A database for hydrogen and gas mixtures reduction of iron ore pellets: process conditions, pellet properties, and reduction rates

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.30544/MMD90

Abstract

A standardized database of iron ore pellet reduction experiments was prepared from published literature data. The database contains 144 experimental records and 109 structured columns, covering reduction under H₂, CO and mixed-gas atmospheres. Each record includes literature metadata, pellet geometry, reduction temperature, gas composition, flow and pressure conditions, pellet chemistry, selected structural parameters, kinetic/model descriptors and standardized conversion–time trajectories. Reduction curves reported only in graphical form were digitized and converted into fixed 40-point α–t trajectories, enabling direct comparison, kinetic fitting and machine-learning analysis.

The database shows good coverage of pellet chemistry, gas composition, flow conditions and reduction curves. However, important descriptors such as induration temperature, holding time, initial and final porosity, pellet structure and directly comparable kinetic parameters are often missing in the original literature. This confirms that the field contains valuable experimental data, but that reporting practices remain fragmented.

The database is intended to support shrinking-core modelling, estimation of effective diffusivity and apparent reaction coefficients, comparison of reduction behavior in different gas atmospheres and development of data-driven models for hydrogen-based ironmaking. The complete dataset is openly available through Zenodo, while the present paper documents its structure, coverage, limitations and recommended reporting standard for future pellet-reduction studies.

 

Data availability

The complete dataset described in this paper is available through Zenodo: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.20603367 (Manojlović 2026). The repository contains the Excel database in its first public release, v1.0.0, with 144 standardized records. Users should cite both the Zenodo dataset and this descriptive paper when using the data.

Keywords:

iron ore pellets; hydrogen reduction; direct reduction; pellet reducibility; shrinking-core model; kinetic modelling; machine learning; database; porosity; induration
Supporting Agencies
This research was funded by China’s key R&D program project “China–Serbia Belt and Road joint laboratory construction and joint research project for green steel manufacturing” (No. 2024YFE0215000).

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Graphical Abstract

Published

09-06-2026

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Articles