How is your work coming along?

At the moment I am working on methods for agglomerating the fine granulate into briquettes that can be used in the manganese ferroalloy production. The production of raw materials which later become HCFeMn, produce a huge amount of fines that are deposited into tailing dams. The grain with fine sizes harms the SAF operation and should thus be avoided. The fines contain a mixture of manganese-, iron- and silicon-oxides, as well as other trace elements.

So, the motivation for your project is increased production then?

The motivation for the project is actually an environmental one. Like Brazilian producers of alumina, the manganese producers place waste products in tailing dams that have been proven to be a potential hazard. The accident in Mariana and recently Alunorte, has made the world more aware of the risk and potential consequences of such spills. This has also urged the Brazilian government to act, to avoid future environmental disasters. At the same time, manganese is an important export for Brazil, so there are good reasons for bringing this waste product back into the production loop.

It is vital that whatever solution I come up with is low cost, which usually means few steps. The solution must be economically viable for the industry to adopt. For that reason, I am primarily researching briquetting. Other forms of agglomeration, like sintering and pelleting require heating, which increases the cost of the process significantly. Government incentives might also help, but at the moment Brazil has little or none such systems for grants.

Well, it seems you have your hands full with your research the next year. Changing the subject; You have been in Norway for almost two months now, how do you like it?

Before I came here I was a bit scared of the cold. It is very different from Brazil, where we usually have temperatures between 25 and 35 degrees C. Norway in March was very different, with temperatures around -10 degrees. The snow was also somewhat of a challenge, the ground was very slippery for a long time. It is gone now, but I am still baffled by some Norwegians approach to the cold weather. Someone I know went camping when the temperature was bordering on 0 degrees!

So, have you been engaging in some activities on your free time so far?

In Brazil almost everyone play football, me included. Since it has been quite cold here so far, I have been playing some indoors football with a group, which has been a new and fun experience. I am hoping to get to play outdoors throughout the summer.

That sounds great. We hope you enjoy your time here in Norway and wish for a fruitful cooperation through the year.