CHALLENGES DURING ORES SINTERING PROCESS AND POSSIBLE IMPACT OF THE USE OF ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE

The sintering process has been used for years to agglomerate ores to prepare the material for better operations in furnaces. Many research works have been conducted at bench scale and upscaled to industrial. The composition of the raw material, the homogenization of the feed, the challenges due to granulometry, moisture content, the distribution of gases in the burden, the impact of the fuel on the morphologies obtained in the sinters have been largely investigated. During sintering, fossil fuels such as coke breeze and coal are used for combustion to supply the required heat. From the combustion process gas emissions ensue. These gases may contain CO, CO2, NOx, SOx including volatile organic matters that are found in the fuel. Although some of the gases recondense on their way out of the sinter strand, mitigating technologies have not stopped being lurched for. Improvements were made but many challenges remain, and more efforts are required to not only better the quality of sinters produced but reduce the level of pollution. The current paper discusses some challenges and aspects such us the punctual inhomogeneity of the burden, the variability in oxygen potential in each point of the burden which influence the formation of phases present in the final sinters therefore their properties that need more understanding, pollution due to the use of fuel used and required solutions. The use of fourth industrial revolution as key element in the improvement on prediction and a fast-tracking response not only to the quality of the burden, sinters produced but also the lowering of pollution during sintering process.