Ferrosilicon is used in the steelmaking industry as a deoxidizer and alloying agent, and ferrosilicon is used in the foundry industry as a inoculant and nodularizing agent, while steelmaking and casting are the basic heavy industries in China, so it is necessary to understand the raw material additives used in heavy industry.

Ferrosilicon is a ferroalloy composed of iron and silicon.

Ferrosilicon is also called silicon [ xī ] iron. It is an iron-silicon alloy made of coke, steel scraps, quartz (or silica) as raw materials and smelted in an electric furnace. It is widely used in the steel industry, foundry industry and other industrial production.

Common grades: 65#, 75A#, 75B#, hard 75# (silicon ≥75%)

The commonly used content is shown in the following table (the conventional AL content is below 2.0):

Commonly used ferrosilicon chemical table (according to GB/T2272-2009)

Common state: natural block, thickness of about 100mm. (Whether there are cracks in the appearance, whether the color fades when touched by hand, whether the knock is crisp, and the thickness cross-section is grayish-white, with pores)

Precautions: Ferrosilicon is afraid of moisture, and the natural block is easy to pulverize when exposed to water, and the silicon content will be reduced.

1. It is used as deoxidizer and alloying agent in steelmaking industry. In order to obtain steel with qualified chemical composition and ensure the quality of steel, deoxidation must be carried out in the final stage of steelmaking, and the chemical affinity between silicon and oxygen is very large, so ferrosilicon is a strong deoxidizer for precipitation and diffusion deoxidation in steelmaking. Adding a certain amount of silicon to the steel can significantly improve the strength, hardness and elasticity of the steel, so ferrosilicon is also used as an alloying agent when smelting structural steel (containing silicon 0.40-1.75%), tool steel (containing SiO.30-1.8%), spring steel (containing SiO.40-2.8%) and silicon steel for transformers (containing silicon 2.81-4.8%). At the same time, improving the form of inclusions and reducing the content of gas elements in molten steel is an effective new technology to improve steel quality, reduce costs and save iron. It is especially suitable for the deoxidation requirements of continuous casting molten steel, and practice has proved that ferrosilicon not only meets the deoxidation requirements of steelmaking, but also has the advantages of desulfurization performance and specific gravity and strong penetration.

In addition, in the steelmaking industry, ferrosilicon powder is often used as a heating agent for ingot caps to improve the quality and recovery rate of steel ingots by taking advantage of the fact that ferrosilicon powder can release a large amount of heat when fired at high temperatures.

2. It is used as inoculant and nodularizing agent in the cast iron industry. Cast iron is an important metal material in modern industry, it is cheaper than steel, easy to melt and smelt, has excellent casting performance and much better seismic resistance than steel. In particular, the mechanical properties of ductile iron are at or near those of steel. Adding a certain amount of ferrosilicon to cast iron can prevent the formation of carbides in iron and promote the precipitation and nodularization of graphite, so in the production of ductile iron, ferrosilicon is an important inoculant (to help precipitate graphite) and nodularizing agent.

3. It is used as a reducing agent in the production of ferroalloys. Not only is there a great chemical affinity between silicon and oxygen, but also the carbon content of high-silicon ferrosilicon is very low. Therefore, high-silicon ferrosilicon (or siliceous alloy) is a reducing agent commonly used in the production of low-carbon ferroalloys in the ferroalloy industry.

4. 75# ferrosilicon is often used in the high-temperature smelting process of magnesium metal in the Pijiang method of magnesium smelting, replacing the magnesium in CaO.MgO, and consuming about 1.2 tons of ferrosilicon for every ton of magnesium metal, which plays a great role in the production of magnesium metal.

5. Other uses. Finely ground or atomized ferrosilicon powder can be used as a suspended phase in the mineral processing industry. It can be used as a coating for welding rods in the electrode manufacturing industry. High-silicon ferrosilicon can be used in the chemical industry to make products such as silicone.

Among these applications, the steelmaking industry, the foundry industry, and the ferroalloy industry are the largest users of ferrosilicon. Together, they consume more than 90% of ferrosilicon. Among the various grades of ferrosilicon, 75% ferrosilicon is currently the most widely used. In the steelmaking industry, about 3-5kg of 75% ferrosilicon is consumed for every 1t of steel produced.

The transportation packaging of ferrosilicon mainly includes ton bags and container bags. These packages have the characteristics of moisture-proof, waterproof, wear-resistant and durability.

Ton bag: A ton bag, also known as a flexible container, is a kind of container unit used for transporting bulk, powdery and granular materials. It has a simple structure, light self-weight, can be folded, occupies less space during emptying and is inexpensive. The shape of a ton bag can be cylindrical, square, conical or folded, and the lifting methods include top, bottom and side. The filling weight ranges from 0.5 tons to 3 tons, and the volume ranges from 0.5 cubic meters to 2 cubic meters.

Container bag: Container bags are usually used for the container transportation of bulk goods and have greater carrying capacity and stronger durability. They can be customized in various specifications and colors and are suitable for various production and living scenarios, such as chemical plants, cement plants, feed mills, etc.