Microbial Beneficiation of Salem Iron Ore Using Penicillium purpurogenum.

High alumina and silica content in the iron ore affects coke rate, reducibility, and productivity in a blast furnace. Iron ore is being beneficiated all around the world to meet the quality requirement of iron and steel industries. Choosing a beneficiation treatment depends on the nature of the gangue present and its association with the ore structure. The advanced physicochemical methods used for the beneficiation of iron ore are generally unfriendly to the environment. Biobeneficiation is considered to be ecofriendly, promising, and revolutionary solutions to these problems. A characterization study of Salem iron ore indicates that the major iron-bearing minerals are hematite, magnetite, and goethite. Samples on average contains (pct) FeO-84.40, Fe (total)-59.02, AlO-7.18, and SiO-7.53. Penicillium purpurogenum (MTCC 7356) was used for the experiment . It removed 35.22 pct alumina and 39.41 pct silica in 30 days in a shake flask at 10 pct pulp density, 308 K (35 °C), and 150 rpm. In a bioreactor experiment at 2 kg scale using the same organism, it removed 23.33 pct alumina and 30.54 pct silica in 30 days at 300 rpm agitation and 2 to 3 l/min aeration. Alumina and silica dissolution follow the shrinking core model for both shake flask and bioreactor experiments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]