How is silicomanganese produced from manganese ore?

Silicomanganese is produced through the smelting of manganese ore with coke and a quartz flux, typically in an electric furnace. Alternatively, it can be produced by smelting slag derived from high-carbon ferromanganese.12

The process requires higher temperatures than those used in standard ferromanganese production because significant energy is needed to reduce the quartz to silicon. During this smelting process, silica can be reduced to silicon, which then enters the molten metal. The resulting alloy generally contains 65 to 68 percent manganese, 16 to 21 percent silicon, and 1.5 to 2 percent carbon.12

The presence of silicon in the alloy significantly lowers its carbon content. For applications requiring even lower carbon levels (less than 0.1 percent), silicomanganese can be resmelted with additional coke and quartz. This refined product is subsequently used as a reducing agent in the manufacture of low-carbon ferromanganese.13