Method of melting reduced metal dust

Claim 1

THE CONTINUOUS METHOD FOR MELTING WITHOUT SIGNIFICANT CHANGE IN CHEMICAL COMPOSITION, FINELY DIVIDED SPONGE IRON PARTICLES PRODUCED BY REDUCTION OF AN IRON ORE AT A TEMPERATURE BELOW THE FUSION POINT OF THE METAL, WHICH COMPRISES DISCHARGING SAID REDUCED SPONGE IRON PARTICLES INTO A CONFINED ZONE THROUGH WHICH IS CONTINUOUSLY PASSED A HIGHLY HEATED GASIFORM MATERIAL COMPRISING H2, H2O, CO AND CO2 SO PROPORTIONED THAT THE CO2 CONTENT OF SAID GASIFORM MATERIAL REPRESENTS LESS THAN ABOUT 35% OF THE COMBINED CO CO2 CONTENT AND THE H2O CONTENT OF SAID GASIFORM MATERIAL REPRESENTS LESS THAN 70% OF THE COMBINED H2O AND H2 CONTENT, WHEREBY THE SAID GASIFORM MATERIAL IS NON-OXIDIZING IN RESPECT TO THE SAID SOLID PARTICLES, MAINTAINING THE TEMPERATURE LEVEL OF THE RESULTING MIXTURE OF THE GASIFORM MATERIAL AND THE INTIALLY SOLID MATERIALS ABOVE THE FUSION TEMPERATURE OF SAID INITIALLY SOLID IRON PARTICLES WHEREBY FUSION OF SAID INITIALLY SOLID IRON IN GASEOUS SUSPENSION OCCURS IN A RELATIVELY SHORT PERIOD OF TIME AND SEPARATING THE MOLTEN PHASE FORMED BY SUCH FUSION FROM THE GASIFORM MATERIAL AND CONCENTRATING SAID MOLTEN PHASE INTO A POOL OF MOLTEN MATERIAL.