How the steel industry is being revolutionised by advanced net zero solutions

To mark Energy Efficiency Day in the USA (October 5), read Sara Venkatesan 's thoughts on energy efficiency in this latest article.

A very recent NASA - National Aeronautics and Space Administration report states that the Arctic Sea ice has shrunk to an area about 4.67 million square metres, which is ~25% lower than the average recorded during this time of the year. This is a concerning fact, reminding us to revisit the degree of success of monumental Governmental and Industrial decarbonisation efforts to limit global warming to less than 1.5 °C in the recent years.

Industries consume about 33-35% of the total energy consumption in the USA, about 54% of total energy consumption globally, and account for 29% of global CO2 emissions. Energy efficiency, besides transition to renewable sources of power, will continue to play a key role in limiting global warming. Rapid industrial electrification and use of innovative technologies to maximise energy efficiency will be the undisputed path towards achieving decarbonisation and net zero goals. As a part of Frost & Sullivan's #decarbonisationtechnologies series, let us take a look at how the steel industry is being revolutionised by advanced #netzero solutions.

A major advantage of fossil fuel-based systems is that they can help achieve very high temperatures – a key requirement of the hard-to-abate sector, and a major impediment to industrial electrification.

Electric Arc Furnaces (EAF) can achieve higher melt rates per furnace surface area, and are more energy efficient. The EAF process of steel making from scrap was implemented by several in the industry, replacing the conventional BF-BOF process, which is energy-intensive, and burns fossil fuels. The industry has now taken a step further to introduce renewable power and green hydrogen into the equation.

Thanks to innovations by companies like Tenova , Midrex Technologies, Inc. and 蒂森克虏伯 , #GreenSteel is now a reality. For instance, Tenova’s processes integrate advanced decarbonisation solutions like green hydrogen, Electric Arc Furnaces, waste heat recovery, and thermal energy storage into the steelmaking process to help steel makers produce zero carbon steel. Electric Arc Furnaces are heated to 1350°C -1650°C during the steelmaking process, and Tenova’s iRecovery systems recover the thermal energy from these furnaces and either convert it into steam using a waste heat boiler, and use it to run turbines to generate additional electricity, or re-use the heat in the melting process maximizing energy efficiency.

The top three global steel makers are now Tenova’s clients besides several other global steel makers.

Yet another disruptive technology that is all set to revolutionize the steelmaking industry is the #moltenoxideelectrolysis. High-temperature/low-temperature electrolysis is now being used to reduce iron ore to steel. Boston Metal has patented the molten oxide electrolysis (MOE) process for steelmaking, and expects to start producing at scale after 2025. 安赛乐米塔尔集团 , on the other hand, is pilot testing a low-temperature electrolysis technology called the electrowinning process to produce green steel. According to Boston Metal, one ton of green steel by electrolysis requires 4 MWh of renewable source of power compared to 5.5 MWh of coal required by conventional processes for steel making. Supplementing fossil fuel-based steel making facilities with Carbon Capture, Utilisation, and Storage (#CCUS) units, will only drive costs higher, building a strong case for adopting this technology to go green.

Given about 7–9% of global CO2 emissions are from the #steelindustry, #greensteel is a major breakthrough in global efforts for industrial decarbonisation and energy efficiency.

You can read the full report on innovative decarbonisation technologies here.?Growth opportunities in industrial electrification are covered in this report.