HOW FAST CAN WE GO - THE STATUS OF OUR KNOWLEDGE OF THE RATES OF GAS-LIQUID METAL REACTIONS

Available information on the magnitudes of interfacial rates and the forms of rate laws is reviewed for several gas-liquid metal reactions of interest to iron and steelmaking. The relevance of some of the findings to present and proposed practical processes is briefly explored. Simple surface site blockage models provide a useful and reasonably consistent framework for the representation and analysis of the rate data, but it is found that the quantitative effects of the surface active elements, such as oxygen and sulfur, on the rates are reaction specific. Rationalization of these effects requires information on adsorption equilibria and phenomena beyond that provided by available surface tension studies.