Nippon Steel Corporation started the operation of a dust recycling plant based on
technologies of the rotary hearth furnace. The Kimitsu plant has a large 180,000
ton-per-year capacity. New technologies of pellet making, zinc recovery, iron oxide
reduction, DRI pellet sintering, etc. are developed and adopted. The dust and sludge are
reduced and transformed in almost zinc-free DRI pellets that are strong enough for the
BF charge. This plant has solved the problem of the increase in zinc load of the BF
when charging dust and sludge.