Iron Oxidation:

Oxidation of iron i.e. reaction 1 is the most important since it controls

• FeO content of slag and oxygen content of steel
• Loss of iron in slag and hence affects productivity
• Oxidation potential of slag

In addition to the above FeO also helps in dissolution of lime in slag.
Consider the reaction


The equilibrium constant  is

	(6)
h is henrian and a is raoultian activity.  Since Fe in steel is pure; , and
	(7)
	(8)
In equation 8, T is in K. By equations 6, 7 and 8 we get
	(9)