Patent ID: 8726537

Claim:
A method for continuous sintering of pelletized mineral material, in which method pellets are provided on a sintering underlay ( 1 ) to form an essentially even pellet bed ( 2 ) with a predetermined thickness; the pellet bed ( 2 ) is conveyed on the sintering underlay ( 1 ) through process zones (I-VII) having different temperatures, including at least one drying/heating/sintering zone (I, II, III) and thereafter at least two cooling zones (V, VI, VII), and during the conveying process, gas is conducted through the pellet bed ( 2 ) as the pellet bed proceeds through the process zones, characterized in that gas is allowed to circulate on top of the pellet bed ( 2 ) between two adjacent cooling zones (V, VI; VI, VII) in order to equalize the pressure therebetween.