Venezolana de Prerreducidos Caroní, C.A. VENPRECAR, a subsidiary of International Briquettes Holding (IBH), is a company engaged in the production of hot briquetted pre-reduced iron, through the process of direct reduction, MIDREX. The Venprecar plant started operations in 1990, with an initial capacity of 660,000 MT/ year. In October 1994, the first enhancement of the plant to 715,000 MT/year was made; and in October 1998 the second capacity increase was executed, to reach the current installed capacity of 815,000 MT/year. Near 80% of Venprecar's production is destined to the export market, especially to the United States and Europe. ADVANTAGES OF USING THE VENPRECAR BRIQUETTE - Low residual element level, which favors the production of quality steels. - Due to its high density it allows the reduction of storage areas and it also facilitates the handling and melting in the electric arc furnaces. - It favors high nitrogen contents in steel. - The granulometry / grain sizing of the briquette enables the continuous feeding of the electric arc furnaces, which reduces the time between pourings and the plant´s energy consumption. - It favors the formation of foamed slag/scum - It provides chemical stability over time and few metallization losses during storage. DESCRIPTION OF THE PROCESS The Venprecar plant operates with the direct reduction process MIDREX. The reduction furnace is fed with pellets and lumps of iron ore. This mix continuously descends due to the effect of gravity. In the middle part of the reactor, the reducing gas -which is rich in carbon monoxide and hydrogen- is injected and enters the interior of the reactor in backward flow to the mineral mix. The gas reacts with the iron oxide (FE2O3) and removes the oxygen converting it into metallic iron. The resulting pre-reduced iron is compacted by the briquetting machine at temperatures above 700º C. The briquettes are cooled and passivated with water and air before they are stored and subsequently delivered to the clients. QUALITY OF THE VENPRECAR BRIQUETTE Total Fe 91.5% mín. Metalic Fe 85.5% mín. Metalization 93.5% mín. Carbon 1.5% mín. Gangue 4.6% máx True Specific Gravity >5g/cm3 Bulk Density 2.4-.8 t/m3 Granulometry (> 4mm) 98% DIRECT REDUCTION PROCESS .