Characterization and Mössbauer spectroscopy of steel slag generated in the ladle furnance in SIDERPERU steel plant

Abstract

<jats:title>Abstract</jats:title><jats:p>The steel industry produces large amounts of slag coming from different stages during the steelmaking process every year. Currently, there are numerous attempts to recycle it or to use it in some other industry sectors and to preserve the environment. The characteristics of the slag depends on the steelmaking process and it is crucial to have it before any attempt of recycling. In this work, slag sample produced in the ladle furnace from SIDERPERU steel plant were collected and analyzed by using energy dispersion X-ray (EDX), X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy (XRF), SQUID magnetometer and Mössbauer spectroscopy. The chemical analysis obtained by EDX and XRF indicate that the main elemental composition of the material is Fe, Ca, Si and Cr. XRD identifies that these elements are in the phases: FeO, Fe<jats:sub>3</jats:sub>O<jats:sub>4</jats:sub>, α-Fe<jats:sub>2</jats:sub>O<jats:sub>3</jats:sub>, Ca<jats:sub>2</jats:sub>SiO<jats:sub>4</jats:sub>, and Ca<jats:sub>2,32</jats:sub>Mn<jats:sub>0,68</jats:sub>SiO<jats:sub>7</jats:sub>. Magnetometry measurements suggest the Verwey transition for magnetite and the Morin transition for hematite are screened by the presence of superparamagnetic phases. The Mössbauer spectrum shows two doublets related to Fe<jats:sup>2+</jats:sup> and Fe<jats:sup>3+</jats:sup> ions with hyperfine parameters belonging to that of non-stoichiometric wustite. Also, the presence of hyperfine fields characteristic of the Fe<jats:sub>3</jats:sub>O<jats:sub>4</jats:sub> and Fe<jats:sub>2</jats:sub>O<jats:sub>3</jats:sub> phase identified at room temperature verifies the magnetometry analysis. The analysis of the sample used in this work reveals details connected with the steel fabrication processes and are helpful for posterior recycling attempts.</jats:p>