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Here's Something That Can Be Made from Iron Ore, and It Isn't Steel
08/04/2016 - A company commercializing a process to make synthetic graphite from iron ore and natural gas has released the characterization results of test batch, saying that it produced a product with a total graphite content of 99 percent.
Australia-based Hazer Group Ltd. said that conducting the trial and obtaining the results are important steps forward as it looks to scale up its so-called Hazer process, which it is developing at the University of Sydney.
The company said the tests were done in large-scale laboratory reactors, and the results will provide a solid base on which to refine the yield and quality of the graphite produced through the process.
"Hazer is extremely pleased with these initial results and believes this will provide a strong platform for further growth, through both optimization of the core reaction conditions and as we undertake further application testing of Hazer's graphite for batteries and other key graphite markets," said Hazer managing director Geoff Pocock in a statement.
The process works by breaking down methane into its two components, hydrogen and carbon, through a chemical reaction, with iron ore as a catalyst.
“Natural gas is predominantly methane, which is 75 percent carbon by weight … and we are capturing that value by getting those elemental products in a cost-effective manner," Pocock told the The Australian Financial Review in an interview last year.
While the company works on refining the process, it is designing a pilot plant that will be capable of producing “hundreds of kilograms” of combined hydrogen and graphite products per day, the company said.
The plant project is to begin next year.
The company said the tests were done in large-scale laboratory reactors, and the results will provide a solid base on which to refine the yield and quality of the graphite produced through the process.
"Hazer is extremely pleased with these initial results and believes this will provide a strong platform for further growth, through both optimization of the core reaction conditions and as we undertake further application testing of Hazer's graphite for batteries and other key graphite markets," said Hazer managing director Geoff Pocock in a statement.
The process works by breaking down methane into its two components, hydrogen and carbon, through a chemical reaction, with iron ore as a catalyst.
“Natural gas is predominantly methane, which is 75 percent carbon by weight … and we are capturing that value by getting those elemental products in a cost-effective manner," Pocock told the The Australian Financial Review in an interview last year.
While the company works on refining the process, it is designing a pilot plant that will be capable of producing “hundreds of kilograms” of combined hydrogen and graphite products per day, the company said.
The plant project is to begin next year.
