From time immemorial, charcoal was the reductan't used for the production of metals; iron was no exception. In the blast furnace charcoal was gradually replacement by coke started in the 19th century. Until as late as 1960 even in Europe there was still a charcoal blast furnace in operation in Sweden. Today, however, pig iron production in the charcoal Mini Blast Furnaces (MBF) is an exclusive feature of merchant iron production in Brazil. At present about 150 merchant charcoal blast furnaces are in operation in Brazil, with working volumes between 80 and 320m~3 operated by more than 60 companies. In addition, there are another eight units producing hot metal for integrated steel plants. Also, in Paraguay there are two charcoal blast furnaces in operation. Table 1 presents Brazilian pig iron production from 2000 to 2005, with the share of charcoal-based iron, and exports. It illustrates the economic importance of this branch of the iron and steel industry for the country, liable 2 shows the consumption for charcoal in Brazil for iron making.
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