Extracting iron

• Raw materials for extracting iron

  Iron ore, coke, limestone
• Iron ore


  • Contains iron
• Coke


  A fuel, almost pure carbon, used to produce carbon monoxide for the reduction of iron oxide to iron metal
• Limestone


  Removes impurities in the form of slag
• Reducing the iron ore to iron

  1. Hot air is blasted into the furnace

  2. Coke burns in a combustion reaction to produce CO2

  3. CO2 reacts with unburnt coke to form CO

  4. Carbon monoxide reduces the iron ore to iron

  5. The iron is molten at this temperature and runs to the bottom of the furnace where it is tapped off
• Removing impurities


  1. Sand is still solid at 1500°C and would stay mixed in with the iron

  2. Limestone is decomposed by the heat into calcium oxide and CO2

  3. Calcium oxide reacts with the sand to form calcium silicate (slag), which is molten and can be removed
• The main impurity is sand
• Limestone removes the impurities