The heat for this reaction can come from a variety of sources,but usually comes from the arc formed between the bottom electrode tip and the hearth.This arc produces a temperature of approximately 2,800 °C (5,070 °F).A large amount of electricity is consumed in the smelting process,making production very expensive in countries with high electricity costs.Remove material from furnace intermittently.When enough molten ferrochromium has accumulated in the furnace,the taphole is drilled,and the molten metal and slag flow into the cooler or ladle along the slot.Ferrochrome solidifies in large castings that are crushed for sale or further processed.Ferrochromium is generally classified by its carbon content and chromium content.The vast majority of ferrochrome produced is "charge chromium" from South Africa,with high carbon being the second largest,followed by a smaller portion of low and medium carbon materials.