The present invention relates to a briquette manufacturing apparatus
which manufactures briquettes by compressing a reduction body containing direct reduced Iron (DRI). More particularly, the present invention relates to a briquette manufacturing apparatus having a structure that supplies a reduction body containing direct reduced iron using a plurality of screw feeders.
10 [Background Art]
Recently, in order to solve a problem regarding a blast furnace process, coal for general use has been directly used as fuel and a reducing agent In ironworks throughout the world, and the ironworks have expended great efforts to develop a direct iron ore smelting reduction process that manufactures molten
15 iron by directly using fine ore as an iron source, which accounts for 80 % or more of production of iron ore in the whole world.
A facility for the direct iron ore smelting reduction process, which manufactures molten iron by directly using fine ore, includes a fluidized reduction furnace, a briquette manufacturing apparatus, and a gasification
20 melting furnace connected thereto. The fine ore and auxiliary raw materials are reduced at room temperature while sequentially passing through the fluidized reduction furnace having three stages. Direct reduced iron is compressed to form a briquette (hot compacted iron (HCI)) by the briquette manufacturing

apparatus, and is loaded into the gasification melting furnace.
The briquette manufacturing apparatus includes a loading hopper which supplies the direct reduced iron, a feeding box which is connected to a lower end of the loading hopper, a pair of rolls which manufactures a briquette by 5 compressing the direct reduced iron, and a pair of cheek plates which are disposed at respective side ends of the rolls. Accordingly, the direct reduced iron flows into a space between the feeding box, the rolls, and the cheek plates, and is compressed while passing between the rotating rolls so as to be fomied as a briquette.
10 The briquette manufacturing apparatus is developed as a double screw
type in which a width in an axial direction of the roll gradually becomes greater, and two screw feeders are disposed in the axial direction of the roll in order to improve productivity. In the case of the aforementioned structure, production of the briquettes may be increased by about two times or more in comparison with
15 a single screw type.
However, the structure in the related art has a problem in that there is a high possibility of interruption in which a production process is not continuously performed. That is, since the direct reduced iron is supplied by the two screw feeders, a large amount of direct reduced iron is supplied right below the screw
20 feeders, but a relatively small amount of direct reduced iron is supplied to a middle portion of the rolls between the screw feeders.
Therefore, the direct reduced iron may not be properly compressed at a central portion of the rolls where a small amount of direct reduced iron is supplied. Therefore, there is a problem in that the direct reduced Iron in the

form of powder flows downward as it is through the central portion of the rolls, such that a process of producing the briquette is not continuously performed, and an excessive amount of direct reduced iron is lost.
The above information disclosed in this Background section is only for
5 enhancement of understanding of the background of the invention and therefore
it may contain information that does not form the prior art that is already known
in this country to a person of ordinary skill in the art,
[DISCLOSURE]
[Technical Problem]
10 The present invention has been made in an effort to provide a briquette
manufacturing apparatus, in which direct reduced iron may be properly
compressed on whole surfaces of rolls despite a non-uniform supply amount of
direct reduced iron.
(Technical Solution]
15 An exemplary embodiment of the present invention provides a briquette
manufacturing apparatus including: a loading hopper which supplies a reduction body containing direct reduced iron; a feeding box which is connected to a lower end of the loading hopper; a pair of rolls which are coupled to a lower end of the feeding box, and manufacture a briquette by compressing the reduction body 20 containing direct reduced iron; and a pair of cheek plates which are coupled to the feeding box and disposed at both side ends of the rolls, in which the roll has a plurality of cup portions which are an^anged and formed to have a shape that is concave to the inside of a surface of the roll, and a depth of the cup portion,

which is formed at a central portion in an axial direction of the roll, is different from a depth of the cup portion formed at a peripheral portion.
The depth of the cup portion formed at the central portion of the roll may be relatively smaller than the depth of the cup portion formed at the peripheral 5 portion.
The cup portions formed at the central portion of the roll may have the same depth.
The depth of the cup portion formed at the central portion of the roll may
be 30 % to 70 % of the depth of the cup portion at the peripheral portion.
10 The depth of the cup portion formed at the central portion of the roll may
be gradually increased from a middle point of the roll toward the peripheral portion.
At least two screw feeders may be provided in the loading hopper, and
each screw feeder may be disposed in the axial direction of the roll.
15 The central portion of the roll may be a region between the screw feeders
provided in the loading hopper.
The central portion of the roll may be formed to be 10 % to 50 % of the
entire length in the axial direction of the roll.
[Advantageous Effects]
20 As described above, according to the present exemplary embodiment,
the direct reduced iron may be properly compressed even at the central portion in the axial direction of the roll, thereby minimizing a discontinuous manufacturing process.
In addition, a loss amount of direct reduced iron may be minimized.

In addition, production of the briquette may be maximized because of a continuous manufacturing process. [Description of the Drawings]
FIG. 1 is a schematic view illustrating a briquette manufacturing 5 apparatus according to the present exemplary embodiment.
FIG. 2 is a schematic cross sectional side view of the briquette manufacturing apparatus according to the present exemplary embodiment.
FIG. 3 is a schematic cross-sectional view illustrating a roll of the briquette manufacturing apparatus according to the present exemplary 10 embodiment.
FIG. 4 is a schematic cross-sectional view illustrating a roll of a briquette manufacturing apparatus according to another exemplary embodiment. [Mode for Invention]
The present invention will be described more fully hereinafter with 15 reference to the accompanying drawings, in which exemplary embodiments of the invention are shown. It can be easily understood by those skilled in the art to which the present invention pertains that the following exemplary embodiments may be modified to various fonns without departing from the concept and the scope of the present invention. In the drawings, like reference 20 numerals refer to (ike or similar parts as much as possible.
The technical terms used herein are merely for the purpose of describing a specific exemplary embodiment, and are not intended to limit the present invention. Singular expressions used herein include plural expressions unless they have definitely opposite meanings. The terms "comprises" and/or
5

"comprising" used in the specification specify particular features, regions,
integers, steps, operations, elements, components, but do not preclude the
presence or addition of other particular features, regions integers, steps,
operations, elements, components, and/or groups thereof.
5 All terms used herein including technical or scientific terms have the
same meanings as meanings which are generally understood by those skilled in the art. Terms defined in advance shall be construed such that they have meanings matching those in the context of a related art, and shall not be construed with ideal or excessively formal meanings unless they are clearly
10 defined in the present application.
FIGS. 1 and 2 schematically illustrate a briquette manufacturing apparatus according to the present exemplary embodiment.
A structure of the briquette manufacturing apparatus 100 illustrated in the drawings is merely for exemplifying the present invention, and the present
15 invention is not limited thereto. Therefore, the form of the briquette manufacturing apparatus may be modified to various other structures. Particularly, a loading hopper 110 may have various other structures in addition to a double screw type of structure in which two screw feeders 112 are disposed in parallel, such that a reduction body containing direct reduced iron (hereinafter
20 referred to as direct reduced iron for ease of description) may allow it to flow to a pair of rolls 10.
As illustrated in FIG. 1, the briquette manufacturing apparatus 100 of the present exemplary embodiment includes the loading hopper 110 which supplies direct reduced iron, a feeding box 120 which is connected to a lower end of the

loading hopper 110, a pair of rolls 10 which are coupled to a lower end of the
feeding box 120 and that manufacture a briquette by compressing the direct
reduced iron, and a pair of cheek plates 130 which are coupled to the feeding
box and disposed at respective side ends of the rolls 10.
5 The direct reduced iron is loaded into the loading hopper 110 through an
opening 114 positioned at the center of an upper portion of the loading hopper 110. The screw feeders 112, which discharge the direct reduced iron flowing into the loading hopper 110 to a portion between the rolls 10 disposed at a lower side of the screw feeders 112, are installed in the loading hopper 110. Two
10 screw feeders 112 form a pair, and are disposed to be spaced apart from each other at the left and right sides in an axial direction of the rolls 10 based on a center of the rolls 10. The screw feeders 112 are rotated by operation of a motor, and forcedly discharge the direct reduced iron, which is collected at the lower side by gravity, toward the rolls.
15 The lower end of the loading hopper 110 is coupled to the feeding box
120. The pair of rolls 10 and the cheek plates 130, which cover the both side ends of the rolls 10, are coupled to the lower portion of the feeding box 120. The pair of rolls 10 manufacture a briquette by compressing the direct reduced iron that is discharged from the loading hopper 110 by the screw feeders 112.
20 The pair of rolls 10 are formed to correspond to each other, and are disposed to be spaced apart from each other so as to form a gap.
Because the two rolls have the same structure, the roll 10 indicates either one of the two rolls, or indicates both the rolls.
The roll 10 has a structure in which a plurality of cup portions 12, 14, and

16, which are concavely recessed, are continuously formed in a surface of the
roll 10. Using the gap between the rolls 10 and the cup portions formed in the
surfaces of the rolls 10, the rolls 10 compress the direct reduced iron and
manufacture a briquette having a surface in the form of a convex strip.
5 Here, the present apparatus 100 uses the wide rolls 10 having a length
that is long in the axial direction, thereby uniformly supplying the direct reduced iron to the rolls 10 using the two screw feeders 112. However, it is difficult to entirely uniformly supply the direct reduced iron in the axial direction (in a y-axis direction in FIG. 1) of the rolls 10 even though the two screw feeders 112 are
10 used. Particularly, a small amount of direct reduced iron is supplied in a region between the screw feeders 112, and as a result, the compression may be improperly performed.
The rolls 10 of the present apparatus increase force for compressing the direct reduced iron in the region between the screw feeders, such that the
15 briquette may be manufactured even if a small amount of direct reduced iron is supplied.
FIG. 3 illustrates a roll structure of the present apparatus. As illustrated in FIG. 3, the roll 10 according to the present exemplary embodiment has a structure in which a depth h of the cup portion 14 formed at a
20 central portion C in the axial direction of the roll 10, among the cup portions 12 formed in the surfaces of the roll, is relatively smaller than a depth H of the cup portion 12 formed outside the central portion. Here, a region outside the central portion C is referred to as a peripheral portion S. in addition, the depth of the cup portion is defined as a distance from an outer surface of the roll 10 to a

bottom of the cup portion toward the center.
The cup portions 14 formed at the central portion C of the roll 10 may all have the same depth h. Accordingly, all of the cup portions 14 formed at the central portion C have the depth h that is smaller than that of the cup portion 12 5 formed at the peripheral portion S. The depth h of the cup portion 14 at the central portion C may be set depending on an amount of direct reduced iron flowing to the central portion C and a range of the central portion C. In the present exemplary embodiment, the depth h of the cup portion 14 formed at the centra) portion C may be 30 % to 70 % of the depth H of the cup portion 12
10 formed at the peripheral portion S.
In a case in which the depth h of the cup portion 14 formed at the central portion C is smaller than 30 % of the depth H of the cup portion 12 formed at the peripheral portion S, an interval between the two rolls is too small, such that when the direct reduced iron having large-sized particles is loaded, the interval
15 between the rolls instantaneously becomes greater, and the possibility of discontinuous production is increased. In addition, in a case in which the depth h of the cup portion 14 formed at the central portion C exceeds 70 % of the depth H of the cup portion 12 formed at the peripheral portion S, the direct reduced iron is not properly compressed at the central portion.
20 (n the present exemplary embodiment, the range of the central portion C
of the roll 10 may be a region between the two screw feeders 112 provided in the loading hopper 110. A portion indicated by a dotted circle in FIG. 3 is a portion disposed right below the screw feeders 112 of the loading hopper 110, that is, a region where the direct reduced iron is supplied through the screw feeders 112.

In this case, the central portion C is formed in a region between the portions right below the screw feeders 112 which is indicated by the dotted circle. The peripheral portion S of the roll 10 is a region except for the central portion C of the roll 10, and means a region between the central portion C of the roll 10 and 5 both tips of the roll 10. In the present exemplary embodiment, the peripheral portion S is formed in a region indicated by the dotted circle where the direct reduced iron is supplied by the screw feeders.
In addition to the aforementioned structure, the central portion C of the roll 10 may be formed at the center of the roll 10 in the axial direction of the ro[l
10 10 within a range that is 10 % to 50 % of the entire length. By repeated experiments, it has been confirmed that when the direct reduced iron is supplied by the two screw feeders 112, a problem regarding an insufficient supply amount of direct reduced iron becomes severe within the aforementioned range. In a case in which the range of the central portion C is less than 10 % of the entire
15 length, there is a region where the direct reduced iron may not be properly compressed. In a case in which the range of the central portion C exceeds 50 % of the entire length, a supply amount of direct reduced iron is more than the depth of the cup portion, such that the briquette becomes thicker, is not continuously formed, and breaks at the middle thereof. In addition, there is a
20 problem in that a size of a region of the roll occupied by the central portion is too large, and as a result, the total amount of production of the briquette is decreased.
As described above, in the roll 10 of the present apparatus 100, because the depth h of the cup portion 14 at the central portion C where a small amount
10

of direct reduced iron is supplied is also small, the compression force may be maintained at a relatively high level even in the case of a small amount of direct reduced iron. Therefore, the compression is properly performed even at the central portion C of the roll 10 where a small amount of direct reduced iron is 5 supplied, such that the briquette may be continuously manufactured.
This may be confirmed by a shape of the briquette that is manufactured while passing through the rolls 10. Since the cup portions 12 and 14 formed In the roll 10 have a shape that is concave toward the inside of the roll 10, the briquette, which is formed by being compressed between the rolls 10, is
10 manufactured in a shape that is outwardly convex. Accordingly, the rolls 10 manufacture the briquette having different cross-sectional thicknesses at the central portion C and the peripheral portion S. Since the roll 10 has a relatively small depth h of the cup portion 14 at the central portion C, the briquette has a thickness at a portion corresponding to the central portion C of the roll 10, which
15 is relatively smaller than thicknesses at other portions. That is, the cross-sectional thickness of the briquette manufactured at the central portion C of the roll 10 is relatively small. The small cross-sectional thickness of the briquette means that an amount of direct reduced iron required to manufacture the briquette is relatively small. Therefore, the thickness of the briquette
20 becomes small at the central portion C of the rod 10, but the briquette may be normally manufactured using a smaller amount of direct reduced iron in comparison with the peripheral portion 8.
FIG. 4 illustrates another exemplary embodiment of the present apparatus.
11

In the exemplary embodiment, the present apparatus 100 has the same
configuration as the aforementioned structure except for a structure of the roll 10.
The same constituent elements will be indicated by the same reference
numerals, and detailed descriptions thereof will be omitted,
5 As illustrated in FIG. 4, in the roll 10 of the present exemplary
embodiment, the depth h of the cup portion 16, which is formed at the central portion C in the axial direction of the roll 10 among the cup portions 12 formed in the surface, is relatively smaller than the depth H of the cup portion 12 formed at the peripheral portion S, and becomes gradually greater from a middle point I
10 toward the peripheral portion S of the roll 10.
In the present exemplary embodiment, the depth h of the cup portion 16 formed at the central portion C of the roll 10 is smallest at the middle point i of the roll 10, that is, at the middle point I of the central portion C, and the depths become gradually greater toward the peripheral portion S, and finally become
15 the same as the depth of the cup portion 12 formed at the peripheral portion S. The cup portions 16, which are formed at the central portion C, are symmetrically formed at both sides based on the middle point I. Here, the gradual increase in depths of the cup portions 16 includes both an increase in a linear functional manner and an increase in a quadratic functional manner. In addition, the
20 depth of the cup portion 16 formed at the middle point I of the central portion C may be varied depending on an amount of direct reduced iron flowing to the central portion C and the range of the central portion C, but the present invention is not particularly limited thereto.
Accordingly, because the depth h of the cup portion 16 at the central
12

portion C where a small amount of direct reduced iron is supplied is also small, the roll 10 of the present exemplary embodiment may maintain high compression force even in the case of a relatively small amount of direct reduced iron. Therefore, the compression may be properly performed even at 5 the central portion C of the roll 10 where a small amount of direct reduced iron is supplied, such that the briquette may be continuously manufactured.
Here, since the direct reduced iron is pushed in from the peripheral
portion S of the roll 10 to the central portion C, a supply amount of direct reduced
iron is smallest at the middle point I of the central portion C of the roll 10, and the
10 supply amount is gradually increased toward the peripheral portion S.
Accordingly, in the roll 10 of the present exemplary embodiment, since the depth
h of the cup portion 16 formed at the central portion C of the roll 10 is varied in
accordance with the supply amount of direct reduced iron, the compression of
the direct reduced iron may be optimized at each position. That is, the supply
15 amount of direct reduced iron is gradually decreased from the peripheral portion
S toward the middle point I of the roll 10, and the depths h of the cup portion 16
at the central portion also gradually becomes smaller toward the middle point I,
thereby compressing the direct reduced iron. The supply amount of the direct
reduced iron is smallest at the middle point I of the central portion C, and the
20 depth of the cup portion 16 is also smallest at the middle point I, and as a result,
the briquette may be manufactured using only a small amount of direct reduced
iron by applying compression force.
As described above, even though the reduction body containing direct reduced iron is not uniformly supplied, the present apparatus 100 may prevent
13

10

the direct reduced iron, which is not compressed, from being discharged in the form of powder over the entire region of the roll 10, and may continuously manufacture the briquette.
While this invention has been described in connection with what is presently considered to be practical exemplary embodiments, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiments, but, on the contrary, is intended to cover various modifications and equivalent arrangements included within the spirit and scope of the appended claims.

WE CLAIM:-
A briquette manufacturing apparatus comprising:
a loading hopper which supplies a reduction body containing direct reduced iron; a feeding box which is connected to a lower end of the loading hopper; a pair of rolls which are coupled to a lower end of the feeding box, and that manufacture a briquette by compressing the reduction body containing direct reduced iron; and a pair of cheek plates which are coupled to the feeding box and disposed at both side ends of the rolls,
wherein the roll has a plurality of cup portions which are arranged and formed to have a shape that is concave to the inside of a surface of the roll, and a depth of the cup portion, which is formed at a central portion in an axial direction of the roll, is different from a depth of the cup portion formed at a peripheral portion.

15
[Claim 2]
The briquette manufacturing apparatus of claim 1, wherein the depth of the cup portion formed at the central portion of the roll is relatively smaller than the depth of the cup portion formed at the peripheral 2Q portion.
[Claim 3]
The briquette manufacturing apparatus of claim 2, wherein
15

cup portions formed at the central portion of the roll have the same depth.
[Claim 4]
5 The briquette manufacturing apparatus of claim 3, wherein
the depth of the cup portion formed at the central portion of the rod is 30 % to 70 % of the depth of the cup portion at the peripheral portion.
[Claim 5]
10 The briquette manufacturing apparatus of claim 2, wherein
the depth of the cup portion formed at the central portion of the roll is gradually increased from a middle point of the roll toward the peripheral portion.
[Claim 6]
15 The briquette manufacturing apparatus of any one of claim 2 to claim 5,
wherein
at least two screw feeders are provided in the loading hopper, and each screw feeder is disposed in the axial direction of the roll.
20 [Claim 7]
The briquette manufacturing apparatus of claim 6, wherein the central portion of the roll is a region between the screw feeders provided in the loading hopper.
16

[Claim 8]
The briquette manufacturing apparatus of claim 6, wherein the central portion of the roll is formed to be 10 % to 50 % of the entire 5 length in the axial direction of the roll.