Ferro Manganese: An Essential Steel Alloying Element

Ferro Manganese

Ferro manganese is a ferroalloy composed primarily of manganese and iron. It is produced through carbothermic reduction of mixtures of manganese oxide and iron in a blast furnace. The reduced manganese is dissolved in the iron melt during manufacture. Ferro manganese provides both manganese and iron to steel making operations and contains between 65-90% manganese depending on the steel product being produced.

Key Properties and Uses

As one of the basic alloying elements of steel, manganese increases steel strength, hardness, stiffness and wear resistance without significantly reducing ductility. The manganese acts to reduce the melting point of slag in steel production and promote the removal of undesirable gases like oxygen from the liquid steel. Medium-carbon and specialty steels require manganese content in the range of 0.5-1.5%, respectively. These alloys are strengthened by the manganese through solid-solution and precipitation hardening effects.

The predominant use of it is for iron alloying in steelmaking. It is used in both basic oxygen furnace (BOF) and electric arc furnace (EAF) steel production. In BOF steelmaking, around 60-70% of the total manganese requirement is fed via inclusion of it. The remaining portion comes from other scrap and direct reduced iron (DRI) inputs. In the EAF route, essentially all manganese requirements are met through addition of it and other alloying supplements like ferromanganese-silicon. Around 95% of commercially manufactured steel contains manganese additions supplied by it.

Ferro Manganese Production Methods

There are two established routes for producing Ferro Manganese - the blast furnace process and the submerged arc furnace process. The blast furnace process, also known as the silicothermic process, introduces a solid charge of manganese ore, iron ore and coke into the top of a blast furnace. Air is blown into the lower part of the furnace and the molten reduced metal collects at the bottom. This yields a product generally in the range of 65-80% manganese.

The submerged arc furnace has a more versatile design allowing for greater control over operating parameters like temperature. Here, the charge materials of manganese and iron oxides, coke and sometimes quartz are fed continuously into an electric arc furnace. The furnace operates at higher temperatures than the blast furnace to fully melt the charge. Submerged arc furnace-produced it usually contains 80-90% manganese content.

Energy is a major factor in its production with the blast furnace process being relatively more energy intensive. Other comparative advantages of submerged arc furnace (SAF) technology include a higher recovery rate of manganese, less slag generation and the ability to use lower grade manganese ores compared to blast furnaces. Most modern production facilities utilize the SAF method and many older blast furnace operations have been phased out.

Market for Ferro Manganese

Its consumption globally tracks closely with overall steel output trends. The top consuming countries are China, Japan, India, United States and Russia owing to their large crude steel industries. China accounts for over half of the world's usage alone even as manganese ore resources are limited within the country. As such, China imports large volumes of manganese ore and ferro manganese to satisfy its mammoth steel requirements.

South Africa has around 80-85% share of the world's seaborne manganese ore trade and thus exerts strong influence over manganese alloy pricing. The country's exports have risen steadily over the past decade in line with expanding international sales of its manganese resources. Other major exporters worldwide are Ukraine, India and South Korea. Prices for bulk cargoes are benchmarked off the South African manganese ore cargo price assessment.

Future Outlook

With steel expected to remain the predominant construction material globally, long-term ferro manganese demand growth is premised on growing steel use. Factors like steel recycling rates could impact manganese intensity over the long run. Forecasts project global steel demand to increase around 2-3% annually through 2030 at least. This should translate to reasonably steady growth opportunities for its producers and suppliers worldwide to keep pace with alloy needs.

Manganese resource ownership concentration has some bearing on it pricing volatility. On the production front, further shifts towards cheaper and more energy-efficient submerged arc furnace production are likely. Attention on minimizing environmental impacts from slag disposal and dust control will also persist as an area of ongoing improvement for ferro manganese manufacturers. Overall, it is forecast to retain its relevance as a critical steel alloying ingredient for the foreseeable future.

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