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Developed under the helm of steel producer ArcelorMittal, a pilot plant in France is currently testing this innovative steelmaking process aiming at zero carbon emissions.
Johncockerill.com/industry
DECARBONIZING THE STEEL INDUSTRY WITH SIDERWIN
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Steel Times International SUSTAINABLE STEEL STRATEGIES SUMMIT 2022 1
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3 Welcome by Matthew Moggridge, programme director. Meet our sponsors. Conference programme. Speakers biographies. Decarbonizing steel in Europe. 3600 approach to sustainable steel production. Steel’s seriously green credentials. Low CO2 in blast furnace ironmaking. Carbon neutrality: the industry’s goal. Molybdenum: essential for wind turbines. From waste gases into dollars Green steel with open bath furnaces. Building a greener future. An industry in revolution.
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Contents
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Welcome
MatthewprogrammeMoggridge,director.
Welcome to the Sustainable Steel Strategies Summit 2022. While this is the second – and last – of our virtual sustainability summits, the event will be going live in the United Arab Emirates in March next year, so if you fancy a couple of days in the sun, make sure that you register for the Abu Dhabi conference just as soon as something appears online; and if you think you have something to say about sustainable steelmaking then please let me know as the hunt for speakers is now on.
I hope you all enjoy the conference and look forward to meeting you in the UAE in March 2023.
Sustainable steelmaking, decarbonization, hydrogen steelmaking, carbon capture and storage, green hydrogen, carbon footprint, electric steelmaking... there are many words and phrases that are putting themselves about as the buzzwords and phrases of the global steel industry’s developing new world order. These words (and others) you will likely encounter within the pages of this supplement. You will certainly find them at the conference itself, which I can assure you offers two days of top notch presentations from some of the industry’s leading experts in the field.
There are many highlights to this our last virtual summit and every presentation is exceptional, but I am extremely pleased to welcome Philip Bell, president of the US-based Steel Manufacturers Association who will be opening the conference with a presentation on low carbon steelmaking in the USA where almost 70% production comes out of an electric arc furnace.
2 SUSTAINABLE STEEL STRATEGIES SUMMIT 2022 Steel Times International
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Produce steel more sustainably. Starting today.
Besides supporting the hydrogen revolution and fossil-free steelmaking, there’s so much steelmakers can do, starting today, to reduce energy consumption, resource usage and carbon emissions, and make real progress towards short and medium term sustainability goals. Our metals industry experts help you select and apply relevant offerings from ABB’s broad portfolio, so that you can produce steel more sustainably abb.com/metals
For further information, visit www.danieli.com
Carmeuse
Danieli
ABB
Carmeuse has extensive expertise in the use of its products in steelmaking and in mineral loop solutions, building value from waste and by-products. It offers a full solution for lime supply and use.
Carmeuse is a global leader in performance materials and services with core competencies in mining, equipment, and engineering solutions. The company optimizes its customers´ processes, improves safety and provides reliable supply; being a vital part of global industries. It sets standards for sustainable business practices, and is a rock-solid family of over 4,500 employees spread across almost every continent.
Lime plays an important role in steelmaking, especially for the slag making process, leading to sustainable and clean steel production, and a reduced CO₂ footprint. Carmeuse is the right partner to support the steel industry in achieving its sustainability goals.
ABB is a trusted partner and leading supplier to the metals industry, offering a complete range of products, services and end-to-end solutions that improve productivity, quality, safety, cost-efficiency and sustainability in iron, steel, aluminium and other metals production processes. With over a century of experience, ABB’s offerings are expertly tailored and highly process-specific, serving the entire industry from mines to material yards and from primary manufacturing to casting, rolling and processing lines. Across the whole metals value chain ABB demonstrates a commitment to optimizing operations with high performance products and digital solutions.Forfurther information, visit www.new.abb.com/metals
For further information, visit www.carmeuse.com
Specialized in turnkey projects, leader in minimills and long products, among the front runners in steel production complexes for flat products and tubes, and aluminium strip, Danieli is a major player in steel plant supply worldwide. Innovative technology, automation, process know-how, design and manufacturing carried out through fully owned centres that guarantee product quality and on-time deliveries, make Danieli a reliable partner. Ten thousand people operate in the Group companies located in Italy, Germany, Sweden, Austria, France, The Netherlands, Spain, UK, USA, Brazil, Russia, Thailand, China, India and Japan. Its average turnover is over €2 billion, and its investments in research and development amount to €140 million per year (average for the last five years).
Fero Labs
Fero Labs makes factory optimization software that is powering the next wave of steel manufacturing. Since launching in 2015, Fero Labs has built actionable machine learning for the steel sector to optimize production, reduce waste, and improve quality. With offices in New York and Düsseldorf, Fero Labs aligns with leading global steelmakers to increase profitability by up to 10%, cutting waste with confidence to increase sustainability and profits across entire enterprises.Forfurther information, visit www.ferolabs.com
4 SUSTAINABLE STEEL STRATEGIES SUMMIT 2022 Steel Times International PROFILESCOMPANY
Smart Steel Technologies
software line offers an end-to-end approach for the overall supply chain, caring for all the needs of the primary metals industry. From supplier to customer, PSImetals offers powerful and highly configurable standard products to support all processes from planning to execution while respecting the complexity of metal production.
Its vast experience in the fields of engineering, international project management and sourcing enables it to provide innovative and global technical solutions tailored to the needs of a customers’ industrial complex, or specific
PSI Metals
For further information, visit www.hystorenergy.com.
PSI is the leading partner for digital production in the metals industry combining SCM, APS and MES within one service platform – PSImetals. Its software solutions enable producers of aluminium and steel products to ensure their competitive edge by delivering products as agreed in quantity, quality and time while considering inventory, productivity and performance targets.PSImetals’
For further information, www.smart-steel-technologies.comvisit
John Cockerill’s offering for the steel industry comprises of: reheating furnaces, pickling lines, acid regeneration plants, cold rolling mills, strip processing lines and automation.
For further information, visit www.psimetals-de
Smart Steel Technologies (SST) supports the steel industry in the transformation towards intelligent AI-supported optimised production. SST delivers AI software products that boost quality, improve energy demand, and ensure accurate management of CO₂ efficiency. Leading steel manufacturers in Germany and abroad successfully use SST software throughout the production process. The range covers the production of high-quality automotive exposed grades to maximising efficiency in the construction steel sector. SST excels in a portfolio of professional AI-powered optimization packages, which lead to a permanent performance increase of 5-10% per process stage in 24/7 use. At the same time, SST accompanies the steel manufacturer from the integration of the software to the complete achievement of any optimization goals with a high service level. To make this happen, SST relies on its well coordinated team of outstanding metallurgists, process experts, and AI specialists.
John Cockerill
Hy Stor Energy is facilitating the transition to a fossilfree energy environment by developing and advancing renewable hydrogen at scale through the development, commercialization, and operation of renewable hydrogen hub projects. The company defines green hydrogen as only that which has been produced from renewables – as set forth by the Green Hydrogen Organisation. Large, fully integrated projects produce, store, and deliver 100% carbon-free, energy, providing customers with safe and reliable renewable energy on-demand. Developed as part of an integrated hub, these projects couple on-site renewable hydrogen production with integrated long-duration storage and distribution – using scale to reduce costs. Hy Stor Energy, led by energy storage industry and hydrogen technology veteran Laura L. Luce, has an innovative team with deep expertise and is positioned as a leader in the renewable hydrogen revolution.
Steel Times International SUSTAINABLE STEEL STRATEGIES SUMMIT 2022 5
John Cockerill Industry supplies sustainable innovative technologies for cleaner and smarter steel, making production more sustainable and decarbonizing the steel industry. For over 200 years, John Cockerill (formerly known as CMI) endeavours to improve the performance of production facilities while making them more resource-efficient and environmentally friendly.
For further information, visit www.johncockerill.com
Still today, the company is combining talent and technology, history and modernity, engineering, and services, which help it to accompany steelmaking clients in their digital transformation journey and their transition to responsible, zero carbon steel making.
HyPROFILESCOMPANYStorEnergy
equipment. John Cockerill operates all over the world and offers customized lifecycle services: design and set-up, aftersales services and spare parts, transformation and upgrading, and training and remote support.
Welcome to the Sustainable Steel Strategies Summit 2022 by Matthew Moggridge, editor of Steel Times International and programme director of the conference.
Steel and iron ore’s decarbonization roadmap in a 2050 net-zero scenario by Isha Chaudhary, principal analyst, steel and raw material markets, and Mihir Vora, principal analyst, steel and raw material markets, Wood Mackenzie.
10:00 - 10:05hrs
Low Carbon Steel Production in the USA - Proven Technology and Proven Results by Philip Bell, president of the Steel Manufacturers Association.
12:20 - 12:38hrs| Fundamental Research for Decarbonizing the Steel Industry by professor Zushu Li, Advanced Steel Research Centre, WMG, University of Warwick, UK.
6 SUSTAINABLE STEEL STRATEGIES SUMMIT 2022 Steel Times International PROGRAMMECONFERENCE
Day TuesdayOne:20 September
12:00 - 12:20hrs
10:10Opening1031hrsKeynote:
10:31-1052hrs
10:52 -11:11hrs
Defossilization – Through the Looking Glass by Dr Sara Hornby, founder and president, Global Strategic Solutions.
11:35 - 11:58hrs
Clean Steel Partnership - the accelerator towards Sustainable Steel Production in Europe by Klaus Peters, secretarygeneral, ESTEP; Enrico Malfa, research and development director, Tenova; and Johannes Rieger, area manager (raw materials and metallurgical processes) at K1-Met.
Options to increase the sustainability of EAF steelmaking by Dr.-Ing Thomas Echterhof, director at the Department for Industrial Furnaces and Heat Engineering, RWTH Aachen University, Germany.
Decarbonize steel and Ferroalloys while producing sustainable aviation fuels and chemicals by Sanjeev Manocha, business development director , Lanzatech.
15:45 - 16:04hrs
How Iron Ore Companies Plan to Decarbonize their Mining Trucks Fleet by Stanislav Zinchenko, chief executive officer, GMK Center, Ukraine-based industrial think tank.
15:15 - 15:25hrs
15:25 -15:45hrs
Iron and Steelmaking – Transformation for Sustainability by Dr. Rizwan Janjua, head of technology, World Steel Association.
Steel Times International SUSTAINABLE STEEL STRATEGIES SUMMIT 2022 7
LUNCH AND NETWORKING BREAK
The importance of trust for the adoption of machine learning in steel, by Berk Birand, founder and CEO, FeroLabs. [This is a change from the originally advertised presentation].
12:40 - 12:51hrs
14:15 - 14:37hrs
PROGRAMMECONFERENCE
AI-drive temperature control at Marienhütte Graz: Energy savings and improved process control by Dr. Thomas Griessacher and Dr. Jan Daldrop, Smart Steel Technologies.
16:05HRS| CONFERENCE CLOSES
Unlocking green steel – how the UK can reinvigorate, decarbonize and futureproof the steel industry by Marian d’Auria, global head of risk and sustainability, GFG Alliance.
Responsible Steel – building a more sustainable steel industry by Annie Heaton, CEO, Responsible Steel.
14:40 -14:57hrs
15:00 - 15:11hrs
8 SUSTAINABLE STEEL STRATEGIES SUMMIT 2022 Steel Times International PROGRAMMECONFERENCE
Hydrogen-ready Energiron : the way to zero GHG emissions by Hertrich Ashton, sales engineer, Danieli Centro Metallics.
21st Century Steel for Packaging by Alexis Van Maercke, secretary-general of the Association of European Producers of Steel for Packaging (APEAL).
11:40 - 11:53hrs
Expanded recycled refractory production to reduce the steel industry’s carbon footprint, by Martin Pischler, senior vice president, head of environment/energy at RHI Magnesita.
Day WednesdayTwo: 21 September
10:20 - 10:39hrs
11:05 - 11:25hrs
Sustainable steelmaking for the production processes of today and tomorrow by Mukesh Jain, global product manager, Metals Systems Solutions, ABB.
12:20 - 12:32hrs
LUNCH AND NETWORKING BREAK
10:40 - 11:03hrs
Digitally supported technologies to support sustainable steel production by Dr. Mojca Loncnar, sustainable development project co-ordinator, SIJ Acroni, SIJ Group.
Crafted Scrap – advanced technology for high quality green steel production by Heiner Guschall, founder and CEO of SICON Germany; Cristiano Tercelli, head of technology and Innovation, Primetals Technologies; and Andreas Melcher, product lifecycle manager, scrap yard automation, electrics and automation, Primetals Technologies.
10:00 - 10:20hrs
Artificial intelligent operators as an instrument to decrease fuel and electricity consumption, by Boris Voskresenskii, founder of Arcadia Steel.
12:35 -12:51hrs
PROGRAMMECONFERENCE Steel Times International SUSTAINABLE STEEL STRATEGIES SUMMIT 2022 9
360-degree approach to empower steel production by Dipl-Ing. Gunther Schober, business development at PSI Metals.
16:30 - 16:42hrs
Carmeuse, the right partner of steelmakers for green and sustainable steel by François Ponchon, European director of innovation and technology, Carmeuse Group.
16:00 - 1620hrs
16:45 - 17:06hrs
Hy Stor Energy’s Mississippi Clean Hydrogen Hub – green hydrogen production and storage at scale making green steel a reality today, by Claire Behar, chief commercial officer, Hy Stor Energy.
What needs to happen now to decarbonize steel by Wayne Bridger, UK sales manager for decarbonization and hydrogen applications, BOC.
15:00 - 15:22hrs
14:30 - 14:52hrs
Decarbonizing the hot rolling process by Alessandro Della Rocca, business development manager (hydrogen) at Tenova SpA.
17:10hrs| CONFERENCE CLOSES
Before joining APEAL in 2016, Alexis Van Maercke was policy officer at the European Commission. Prior to this, he spent five years in the European Parliament as political advisor to Marianne Thyssen, former commissioner for employment and social affairs. He holds a master’s degree in law from the University of Leuven in Belgium as well as a master’s in European interdisciplinary studies from the College of Europe in Warsaw, Poland.
10 SUSTAINABLE STEEL STRATEGIES SUMMIT 2022 Steel Times International PROFILESSPEAKER
MUKESH JAIN
APEALSECRETARY-GENERAL,MAERCKE
ALEXIS VAN
GLOBAL PRODUCT MANAGER, ABB
Mukesh Jain joined ABB in 1993 and has held roles in sales, project management and project execution and business development. In his current role, Mukesh drives ABB’s metals business forward by ensuring that global sales, product management, and product development focuses consistently on customer and industry needs.
BOSTONDEVELOPMENT,METAL
BUSINESS
Boris joined the Russian steel company in 2017 as head of data science and he became CDO in 2020. Since 2018 he has been a Kaggle competition master. Before that, Boris worked in data science in a bank and was a head of a risk management department.
Steel Times International SUSTAINABLE STEEL STRATEGIES SUMMIT 2022 11 SENIORADAMPROFILESSPEAKERRAUWERDINKVICEPRESIDENT,
Boris is a founder of Arcadia Steel and ex-CDO of a leading Russian steel company. He and a part of his team left Russia and quit their jobs because of their position on the Russian-Ukraine war.
Adam Rauwerdink leads the business development and market research team at Boston Metal. He has experience in development and finance in the energy industry. He was previously vice president of business development at SustainX, a vanadium flow battery company, and director of sales and engineering at Vionx, an energy storage company. Adam has a BS in engineering from the University of Connecticut and a PhD in engineering and innovation from Dartmouth.
BORIS
FOUNDERVOSKRESENSKIIOFARCADIA STEEL
CLAIRE BEHAR COMMERCIAL OFFICER, HY STOR ENERGY
Claire Behar is chief commercial officer at Hy Stor Energy, a renewable hydrogen and hydrogen storage company headquartered in Jackson, Mississippi. Before Hy Stor Energy, Claire ran fundamentals and trading strategies for the global gas team at Freepoint Commodities. She holds a B.S. in geological engineering from Cornell University.
François Ponchon is the European director of innovation and technology within the CARMEUSE Group, one of the world leaders in the manufacturing and marketing of lime. A graduate engineer with a master’s degree in materials science, he also holds a master’s in business management. François worked in the lime sector for more than 27 years in different functions, always in contact with both markets and customers. Since 2021, he has managed the innovation team for the development of new products and solutions in different markets.
CHIEF
12 SUSTAINABLE STEEL STRATEGIES SUMMIT 2022 Steel Times International PROFILESSPEAKER
FRANçOIS EUROPEANPONCHONDIRECTOR OF INNOVATION AND TECHNOLOGY, CARMEUSE
#turningmetalsgreen
At SMS group, we have made it our mission to create a carbon-neutral and sustainable metals industry. We supply the technology to produce and recycle all major metals. This gives us a key role in the transformation towards a green metals industry.
14 SUSTAINABLE STEEL STRATEGIES SUMMIT 2022 Steel Times International PROFILESSPEAKER
ASHTON HERTRICH GIRALDO SALES DANIELIENGINEER,CENTROMETALLICS
ENRICO THE EUROPEAN STEEL TECHNOLOGY PLATFORM, ESTEP
• Member of the Clean Steel Partnership Board
• Member of AIM (the Italian Association of Metallurgy) board
Enrico Malfa holds several institutional positions:
He is the author of more than 50 publications and 15 patents.
• Member of AFIL (the Association of Smart Factory in Lombardy Region) board
CHAIRMANMALFAOF
Enrico Malfa holds a degree in aerospace engineering, obtained at Politecnico di Milano (Milan, Italy) in 1987. He gained experience in international corporations in different industrial sectors, including Aermacchi (aerospace), Italcementi (cement) and ABB (Power), where he managed research and development teams. In 2002, he joined Centro Sviluppo Materiali (Centre for Materials Development), where he became responsible for the branch at Tenaris Dalmime. Currently, he is research and development director of Tenova, a Techint Group company, and a worldwide partner for innovative, reliable and sustainable solutions in metals and mining.
• Chairman of the European Steel Technology Platform (ESTEP)
With four years’ experience within the Danieli group, Ashton Hertrich Giraldo is currently working as a sales engineer for the Danieli Centro Metallics division, with business focused on the technologies of beneficiation, pelletizing and direct reduction of iron ores. He is currently dealing with proposals for DRP Energiron projects worldwide, taking care of the technical and commercial portion, and feasibility studies with a particular focus on customer demands.
Applying artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) algorithms to optimize energy consumption, productivity and quality in steel manufacturing has the potential to lower the carbon footprint without the need to invest into newAI-Basedequipment. Operating Model for Steel Save CO2, lift quality and increase efficiency along all process steps of steel production Smart Steel Technologies is the category leader for AI in steel. The company offers readyto-use software solutions for optimizing energy consumption, productivity and quality in steel manufacturing. The metallurgical expertise and process know-how of Smart Steel Technologies’s team is programmed into the core of its software. Metallurgically or technically irrelevant conclusions are avoided from the start. Get in Touch: Smart Steel Technologies GmbH Willi-Schwabe-Straße 1, 12489 Berlin, Germany Phone: +49 30 403 673 720 Email: request@smart-steel-technologies.com USA SmartOffice:Steel Technologies Inc. 4555 Lake Forest Dr, Suite 650 Cincinnati, OH 45242, USA Email: request@smart-steel- technologies.com
16 SUSTAINABLE STEEL STRATEGIES SUMMIT 2022 Steel Times International PROFILESSPEAKER
ESTEPSECRETARY-GENERAL,PETERS
From 2011, Dr. Peters joined several working groups and committees within the European Steel Technology Platform (ESTEP) and oversaw international research projects and European funding of tkSE. In July 2015, he became secretary-general of ESTEP.
DR. KLAUS
Dr. Johannes Rieger studied at the Montanuniversität Leoben and achieved a master’s in industrial environmental protection with a special focus on process technology, and then continued his studies to obtain a PhD. Since 2015, Rieger has been employed at the metallurgical competence centre K1-MET, and is the manager of the research areas ‘resources and recycling’ and ‘metallurgical processes’. Rieger’s expertise is in the fields of process development, characterization and utilization of raw materials and residuals in the iron and steel industry as well as in the formation and control of pollutants in metallurgical processes. JOHANNES
He is a member of the Steel Advisory Group (SAG) of the Research Fund for Coal and Steel (RFCS). He is also the executive director of the Horizon Europe Clean Steel Partnership.
Dr. Klaus Peters qualified with a doctorate in engineering in 1993 and a state doctorate in 1998, then started his industrial career with thyssenkrupp Steel Europe (tkSE). His senior experiences include production, sales, quality and research and development – both on a national and international level.
DR.
RIEGER AREA MANAGER (RAW MATERIALS AND METALLURGICAL PROCESSES), K1-MET
SANJEEV BUSINESSMANOCHADEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR, LANZATECH
Berk is the CEO of Fero Labs, an industrial process optimization software company based in New York. He is passionate about helping large industrial companies advance their digital transformation goals using explainable machine learning. Birand holds a PhD in electrical engineering and computer science from Columbia University. His academic research focused on optimizing wireless and optical networks with efficient cross-layer algorithms. He developed scheduling algorithms for optimizing cellular base stations in 5G networks and has several patents in IoT systems for resilient fibre-optic networks.
FEROCEO,BERKPROFILESSPEAKERBIRANDLABS
Steel Times International SUSTAINABLE STEEL STRATEGIES SUMMIT 2022 17
Sanjeev Manocha is the business development director of LanzaTech, headquartered in Chicago, USA. Sanjeev joined LanzaTech earlier this year, having developed a passion to decarbonize industries. His focus is within steel, cement and energy-intensive industry sectors. In terms of his wider career, Sanjeev is a metallurgical engineer with an executive MBA, who started his working life in the iron and steel industry and has served in various executive positions across Europe, Asia Pacific and North America. In the later part of his career, Sanjeev moved to the lime industry. He has also served as a board member with various businesses and institutes.
TERCELLI HEAD
HEINER
PRIMETALSINNOVATION,TECHNOLOGIES
18 SUSTAINABLE STEEL STRATEGIES SUMMIT 2022 Steel Times International PROFILESSPEAKER
SICONFOUNDERGUSCHALLANDCEO,GERMANY
Heiner Guschall is the CEO and founder of SICON Germany and is responsible for sales activities and research and development at SICON, which uses an important portion of its annual investments to remain a leading company in the industry with regular beneficial innovations. As the inventor of numerous processes protected by patents — including the VW-SICON process — Guschall made significant contributions towards the recovery of shredder residue since 1997/98. Plants based on SICON’s inventions are nowadays located in many countries worldwide. SICON was founded in 1997 and since then has focused on the development and implementation of solutions for the processing and cleaning of scrap and metals. SICON’s goal is to improve the profitability of scrap utilization in the steel plant and the shredder process through innovative process improvements that improve meltshop efficiency.
Cristiano Tercelli is the head of technology and innovation at Primetals Technologies. With 25 years of experience in the steel industry, Tercelli has planned, sold, commissioned, and transformed innovative steelmaking equipment. Currently, he is responsible for developing new products in electric steelmaking and long rolling at Primetals Technologies. His goal is to support the production of high-quality steel with the best available technologies.
TECHNOLOGY
CRISTIANO OF AND
ANDREASPROFILESSPEAKER
MELCHER
With over 30 years of professional experience in electrics and automation in metallurgical plant construction, Andreas Melcher is part of product lifecycle management for scrap yard automation at Primetals Technologies. His collective experience in plant automation includes hardware and software engineering, commissioning, technical assistance, project management, sales, business development, and leadership in iron and steelmaking and continuous casting.
Gunther Schober graduated in 1994 as a metallurgical engineer with a focus on industrial and energy economics, at the Mining University of Leoben. After his first experience as sales engineer and sales manager, he took over management responsibility as head of sales and marketing for AVL DiTEST, an international automotive company. In 2007, he joined PSI Metals. As senior consultant, project manager and sales manager, his expertise in metals and international experience in process development and supply chain management is highly sought after.
Steel Times International SUSTAINABLE STEEL STRATEGIES SUMMIT 2022 19
With more than 15 years of experience in the field of production management solutions encompassing supply chain management and planning, product design, quality management, production execution and logistics, he has become a recognized expert in these areas. Gunther Schober’s expertise together with PSI Metals’ innovative approach make him a sought after contact for future solutions.
DIPL.-ING. GUNTHER SCHOBER SALES MANAGER, PSI METALS
PRODUCT LIFECYCLE MANAGER, SCRAP YARD AUTOMATION –ELECTRICS AND AUTOMATION, PRIMETALS TECHNOLOGIES
RESPONSIBLECEO, STEEL
20 SUSTAINABLE STEEL STRATEGIES SUMMIT 2022 Steel Times International PROFILESSPEAKER
Annie has also worked with several non-profit organisations, including Action Aid and Save the Children, where she developed several social development projects alongside industries. She also chairs a community energy company in Hertfordshire.
Annie has spent the past 30 years working on sustainability across both social and environmental issues. Most recently she spent nine years shaping ArcelorMittal’s sustainability agenda, leading on climate stakeholder initiatives, reporting and investor relations at the corporate level. Prior to this, she worked with the global renewable energy firm RES, both on their zero emissions head office and initiating their corporate responsibility programme as the company developed many gigaWatts of large and small-scale wind, solar and biomass projects across the world.
Martin started working for RHI Magnesita in 2008 and has outstanding knowledge in operations, quality management, and research and development in the refractory and mining industry. He is currently senior vice president and head of IMS, quality assurance and environment/ energy. Martin holds a PhD degree in technical chemistry from the University of Graz, Austria.
ANNIE HEATON
Annie graduated with a bachelor’s degree in politics, philosophy and economics from the University of Oxford. She loves cycling and the outdoors, and also enjoys art.
MARTIN PISCHLER SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT, RHI MAGNESITA
Our innovations aiming at decarbonizing the steel industry: E-QualCarbonCO2-free steel productionprocessSiderwin,FurnaceElectrification,Capture,HeatRecovery,JetVaporDeposition(JVD),®ElectricalSteelProcessingTechnologies steelandforTechnologiescleanersmartermaking Innovation is part of our Group’s DNA. For over 200 years John Cockerill Industry has demonstrated its ability to think differently and its capacity of seeing things from another angle. Still today, we are combining talent and technology, history and modernity, engineering and services. Virtues that help us to accompany our steelmaking clients in their digital transformation journey and their transition to responsible, zero carbon steel making. TrainLab™ Virtual reality & immersive e-training platform for considerably improved learning retention. Follow us on johncockerill.com/industry Eagle Eye Coating® A unique coatingintelligentandzinctechnology. JOHN INDUSTRYCOCKERILLMETALS Reheating FurnacesPickling AcidStripRegenerationColdRollingProcessingAutomation
Dr. Janjua holds a master’s degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Dalarna, Sweden, and a PhD in material sciences from the TU Bergakademie Freiberg, Germany. He joined the steel industry in 2002 and has been involved in process technology, product application, energy, recycling, process yield and maintenance and reliability. He is head of technology at the World Steel Association and is responsible for leading worldsteel’s activities in the fields of technology, manufacturing excellence, expert groups and benchmarking systems. He is secretary to the worldsteel Technology Committee (TECO), and leads the Step Up programme which is aimed at improvements in mill operations. He led the flagship project ‘Premature Wear of Copper Staves in Blast Furnaces’ investigating ways of extending campaign-life of blast furnaces by minimising stave wear – the outcomes are highly acclaimed and frequently cited in publications. He has represented the steel industry in technical discussions on energy and climate change at IEA, IRENA and OECD and reviewed several technical reports.
HEAD OF TECHNOLOGY, WORLD STEEL ASSOCIATION
Thomas Echterhof is academic director and deputy head of the Department for Industrial Furnaces and Heat Engineering at RWTH Aachen University, Germany. He received his PhD (Dr.-Ing.) in engineering science in 2010. He is heading the research group on mass and energy balances with a special emphasis on the sustainability of electric arc furnace steelmaking including circular economy aspects. His main research interests include the optimisation of energy and resource efficiency and environmental impact of energy and resource intensive processes (such as EAF steelmaking). He is also involved in teaching and is currently giving a lecture on electric arc furnace technology at RWTH Aachen University. He has authored or co-authored more than 70 scientific papers in journals and conference proceedings.
DR.-ING THOMAS ECKTERHOF ACADEMIC DIRECTOR, DEPARTMENT FOR INDUSTRIAL FURNACES AND HEAT RWTHENGINEERING,AACHEN UNIVERSITY
DR RIZWAN JANJUA
22 SUSTAINABLE STEEL STRATEGIES SUMMIT 2022 Steel Times International PROFILESSPEAKER
Mojca Loncnar, PhD, has more than 15 years of work experience in quality management, research and technology development, and the circular economy. She has acquired management experience in the research and development of steels and technologies and is an internal auditor of quality, environmental and laboratory quality management systems. She has many years of experience in obtaining grants from centralized and decentralized programmes of the European Union and is currently actively involved in projects in the field of digitalization, smart energy communities and the use of secondary raw materials. Mojca is the author of several international publications, including original scientific articles, and has presented and published several papers at scientific conferences.
Her involvement in applied research and development, new technology development and knowledge exchange, through networking with industry (especially operators), academia and students, OEMs and colleagues, has led to practice innovations and process optimization, especially for the steel industry.
DR. SARA HORNBY
Sara received her BSc(Hons) Metallurgy and her British Steel Corporation (BSC) sponsored Ph.D. in industrial metallurgy at Sheffield Hallam University, UK. Her UK cupola foundry, research and development, and Steelmill (Firth Brown Tools and BSC) experience provided a good basis for her career in North America, which began with over 17 years with air Liquide. This was followed by technology company management positions (Tenova Goodfellow, Midrex Technologies Inc., Linde Gases, Inteco PTI, TMS International) leading finally to her own consulting company, Global Strategic Solutions, Inc.
24 SUSTAINABLE STEEL STRATEGIES SUMMIT 2022 Steel Times International PROFILESSPEAKER
Sara holds five patents, has published over 127 papers, seminars and courses internationally and was the 2020 recipient of both the AIME AIST Benjamin F. Fairless Award and the AIST EF technical committee’s John Bell Award. She is an AIME Oral History participant, an interviewee for the Women in Steel books and is the Institute of Metals, Mining and Material’s (IoM3’s) 2022 Hadfield Medal recipient. As an active member of AIST and ISS, Sara has participated in the BOD, University/Industry Relations, Ironmaking, EAF Steelmaking, DRI Committees and was chairman of the Process Technology Division and the ISS BOD International Affairs Committee. Involvement in the latter led to IAS becoming an ISS (Now AIST) International Section. Challenged to consider a metallurgy career, Sara prides herself in being a trailblazer.
DR. MOJCA SIJPROJECTSUSTAINABLELONCNARDEVELOPMENTCO-ORDINATOR,ACRONI,SIJGROUP
FOUNDER AND PRESIDENT, GLOBAL STRATEGIC SOLUTIONS
Stanislav Zinchenko is the CEO of GMK Center, and a leading industry expert at the Center for Economic Recovery, and chair of the Committee for Environment and Sustainable Development of the European Business Association. Mr. Zinchenko has 15 years of experience consulting for manufacturing companies. He has expertise in operational management and logistics and is a team leader, consultant and analyst in international projects in the field of entrepreneurship, production efficiency, infrastructure and economics. Stanislav has a master’s in international economics at Kyiv National Economic University and also studied economics at the University of Konstanz in Germany. He is a certified REFA trainer and consultant at Bundesverband Darmstadt, Hessen in Germany.
STANISLAV ZINCHENKO GMKCEO, CENTER
ASSOCIATIONSTEELPRESIDENT,PHILIPPROFILESSPEAKERBELLMANUFACTURERS
Philip K. Bell is president of the Washington, DC based Steel Manufacturers Association (SMA). He is a 30-year steel industry veteran who has held multiple leadership roles throughout the steel industry supply chain with companies such as Elementis Chromium, Qualitech Steel, SGL Carbon and Gerdau. He received his BA degree from Texas A&M – Corpus Christi and his MA degree from the University of Florida.
Steel Times International SUSTAINABLE STEEL STRATEGIES SUMMIT 2022 25
BUSINESS
–TENOVAHYDROGEN,
ALESSANDRO
Alessandro Della Rocca works as a business development manager at Tenova SpA. He focuses on the development of energy transition opportunities in the metals industry, with particular attention to the decarbonization of heating furnaces. He has 13 years of experience in developing low-NOx high-efficiency combustion systems for reheating and heat treatment furnaces and is a board member of the Italian section of the Combustion Institute. He holds a PhD in mathematical engineering and a master’s in mechanical engineering both from the Politecnico di
ProfessorMilano.
DR. DELLA ROCCA DEVELOPMENT MANAGER
PROFESSOR
26 SUSTAINABLE STEEL STRATEGIES SUMMIT 2022 Steel Times International PROFILESSPEAKER
Zushu Li is a professor at the Advanced Steel Research Centre (ASRC), WMG of the University of Warwick, and leads the research in decarbonizing the steel industry. He joined the University of Warwick in 2016 under the prestigious EPSRC Manufacturing Fellowship after working for over nine years in Tata Steel (UK). Previously he worked in Japan and China. ZUSHU LI PROFESSOR AT THE ADVANCED STEEL RESEARCH CENTRE, WMG, UNIVERSITY OF WARWICK, UK
ISHA PRINCIPALCHAUDHARYANALYST, STEEL AND RAW MATERIAL MARKETS, WOOD MACKENZIE
Steel Times International SUSTAINABLE STEEL STRATEGIES SUMMIT 2022 27 WAYNEPROFILESSPEAKER
Wayne Bridger is the UK sales manager for decarbonization and hydrogen applications at BOC UK and Ireland. In a career spanning close to 30 years, he’s developed expertise in decarbonizing technologies and developing hydrogen supply chains. In recent trials, Wayne mobilised the largest hydrogen supply chain BOC has ever assembled. The project sought to demonstrate that hard to abate sectors could be decarbonized by switching production to hydrogen in high temperature processes such as glass and cement.
BRIDGER
UK SALES MANAGER FOR DECARBONIZATION AND HYDROGEN APPLICATIONS, BOC
With 14 years of experience in metals and mining, Isha drives research and analytics for steel and iron ore markets. She regularly engages with global miners, steelmakers, the lending community and industry associations on varied commodity research areas. Her specialties include demand and supply forecasting, price surveillance and short-term views, costing and investment analysis across the value chain. She is also ardently working on evaluating and forecasting the impact of decarbonization for miners and steelmakers.
MARIAN
PRINCIPALVORAANALYST, STEEL AND RAW MATERIAL MARKETS, WOOD MACKENZIE
GFGSUSTAINABILITY,ALLIANCE
Mihir has over11 years of experience tracking bulk commodities such as steel, iron ore and coking coal. He is a principal analyst covering steel and iron ore markets for East Asia (excluding China), Southeast Asia, and the Middle East and his responsibilities are focused on developing short- and long-term outlooks on demand, supply, price and investment. Mihir is passionate about the impact of the energy transition on bulk commodities. He leads steel decarbonization analysis at Wood Mackenzie, which involves developing net-zero scenario outlooks, investment forecasts and carbon abatement curves to achieve climate goals.
GLOBAL
28 SUSTAINABLE STEEL STRATEGIES SUMMIT 2022 Steel Times International PROFILESSPEAKER
Marian is the global head of risk and sustainability at GFG Alliance. Prior to joining GFG, she was a managing director at Redington and before that, led Deloitte’s trustee advisory team in London. Marian has over 20 years experience in risk management, sustainability, governance, and investment consulting. She is also a non-executive director of USS Limited and chairs its pensions committee. Marian is a fellow of the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries and has served two terms on its governing council, as well as sitting on its management board. She is a current member of the IFoA Sustainability Board. D’AURIA HEAD OF RISK AND
MIHIR
Dr. Thomas Griessacher has been steel plant manager at Stahl- und Walzwerk Marienhütte GmbH since 2013. Marienhütte is a highly specialized steelworks that stands by the region and its people.
Steel Times International SUSTAINABLE STEEL STRATEGIES SUMMIT 2022 29
Dr. Jan Daldrop is business unit lead (machine learning) at Smart Steel Technologies (SST) with a focus on the application of artificial intelligence algorithms to steelmaking. He is leading the development of the key software products of Smart Steel Technologies, which include SST Energy AI, SST Temperature AI, SST Casting AI, SST Rolling AI and SST Surface AI. JAN
DR.
DR.PROFILESSPEAKERTHOMAS GRIESSACHER
STEEL PLANT MANAGER, STAHL- UND MARIENHÜTTEWALZWERKGMBH
SMARTBUSINESSDALDROPUNITLEAD,STEELTECHNOLOGIES
*Managing director of the Austrian Mining and Steel Association
century’s most significant industrial inventions that instantaneously revolutionized the global steelmaking industry, and almost no other invention has had such an impact on global economic growth. More than two-thirds of the world’s steel today is produced using the LD process.
quality in a shorter time and in a much more cost-effective way. The major advantage of the LD process was a sustainable reduction in investment and operating costs of almost 50% compared to an open-hearth furnace, which was the best available technology up to this time. The LD process was one of the
ALMOST 70 years ago, Austrian company voestalpine developed a completely new technology, the Linz-Donawitz process (LD process), and brought the first steel plant, based on this new technology, into operation. The breakthrough technology enabled significantly more steel production of better
Decarbonizing steel in Europe
30 SUSTAINABLE STEEL STRATEGIES SUMMIT 2022 Steel Times International PERSPECTIVEEUROPEAN
The European steel industry is the most advanced of its kind in the world. For a long time, energy price levels in Europe have been significantly higher compared to other regions in the world. This has forced the European steel industry to optimize its processes, perma nently improve its efficiency, and invest in innovative production technologies to achieve a significant reduction in its overall production costs and enhance its competitiveness in international steel markets. By Roman Stiftner*
Carbonproducts.direct
completed – there must be a regulatory framework that ensures that the EU steel industry remains competitive compared to its global competitors. Most global competitors do not face anything close to the environmental standards or climate constraints of EU players – and as such, do not bear the costs. A suitable regulatory framework would serve to address this fatal and conceived handicap, both now and in the future.
This transition will require significant investment in new technological development and deployment, in energy infrastructure, consumption, and type, and will require access to high-quality materials, such as iron ore and scrap.
Smart carbon usage (SCU) includes:
As it is, Europe leads the way in environmental and climate performance. CO2 emissions and energy use in European steel production have been halved since 1960, and the sector has the ambition to further achieve cuts of between 80-95% by 2050, compared to 1990 levels.
Various conditions need to be in place to make this transformation happen. In particular, all the necessary ingredients for steelmaking need to be available in both quality and quantity. These include suitable raw materials, such as iron ore and scrap. It also means having access to sufficient low-CO2 energy sources, such as electricity and hydrogen, which must be available at commercially viable rates. The energy infrastructure that goes with it is also indispensable, as even cutting-edge, technologically advanced steelmaking facilities would be stranded without access to clean energy. During the transition, carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology may also be needed in order to support progress along the potential CO2 reduction pathway.
The average steel production costs of all primary steelmaking routes could increase by 35 -100% between 2015 to 2050 compared to the production costs of the retrofitted blast furnace/blast oxygen furnace route (BF/BOF). These figures account for the
There are two main technological pathways for greenhouse gas reductions in the steel sector. These are smart carbon usage (SCU) and carbon direct avoidance (CDA).
using the hydrogen, CO, and CO2 in steel plant gases or fumes as raw materials for the production of, or integration into, valuable
Finally – both during the transition and once the move to the low or carbon-neutral future of the sector has been successfully
The European steel industry’s energy requirements will rise significantly, and the key to a successful transformation will be access to reliable, affordable and clean energy. The reduction of greenhouse gases of 80-95% is only possible with CO2-free electricity and hydrogen available. However, an essential piece of the puzzle is the additional costs that these sources will entail. The projected investment needs are very high, and both the capital and operating costs of using them will lead to significant increases in production outlays.Thetotal annual costs of steel production in 2050, including both capital and operating expenditure are estimated to be between €80-120 billion. However, the individual cost impact depends on the production route and is significantly higher for the primary steel production routes compared to the cost impact for the overall steel industry.
Steel Times International SUSTAINABLE STEEL STRATEGIES SUMMIT 2022 31 PERSPECTIVEEUROPEAN
� Integration, which looks at modifications of existing ironmaking/ steelmaking processes based on fossil fuels that would help reduce the use of carbon within and thus the CO2 emissions of a stateof-the-art EU plant.
The European steel industry has established a clear set of pathway scenarios that will deliver this essential change for the sector, ensuring that Europe will remain on track to fulfilling its Paris Climate Accord requirements, while also making European steel fit for a clean, low-carbon future. This change is not an instantaneous shift, it is an iterative process that will require adjustments and a managed transition between different phases.
avoidance (CDA) includes:
� Carbon valorization or carbon capture and usage, which includes all the options for
� Hydrogen-based metallurgy, which uses hydrogen to replace carbon as the main reduction agent for the iron ore reduction stage. This hydrogen could be produced using renewable energy.
� Electricity-based metallurgy, which uses electricity instead of carbon as a reduction agent for the iron ore reduction, with a greater focus on renewable energy.
end product, allowing CO2 emissions to be avoided completely. The project involves voestalpine Stahl GmbH, voestalpine Stahl Donawitz GmbH, and the Montanuniversität Leoben.Thetransformation of the steel sector is being stalled by several key barriers that must be addressed with absolute priority. The use of the existing financial support options, such as Horizon Europe, partnerships, and the ETS Innovation Fund should be prioritized to the greatest possible extent. This would fasttrack innovation in the sector. Subsequently, innovation de-risking mechanisms and funding for cross-sectoral decarbonization should be used to complement the existing mechanisms and address the lack of innovation incentives and capital of sufficient size. Additionally, having a clear regulatory framework and a vision for the successful implementation of key emission reduction technologies is of utmost importance.
PERSPECTIVEEUROPEAN
Direct reduction is an important bridging technology for decarbonizing steel production. It reduces iron ore to iron with natural gas, rather than coal and coke,
To roll out emission reduction technologies, access to sufficient low-interest investment capital is also needed. Here, the use of support mechanisms, for example in the form of carbon contracts or other de-risking mechanisms, is advisable.
Carbon capture and storage (CCS) may play an important role, but may not be available throughout the EU. In some EU member states, there are significant hurdles or even prohibitions on the deployment of CCS. For the ‘current projects’ scenario, about 21 Mt/yr would have been captured, transported and stored. Hence, without CCS only a 67% CO2 reduction would be possible, as opposed to the 74% cut set out in the ‘current projects’ pathway. Some ‘alternative pathways’ may require more CO2-free electricity and hydrogen and a CO2 storage capacity of up to 63 Mt/yr.
The EU-funded “H2FUTURE” project is researching whether green hydrogen produced on an industrial scale can replace fossil fuels in steel production over the long term. To this end, what is currently the largest pilot facility for the production of hydrogen in the steel industry has been built at the voestalpine site in Linz. The are multiple project partners like the Austrian electricity supplier VERBUND, Siemens, Austrian Power Grid, K1-MET, and many more. The electrolyzer has a capacity of over 6 MW and is regarded as the most effective and advanced facility of its type. It will be used to test whether the technology deployed to produce green hydrogen is suitable for use on an industrial scale.
expectation that the price for electricity and hydrogen production will fall between now and 2050 compared to current prices.
32 SUSTAINABLE STEEL STRATEGIES SUMMIT 2022 Steel Times International
resulting in fewer CO2 emissions. The direct reduction process is used to produce HBI, a sophisticated and environmentally friendly pre-material used in steel production. The hybrid technology would allow the CO2 emitted during steel production at Linz and Donawitz to be significantly reduced, by around 30%. This represents an annual saving of 3 to 4 Mt of CO2. The hybrid concept is the basis for achieving the hydrogen-based transformation by 2050.
The quantities of energy the European steel sector is likely to need will also rise sharply. The sector will need, annually, about 400 TWh of CO2-free electricity from the grid by 2050. This 400 TWh corresponds to more than seven times the steel industry’s current electricity purchase from the grid. Of this, around 230 TWh would be used for the production of about 5.5 Mt of hydrogen.
Austrian steel producer voestalpine plans to gradually shift from the coal-based blast furnace route to steel production using green electricity. Here, liquid pig iron and sponge iron (HBI) join scrap as the most important pre-materials for tomorrow’s carbonneutral production of high-quality steel. The significant innovation in this production technology is the mixture of raw materials, with its increased proportion of HBI.
A testing facility is currently being established at the Donawitz site in Styria as part of the SuSteel (Sustainable Steelmaking) project. Here, research will be undertaken into the carbon-neutral production of crude steel in a single process step using a novel hydrogen plasma technology. In the future, the facility will operate a type of electric arc furnace to produce steel directly, avoiding the crude steel stage by using hydrogen plasma to reduce ores. The advantage is that climate-neutral water vapour is the only
The competitiveness of a low-CO2 steel sector must be sustained during both the innovation and implementation/roll-out stages. The principal threat is that of low-cost foreign competition, which might not be moving – or not moving as fast – towards low-carbon operations as European producers. To minimize the adverse effects of global competition on EU decarbonization efforts, adequate supportive policies should be developed. �
No more steel—Put"digitalizationexpensiveconsultants.”engineersandoperatorsinthedriver'sseatwithFerotheonlymachinelearningsoftwaredevelopedwithmanufacturersinmind. We’ve driven $4+/ton savings for some of the world’s largest steel companies. Are you next? Get our whitepaper and schedule your free demo at www.ferolabs.com/steel. Minimize raw material costs while ensuring quality specs are always met. productionImprovevolume by optimizing process bottlenecks in the melt shop and the rolling mill. Forecast the risk of defects at the caster, rolling mill, and process line... and intervene before they happen. Increase yield by optimizing for each heat’s unique raw material and EAF/BlastparametersFurnaceinrealtime.
Non-Ferrous GmbH, hjponten@psi.de **
manager, PSI Metals Non-Ferrous GmbH, gschober@psi.de
*Product manager, liquid and energy, PSI Metals Sales
34 SUSTAINABLE STEEL STRATEGIES SUMMIT 2022 Steel Times International SOLUTIONSSOFTWARE
Steelmaking is a huge part of the global market and economy, but its large contribution to carbon emissions has put it under a great deal of pressure to decarbonize quickly and effectively. A way of achieving this, according to Heinz-Josef Ponten*, and Gunter Schober**, is to utilize digitization throughout the production process – which not only lowers emissions, but also costs, making it an efficient way to save money and the environ ment.
In recent decades, steel producers have
With its 360º strategic approach to sustainable steel production management, PSI Metals offers a pathway using smart software solutions to support energy savings and reduce the carbon footprint through all the stages of steel production. Software services optimize scrap usage for the best quality at the lowest costs. Online heat scheduling and other planning tools increase the overall equipment effectiveness and material usage. Reactive deviation management allows quality prediction for an increased ‘firsttime-right’ rate. An integrated production management system provides necessary flexibility while minimizing CO2 emissions.
Reduce waste and energy consumption
Production planning is one of the biggest challenges of the steel making process. Not only is it more complex than a game of chess, it is also affected systematically by unpredictable events. Therefore, steel plant managers require agile planning that is adaptable to external constraints, and tailored to suit both companies’ business priorities and changes in market demands.
had to cope with pressure to decarbonize the steel making process. Recent studies reveal that 14% of steel companies’ potential value is at risk if serious measures are not taken to significantly reduce the carbon footprint of steelAlthoughproduction.planting trees to offset CO2 emissions is popular, using this method alone is not ideal as it is expensive, time consuming, and tedious – and will require massive land space to achieve a significant difference.
360º approach to steelsustainableproduction
Steel Times International SUSTAINABLE STEEL STRATEGIES SUMMIT 2022 35 SOLUTIONSSOFTWARE
In most plants today, responding to production disruptions is a human decision which is often unreliable and can cause production downtime and additional material and production costs. Supportive KPI-driven planning systems help steel makers define their KPIs in a more userfriendly way, allowing clients to visualise existing interactions and conflicts and make simulations where constraints arise. The result is a more sustainable steel production
STEEL is one of the most important engineering materials due to its multifunctional qualities. While steel is one of the most recycled materials, steel production is highly energy consuming and emits huge amounts of CO2. For every metric ton of steel produced in a conventional blast furnace (BF) or basic oxygen furnace (BOF), over 1.6 metric tons of CO2 are emitted, contributing to 7-10% of the world’s global carbon emissions.
The 360º view on sustainable production management
The steelmaking process is complex as all production steps are partially interdependent, and impossible to isolate. While many companies have digitalized some stages of their steel production, the problem remains that some of these automated processes are still treated in isolation, which results in breakdowns during production. This makes it a challenging endeavour to keep the production highly efficient, while complying with changing markets demands.
Steel makers will need to implement drastic measures to achieve the United Nations’ 2050 net-zero target.
Ensuring production excellence
Customer product demands are quite diverse and, therefore, require a smart solution that is flexible and not vulnerable to errors. PSI Metals’ Order Dressing Solution defines all the details necessary for each single production step and helps optimize production and waste reduction. Using Bills of Material (BoMs) to represent the complexity of process production, as many steel producers do, is complex to create and maintain, and it is a process prone to errors which does not allow the necessary flexibility in production. However, optimizing material usage requires dynamic order dressing that is rule and characteristic-based and always calculates the optimal route and material demand depending on actual customer requirements. Within seconds you have a production order with all the details on qualitative and quantitative material requirements, tests, process and sampling instructions, including time demand for planning and costs. You can also calculate the carbon footprint for each production step
36 SUSTAINABLE STEEL STRATEGIES SUMMIT 2022 Steel Times International
Scrap and alloy optimization
An important software solution for the melting and casting process is alloy and charge optimization. The system must know all the available inputs, alloying materials, and their corresponding costs. Occasionally, plant managers may want to support the use of a particular material that has been sitting in the yard for some time. You can reduce the cost and hold a scrap sale. You may want to restrict the popular material to prevent customers from cherry picking. You can set an upper or lower limit for the use of a particular ingredient.Youset the parameter accordingly and together with the recipe, the system suggests the optimal mix for the alloy. You specify the target, and the system finds a way to get there – just like a GPS. In addition, liquid material and sump can be treated like any other material. Process scrap can be prioritized over external scrap and liquid material comes first. The goal should always be to save costs, but you can also significantly reduce your carbon footprint.
The results of steel plant optimization are not only savings in production and material
approach with less downtime, reduced energy consumption and CO2 emissions, and increased plant efficiency.
SOLUTIONSSOFTWARE
Green KPI-Driven melt shop optimization
Line breakdowns or production delays typically occur when unexpected and least needed. The effect of a breakdown is that the current heat treatment at the affected line is suspended and only resumes after fixing the breakdown.PSIMetals’ Online Heat Scheduler (OHS) derives a detailed work plan for all planned heats which consists of all required treatment and transport steps, their durations, and production lines or facilities where these treatments can be performed. OHS manages the interferences during production in order to secure the delivery of the heats to the caster at the required time. PSI Metals’ OHS supports the customer to optimize a green KPI-driven melt shop. With OHS for a green-driven melt shop, you can optimize the tapping temperature and buffer time, prevent heating or cooling through transparent time management, prioritize heat or sequences in order to increase the hot connect rate, forecast energy consumption, and provide forecasts to Energy Management Systems (EMS) and power providers.
and compare it later with the actual result. It gives you all the details you need, and even more.
PSImetals empowers sustainable operations for generations to come www.psimetals.com/ Software Excellence for Steel & Aluminium Producers
Using PSI Metals’ solutions saves costs and increases quality. It improves the rate of first-time success, and reduces energy consumption, which also translates to reduced CO2 emissions.
Software can further suggest the best time to exchange the anodes and manage the crucibles in an optimized way. In addition, when it comes to tapping, smart software solutions will make the ideal tapping decisions.
38 SUSTAINABLE STEEL STRATEGIES SUMMIT 2022 Steel Times International
Better to organize than to search
By digitalizing yard management, the software plans rather than reacts. When it harmonizes with a digitalized planning solution, it results in an optimized and sustainable steel production.
Software services that are orchestrated by a central platform such as PSI Metals’ Service Platform, will provide benefits on a new level. If you optimize production at the highest quality level; you minimize production and material costs, and our environment will thank you for less carbon emissions. �
amounts of energy and produces process related CO2 emissions. With an intelligent software solution, you can optimize energy consumption and further bring the power supplier closer to the consuming process. Smart software can predict the power
costs, but the ability to support the future decarbonization goals of steel production. Some global steelmakers have successfully integrated OHS in their steel plants. These newly integrated features make it even more beneficial to steel producers, including those who are transforming from BOF to EAF and DRI/HBI routes.
The smelting process consumes vast
It’s all about sustainable steel production
Software will not change the steel manufacturing process. However, intelligent software solutions can support steel makers toward sustainable steel production. To achieve these results, all production units within the steel plant’s production chain need to be harmonized in a 360° approach so that there is smart communication at every stage. Each unit thus contributes towards a sustainable steel production.
SOLUTIONSSOFTWARE
Automatic corrections with tracking and deviation management
A digitalized yard turns an unorganised plant yard into a well-optimized one. Countless material movements consuming lots of energy and human resources belong to the past. By digitalizing the yard, the customer can find the ideal location based on the subsequent production steps, and control can be maintained by having full transparency of the yard within reach.
consumption of all its consumers and combine this information with forecasts of power supply depending on renewable energy such as wind, hydro or solar power. Smart software can optimize the grid and significantly reduce CO2 emissions.
In metals production, up to 4% of the metal needs to be scrapped due to quality issues. This is partly because these quality issues cannot be detected and corrected in advance. Intelligent software can predict the defects and automatically suggest solutions to avoid them. The software will not only predict the errors, but it will help to find the root cause using various methods. We are talking about a 2% reduction of scrapped material and with that, a 2% reduction of CO2 emissions.
If the material is needed in the next schedule, a location near the next line would be ideal. In the same way, if the material is needed at a much later time in the schedule, the perfect location for the material would be further away in the yard. Digitalized yard management keeps track of all movements and knows the exact location of each material at a given time, including its position within a stack.
Optimizing energy consumption with energy forecasts
Dedicated solutions to improve your productivity
Steel solutionsindustry
Lubricants for primary metals process
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Steel’s seriously green credentials
FOR years, nearly every aspect of life, from buildings to cars and beyond, has been influenced by steel in some capacity. As a critical material in construction, automotive, natural gas pipelines, electricity networks, military weapons, and other industrial sectors, the use-cases of steel are vast and continue to expand. In fact, according to a Global Market Insights report, the steel market for automotive and aerospace applications is expected to surpass $175 billion by 2027.
Escalating use of steel in additive manufacturing for aerospace applications
DECARBONIZATION
Considered one of the basic engineering materials, steel has also been critical in the development of novel sustainable technologies and is coming to be a major driving force behind the decarbonization of heavy industries.
With the rise of the digital era, technologies like 3D printing or additive manufacturing have started to make their mark in various high-performance sectors, particularly aerospace and defense. Aerospace engineers are constantly on the look-out for solutions to make their products stronger, faster, and lighter, which has thrust 3D printing into the limelight as an ideal technology for the production of important structural parts like forgings and castings, in satellites and military
One of the main reasons for the popularity of steel over the years is its versatility. According to estimates from the World Steel Association, more than 3,500 grades of steel are in existence, building a foundation for the modern world. Steel is also renowned for its recyclability, and as a result, has secured an important position in the circular economy.
The ever-expanding application scope of steel and its increasingly integral role in the decarbonization of heavy industries brings the alloy to the fore as a crucial engineering material, says Global Market Insights
fuel efficiencies, cut down lead times, and improve the sustainability of air travel in general.Metal 3D printing, especially, has triggered significant evolution in aircraft production over the past few years.
40 SUSTAINABLE STEEL STRATEGIES SUMMIT 2022
aircraft.Thecoronavirus pandemic has also been a contributor to the growing adoption of additive manufacturing in the aerospace sector. Given the massive halts of global passenger air traffic during the peak of the crisis in 2020, aircraft manufacturers have had to face several challenges and detriments over the past few years. In order to ready themselves for recovery, many of these manufacturers have started to embrace digital technologies like additive manufacturing, to enhance
Steel is a building block of the modern economic landscape, featuring in nearly everything from transport infrastructure, buildings, heavy equipment, and consumer goods, among others. More recently, this applicability has expanded to green technologies like public transit, electric vehicles, and wind turbines, which rely heavily on steel-based components and structures.
Considering the monumental burden of the steel industry on environmental health,
SUSTAINABLE STEEL STRATEGIES SUMMIT 2022 41
and lower costs.
DECARBONIZATION
On the downside, steel is among the most prominent carbon emitters, accounting for almost 7% of GHG (greenhouse gas) emissions worldwide. The conventional process of iron ore-based steel production is the primary source of these emissions, given the use of blast furnaces that require the use of metallurgical coal.
Several aerospace firms and OEMs are ramping up their investment in large-scale metal AM equipment and projects to develop high-performance, mission-critical metal parts designed to accommodate the stringent requirements of modern aircraft.
The objective behind the project was to facilitate the production of lighter, smaller aircraft components that would eventually play a major role in helping the aviation sector achieve its net-zero targets.
By achieving faster build speeds in metal 3D printing, this announcement was received well by manufacturers looking to mass-produce high-strength 420 SS-based end-use components for high-performance industrial applications like aerospace, defense, and medical, among others.
Similarly, in September 2021, 3D Systems introduced two novel high-strength alloys for metal additive manufacturing on its 3D printing systems. The alloys, including a hardened stainless steel certified M789 (A), were designed for use in various application sectors from automotive to energy to aerospace and more. The certification of M789 for the DMP platform was achieved via 3D Systems’ collaboration with GF Machining Solutions, a machine-tool builder, to accommodate the burgeoning demand for corrosion-resistant, hard tooling steel.
Materialise made similar efforts in October 2021, partnering with Proponent, an aircraft part distributor, to study how 3D printing could benefit aerospace OEMs. Through the collaboration, the entities envisioned a digital supply chain facilitating on-demand production by integrating additive manufacturing into procurement and making 3D printed parts easily available to MROs.While polymeric materials have long been the preferred choice for the development of 3D printed products, of late, material focus is gradually shifting towards metallic materials like steel in additive manufacturing. 3D printed metals are rapidly gaining a stronghold across industries that require highperformance, durable, and lightweight metal components.Use-cases are growing tremendously within sectors like aerospace, which is set to emerge as a prominent segment of the steel industry and will exhibit a nearly 3.5% CAGR through 2027, as per GMI projections.Thisisbeing
To illustrate, in March 2021, global engineering firm Renishaw was awarded funding worth £26.4 million by the UK government and industry, via the ATI (Aerospace Technology Institute) programme, designed to revolutionize the production of aerospace products in the UK. The LAMDA (Large Scale Additive Manufacturing for Defence and Aerospace) project, spearheaded by Renishaw, was geared towards creating a novel metal 3D printing system, both to mass-produce smaller aircraft parts as well as to fabricate large aerospace components at acceleratedproductionrates
supported by various efforts from firms like Desktop Metal, which announced the qualification of Grade 420 stainless steel, a heat-treatable, martensitic stainless steel for high-volume additive manufacturing in October 2021. Known for its hardness, strength, and corrosion resistance to foods, freshwater, mild acids, and atmospheric elements in a fully hardened state, the 420 SS was designed for use on the Single Pass Jetting (SPJ) technology-based production system platform.
Major global initiatives promoting steel as a building block for decarbonization
industry into a carbon-neutral sector and act as a catalyst for other strategic industries as well.In November 2021, numerous countries including India, Canada, Germany, the UAE, and the UK signed a pledge under CEM’s Industrial Deep Decarbonization Initiative (IDDI), which was introduced in June the same year. As part of the initiative, which was designed to facilitate global collaboration for the decarbonization of heavy industries, the countries pledged to enhance the adoption of green steel alongside other green procurement principles, and collectively develop a set of targets for 2030.
automotive entities like BMW and Mercedes-Benz, for instance, have committed to integrating the use of green steel in their vehicles from 2025, as part of their numerous efforts to achieve carbon neutrality. This transition to CO2-free steel has been facilitated by the firms’ collaboration with H2 Green Steel (H2GS), an up-and-coming steel producer focused on the decarbonization of industry using sustainable resources like green hydrogen.Steelcompanies HKM and Thyssenkrupp Steel also inked a partnership with the Dutch port of Rotterdam in May 2021, to examine the import of renewable hydrogen or the production of green steel. Rotterdam is also set to establish a carbon dioxide transport and storage system, which will help store CO2 captured from natural gas-derived hydrogen production, as part of the “H2morrow steel” project, which has Thyssenkrupp Steel as a partner.All-in-all, steel is by far the most versatile, multi-functional, and integral of engineering materials in the modern industrial world. The steel industry has long been the backbone of the developed economy and will continue to serve as a strong and steadfast foundation as the world navigates towards a more sustainable industrial ecosystem in the years to come. �
governments and regulatory authorities are making targeted efforts to decarbonize the industry and alleviate its impact. These efforts seem to be paying off; over the past few years, a new solution has been emerging in the form of green steel, which is made from hydrogen instead of coal, creating significant opportunities for the steel market.
According to research from the World Steel Association, the successful implementation of green steel technology could potentially reduce indirect and direct emissions by nearly 20% and 50% as compared to average ore-based steelmaking and scrap-based steelmaking sites respectively. Statistics such as these indicate a massive change in the steel production landscape, with Green Steel Tracker estimates suggesting that seven out of 10 of the world’s largest steel-producing countries have introduced at least one green steel initiative.InJune 2021, for instance, The European Commission and ESTEP (European Steel Technology Platform) introduced the Clean Steel Partnership and e-signed a memorandum of understanding, to pilot and explore groundbreaking technologies capable of reducing CO2 emissions from EU steel production. In alignment with the targets of the European Green Deal, the Clean Steel Partnership was developed to extend support for EU leadership in its efforts to turn the steel
42 SUSTAINABLE STEEL STRATEGIES SUMMIT 2022 Steel Times International DECARBONIZATION
efforts and massive investments to support them.Prominent
Major players in the global steel industry and other associated sectors are also blazing the trail for technical innovation and green steel adoption, through a flurry of research
The Kobe Steel Group (also known as the KOBELCO Group) is one of the few companies in the world that operates a diverse range of businesses, based on three core business areas: the materials businesses consisting of steel, aluminium, advanced materials and welding; the machinery businesses consisting of industrial machinery, engineering and construction machinery; and the electric power business. Kobe Steel aims to reduce CO2 emissions in its production processes by 30–40% in 2030 (compared
ReductionKOBELCOIRONMAKINGGroupCO2EmissionTargets
Low CO2 in blast furnace ironmaking
Kobe Steel announces the launch of ‘Kobenable Steel’, Japan’s first low CO2 blast furnace steel, and discusses key strategies for lowering emissions, and developing clean technologies 20 years of experience and over 40 installed plants make Steuler the Refractory Technology Partner for tomorrows DRI Processes.
In addition, this technology has the advantage that if economical and large-scale hydrogen use becomes possible, it will be an effective solution to carbon neutrality without major equipment modification. With the transition to carbon neutrality quickly becoming a global trend, the company is ready to provide CO2 reduction solutions to achieve carbon neutrality in the global steel industry.
Technology of Midrex (MIDREX® Process)
STEULER-KCH GmbH | 56427 Siershahn | GERMANY Phone: +49 2623 600-216 | E-Mail: info@steuler-kch.de www.steuler-linings.com
furnace) can reduce CO2 emissions in the ironmaking process by 20–40%. Over 80 MIDREX modules are in operation worldwide.
The MIDREX® Process is a direct reduction ironmaking technology developed by Kobe Steel’s wholly owned subsidiary Midrex Technologies, Inc. in the United States. It is the world’s leading direct reduced iron (DRI) making process, which produces approximately 80% of the world’s DRI produced with natural gas (approximately 60% of the world’s DRI at large). This process uses hydrogen-rich gas reformed from natural gas as a reductant, and pellets processed from powdered ore as the iron source to produce DRI in the shaft furnace. Compared to the blast furnace route (using the blast furnace and the basic oxygen furnace), this process (using DRI and the electric arc
By charging a large amount of hot briquetted iron (HBI) produced using the MIDREX® Process into the blast furnace and thereby reducing the amount of coke used, CO2 emissions from the blast furnace can be significantly reduced. In a demonstration test at Kobe Steel’s Kakogawa Works in 2020, it was confirmed that CO2 emissions from
Blast furnace operation technology
IRONMAKING
Low CO2 blast furnace steel –Kobenable Steel Kobe Steel is working to reduce CO2 emissions by leveraging its strengths as a company with diverse businesses, technologies, and human resources. One of the achievements of the company’s efforts was the launch of Kobenable Steel, a low CO2 blast furnace steel product with significantly reduced CO2 emissions during the blast furnace ironmaking process as the first manufacturer of such products in Japan (according to the company’s survey as of 17 May 2022). Kobenable Steel is based on the KOBELCO Group’s CO2 reduction solution for blast furnace ironmaking announced on
to fiscal 2013 levels) and to achieve carbon neutrality in 2050. The company is also working to realize a carbon-neutral society by achieving its fiscal 2030 target of reducing CO2 emissions through its unique technologies, products and services by 61Mt or more.
16 February 2021. This technology is a fusion of the Midrex technology of the engineering business and the blast furnace operation technology of the steel business, leveraging Kobe Steel’s strengths.
An effective solution
This year, Kobe Steel will start selling low CO2 blast furnace steel in two product categories: Kobenable Premier with 100% reduction rate of CO2 emissions per ton, and Kobenable Half with 50% (compared to fiscal 2018 levels). For the calculation of these CO2 reduction effects, the company has adopted the mass balance methodology by which CO2 reduction effects are allocated to specific steel products.
The methodology is to allocate specific characteristics to a certain portion of products according to the input amount of raw materials with the characteristics when there is a mix of raw materials with no
such characteristics (e.g., low CO2) in the manufacturing process. This approach has been used for products such as recycled plastics, bioplastics, electricity generated from renewable energy sources, and certified food products like cocoa and palm oil, for which separation of product properties are difficult due to the characteristics of the manufacturing process or the supply chain. In the ironmaking process, it becomes possible to reduce the amount of coke used and thereby reduce CO2 emissions by replacing a portion of iron ore with HBI, a raw material for steel that has already been reduced. Using the mass balance methodology, the company allocates the reduction effects to specific low CO2 steel products and adds environmental value.
CO2 reduction effects calculated by mass balance methodology
Certified by a third-party For commercialization, reduction rates of CO2 emissions are calculated in accordance with ISO 20915. The calculation method and results are certified by the DNV Business Assurance services UK Ltd., a third-party certification body in the United Kingdom. At the time of the sale of the products, Kobe Steel will provide the customer with a third-party certificate issued by DNV and a low-CO2 steel product certificate issued by the company.
Sales Volume
Expansion based on demand
Methodology
Emissions reduction intensified In 2030, the company anticipates that the CO2 reduction effects will be increased by a technology that continuously charges HBI into its two blast furnaces, as well as other CO2 reduction and energy saving technologies. If all of these are realized, the company will be able to sell Kobenable Steel at a scale of 1 Mt/yr (calculated with Kobenable Premier).
46 SUSTAINABLE STEEL STRATEGIES SUMMIT 2022 Steel Times International IRONMAKING
the blast furnace process could be reduced by approximately 20% compared to fiscal 2013 levels. In order to reduce the amount of coke by charging a large amount of HBI, there are various technical challenges to overcome such as the destabilization of blast furnaces. The company made a breakthrough and significantly reduced CO2 emissions from the blast furnace by combining Midrex’s HBI manufacturing technology with its blast furnace operation system which includes HBI charging, AI-based blast furnace operation systems, and advanced pellet production.
The company will consider the pace of expansion of the product by 2030 based on demand. The company will contribute to a green society by leveraging its comprehensive strengths as a corporate group that operates various businesses and provides Kobenable Steel, the first low CO2 blast furnace steel product commercialized in Japan, to a wide range of fields. The group will strive to provide solutions to the needs of society through making the best use of its diverse businesses, technologies, and human resources, in order to continue to be indispensable to stakeholders. �
Features of Kobenable Steel Kobenable Steel, manufactured in the same process as the conventional blast furnace method, has the following two features. First, it is available for all types of steel products (sheet, plate, wire rod and bar products) manufactured at Kakogawa Works and the Kobe Wire Rod & Bar Plant. Second, it maintains the same level of high quality as conventional products. It enables customers to continue to use blast furnace steel products that require high quality, such as special steel wire rods and ultra-high-tensile strength steel, which are the company’s strengths.
Kobe Steel achieved a CO2 reduction of approximately 20Kt through the demonstration test of HBI charging conducted in 2020. With this amount of reduction, the sales volume of Kobenable Steel is estimated to be approximately 8Kt on the condition that all the amount of low CO2 steel secured this time is sold as Kobenable Premier.Inthis manner, sales volume changes according to the actual amount of CO2 reduction. The company will continue to further develop its HBI charging technology for blast furnaces and conduct the study of equipment for mass production.
STI Half Page Horizontal Ad - Water Footprint.indd 1 11/27/21 5:59 PM CONTACT US NOW: Esme Horn Sales Manager +44 (0) 1737 esmehorn@quartzltd.com855136 Nadine Bloxsome Editor, Furnaces International +44 (0) 1737 nadinebloxsome@quartzltd.com855115 Zahra Awan Editorial Assistant +44 (0) 1737 zahraawan@quartzltd.com855038 WWW.FURNACES-INTERNATIONAL.COM SIGN UP TODAY TO RECEIVE YOUR FREE COPY Furnaces International brings readers a selection of technical features focusing on all aspects of the international furnaces market, as well as industry news, investments, and the latest products and projects Published quarterly in a digital format, Furnaces International and the new monthly newsletter, are sent to the inbox of over 25,000 industry professionals. As publishers of Aluminium International Today, Steel Times International and Glass International, we are able to compile this knowledge and bring you the latest developments on: • Energy Efficiency • Hot Repairs • Maintenance • Heat Treatment • Thermal Processes • Testing and Measurement Look out for the December issue which contains The Furnaces International Buyers’ Guide. It is the essential guide to furnace manufacturers and suppliers of furnace equipment and services to the industrial heating/process industry. Furnaces_HalfPage_Ad_Sept21.indd 1 27/10/2021 11:46
*Executive vice president, low-carbon process R&D centre, technical research laboratories, POSCO goaltheneutrality:Carbonindustry’s
By Kisoo Kim*
48 SUSTAINABLE STEEL STRATEGIES SUMMIT 2022 Steel Times International STEELMAKINGHYDROGEN
POSCO lays out its roadmap processreductionfeaturingdecarbonization,foritshydrogenironmaking(HyREX),inan aim to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050.
GLOBAL CO2 emissions amounted to about 40 Mt, and South Korea accounts for 2% of the total.1) To play an active role in the global climate crisis, South Korea declared in 2020 that the country would aim to reach carbon neutrality by 2050. As a manufacturing-intensive country, it is predicted that a significant industrial transition is required for the economy to achieve its net-zero goals, which will include introducing green infrastructure. The steel sector, which is responsible for 14% of the country’s total CO2 emissions, is one of the main industries working to transform its traditional production process, that is, coal-based blast furnace ironmaking.POSCO, the key material supplier to shipbuilding, automotive and construction industries in South Korea, has also pledged to become carbon neutral by 2050 with a plan to reduce CO2 emissions by 20% in the short-term by 2030 (10% in Scope 1 and 10% in Scope 2&3). This target can be achieved by increasing energy efficiency, replacing coal as a reducing agent and fuel with coke oven gas (COG) and natural gas (NG) in the existing integrated route of steel manufacturing. Green energy steel production from steel scrap will be increased by using electric arc furnaces (EAFs) in the mid-term.Toachieve carbon neutral steelmaking, POSCO will further develop hydrogen
Low-carbon technology based on the existing FINEX process POSCO owns the expertise and know-how through the long-term development and operation of FINEX, the environmentallyfriendly process of eliminating coking and sintering. In the FINEX process, reduction and melting are progressed in separated reactors. FINEX fluidized bed reactors produce DRI with a reduction degree of approximately 65%, which is then charged into a meltergasifier to produce hot metal. The fine ores are charged into the top fluidized bed reactor, and the reaction gas is supplied from the bottom reactor. The fine ore particles are perfectly mixed by the gas and form the fluidized bed. In current FINEX fluidized beds, the fines ores are reduced by coal gas generated from the melter-gasifier and the reducing gas contains 25% hydrogen. Also, it is easy to separate CO2 and recycle H2 and CO using a CO2 removal system, since pure oxygen is used instead of air in the meltergasifier (Fig 2).
Fig 1. POSCO’s roadmap to carbon neutrality
ironmaking, and a DRI/HBI reduction technology named HyREX. Benefiting from 30 years of R&D, and a commercialization experience of 250Mt FINEX (Fine Iron Ore Reduction) included in its process, HyREX is expected to be a powerful addition to innovative hydrogen ironmaking technologies. (Fig 1)
The HyREX process is composed of multi-stage fluidized bed reactors which are connected in series. An advantage of multi-stage fluidized bed reactors is an easier supply of heat between reactors to compensate the heat deficiency caused by the strong endothermic reaction of hydrogen reduction (Fig 3).
directly.Also, hydrogen shows better diffusion behaviour compared with coal gas because the molecule size and viscosity of hydrogen are lower when compared with carbon monoxide.2) The fluidization behaviour was also investigated with hydrogen in the POSCO laboratory, and it was confirmed that the fine iron ore and hydrogen gas form a fluidized bed and that a uniform reduction can be obtained.
HyREX process rechnology sevelopment and commercialization POSCO is willing to develop the HyREX process using hydrogen as a reducing gas based on FINEX fluidized bed technology. In the HyREX process, the fluidized bed reactors will produce DRI with a reduction degree of 95% using green hydrogen.
The biggest potential competitiveness of HyREX is the direct use of fine iron ores. At present, the fine iron ore occupies 71% of total seaborne iron ores, while pellet and pellet feed occupy only 13%. While shaft type hydrogen reduction technology requires high quality pellets, HyREX can use fine iron ores
Steel Times International SUSTAINABLE STEEL STRATEGIES SUMMIT 2022 49
Calédonie et Corée), a member of POSCO Group, has been operating the world’s largest ESF since 2008 to produce FeNi(ferro nickel).
the conversion to carbon neutral steelmaking. It is necessary to foster domestic and foreign bases of scrap, have long-term supply contracts to produce DRI suitable for the process considering economic feasibility, and import green hydrogen from overseas or establish a domestic production system.3)
50 SUSTAINABLE STEEL STRATEGIES SUMMIT 2022 Steel Times International STEELMAKINGHYDROGEN
HyIS
Two options
SNNCinstead.(Société de Nickel de Nouvelle
Two types of downstream processes are considered following hydrogen fluidized bed reactors. The first type of downstream process is to melt DRI with scrap in an EAF, and then proceed to the next steps of secondary refining and continuous casting. Thus, it is expected that mid-quality steel products such as hot-rolled steels and heavy plates can be manufactured. The other type of downstream process is to produce all the steel grades including high-quality steels such as automotive steels and high-grade silicon (Si) steels. Hydrogen reduced DRI is smelted with carbon loaded in an electric smelting furnace (ESF) to produce the hot metal. Subsequently, the hot metal is processed similarly to the conventional process of BOF, secondary refining and continuous casting. The latter process is expected to be better in controlling impurity contamination including nitrogen. The production of hot metal by ESF has some disadvantage in terms of CO2 emissions compared to that of molten steel by EAF, but CCUS (Carbon Capture, Utilization and Storage) will be a part of a carbon neutral solution
Stable sourcing of raw materials, green hydrogen and power Stable sourcing of raw materials, green hydrogen, and green power are essential for
for the development of ESF for hydrogen reduced DRI smelting.
The HyIS 2022 Forum will be held in Stockholm, Sweden, in October, which is co-hosted by SSAB, IVA, NAEK and POSCO, focusing on green steel products, hydrogen for steel works and carbon neutral iron and steelmaking (Fig 4).
The HyIS (Hydrogen Iron & Steelmaking) Forum in October 2021 has been hosted by POSCO for technical exchange and information sharing. The collaboration on innovative hydrogen reduction technologies has also been discussed, among global steel manufacturers, engineering and mining companies. A total of 2,028 people participated on and off-line, from 348 institutes in 48 countries including government organizations, academia, and car companies. The participants discussed policies, technologies, and energy supplies needed to achieve carbon neutrality in the steel industry. The common consensus was that not only the technological development, but the cross-functional co-operation of governments, societies, and related industries is crucial for carbon neutrality.
Through this, experience and knowledge concerning a large ESF has been accumulated and will serve as a foundation
For these reasons, the government’s active support and close co-operation system between steel companies and domestic energy suppliers are very important for carbon neutrality.
Fig 2. Seven features of the FINEX process
POSCO hopes that global steelmakers and experts will join the 2022 forum in October and hold various discussions on the common goal of achieving carbon neutrality in the steel industry. �
Fig 3. HyREX, POSCO Hydrogen Ironmaking Process
2) D. Spreitzer and J. Schenk, ‘Reduction of Iron Oxides with Hydrogen – A Review’, Steel Research International, 2019, 90, 1900108
STEELMAKINGHYDROGEN Steel Times International SUSTAINABLE STEEL STRATEGIES SUMMIT 2022 51
Fig 4. World’s First International Hydrogen Iron & Steelmaking Forum (HyIS 2021)
References
and engineering companies.
POSCO has committed to carbon neutrality by 2050 and is developing HyREX – a hydrogen ironmaking process based on multistage fluidized bed reactors, which is directly connected to the electric furnace. Carbon neutrality is the global steel industry’s goal, not a company’s goal. POSCO, therefore, is willing to develop the carbon neutral steelmaking process in co-operation with global steel companies, hydrogen suppliers
3) A. Doyle and T. Voet, ‘The DRI dilemma: Could raw material shortages hinder the steel industry’s green transition?’, McKinsey & Company, July 2021
1) Mckinsey Global Institute, ‘The net-zero transition: What it would cost, what it could
bring’, McKinsey & Company, January 2022
By
*NiobelCon BV & IMOA consultant
essentialMolybdenum:forwind turbines
52 SUSTAINABLE STEEL STRATEGIES SUMMIT 2022 Steel Times International WIND TURBINES
To prevent the worst outcomes of climate change, renewable energy sources like wind and solar must more than triple their share of global power production. While molybdenum plays a role in several green technologies, it is particularly crucial in wind power generation. Therefore, as demand for wind turbines increases, so will the demand for molybdenum in many of their components. Professor Dr.Hardy Mohrbacher*
ACCORDING to the World Meteorological Association, both 2020 and 2021 set new records for the level of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. And July 2021 was Earth’s hottest month on record. The economic slowdown caused by the pandemic did little to curb ambient levels of greenhouse gases, despite a temporary decline in emissions.
Currently, of all renewable technologies, wind power has the greatest potential for added molybdenum use. Windmills require by far the largest amount of steel and iron castings, compared to other power generation technologies. While steel accounts for the vast majority of the tower weight (~98%), both materials find use in components of the nacelle – the part of the turbine housing all generating components, including the gearbox. Regarding the latter, steel represents approximately half of the weight. Cast iron is mainly found in the nacelle (40%) and in the rotor (30%). The nacelle and rotor hub can weigh up to 900 tonnes in offshore wind turbines, not including the mass of the blades made from glass fibre-reinforced polymers. Offshore windmills additionally require anchoring structures to the seabed, which are usually steelfabricated monopiles or tripods.
Steel Times International SUSTAINABLE STEEL STRATEGIES SUMMIT 2022 53
Wind turbines are rated by the amount of power they can produce under ideal conditions and wind speeds. Onshore wind turbines currently operate at an average rated power of 3 MW, but major turbine manufacturers have already started targeting the market for larger power output in the 5 MW range. For reference, 5 MW of a recently built wind turbine with a capacity factor of 42% is enough to power around 5,000 average-sized EU homes. Offshore wind turbines are much larger and capable of generating more power: currently they operate at 7 MW but designs for turbines generating up to 16 MW are being explored. In Europe, the current onshore-
Too many essential activities like heating and transportation continue to rely heavily or exclusively on fossil fuels. According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), if the world keeps emitting at current levels, severe negative effects of climate change are expected, including extreme droughts and floods, mass human displacement and threatened food supplies. While renewable technologies, mostly wind, solar and hydropower, already account for 25% of all electricity generated today, their share will need to approach 80% by 2050. Vast quantities of both land and raw materials are needed to make this transition. Molybdenum is one such material – an irreplaceable alloying element that provides the mechanical properties needed to withstand the massive forces at play in wind power generation.
Wind power generation focuses the huge and varying forces of wind caught by enormous blades onto relatively small gear teeth and other components. The immense stresses applied by the wind onto components can even damage or destroy the drivetrain. Gearless wind turbines or ‘direct drive’ systems were developed to overcome gearbox failure and raise efficiency. In these systems, the rotor is connected directly to the generator, eliminating the drivetrain. However, most direct drive systems rely on large magnets made from ‘rare earth’ (RE) metals like neodymium. This reliance poses potential supply risks, as demand for RE metals is increasing exponentially for renewables over the next decades. Other applications such as electric vehicles and consumer electronics are also competing for these critical resources. At the same time, RE mining and especially refining is concentrated in just a few countries, adding to the supply risks. Fortunately, drive train issues can also be resolved by improving the gear steels with the addition of molybdenum. It increases the hardness,
strength and toughness of these steels and its supply is not at risk. Major deposits are found throughout the Americas and China, making it geographically balanced.
Currently, gearless drive systems are used primarily in high-power offshore turbines and part of the 3 MW land-based turbines, mostly in Europe. But in addition to the supply chain risks associated with RE magnets, the future trend towards higher-powered onshore turbines also favours designs using gearboxes. Direct drive systems would require extremely heavy, cumbersome generators given the torque requirements of future designs, which makes their widespread use impractical.
Wind turbine overview
Overcoming drivetrain issues
WIND TURBINES
Gearing up for the wind Molybdenum-containing alloys are most widely used for powertrain components of
Size and power rating comparison of recent and future models of onshore and offshore wind turbines (Source: Berkeley National Laboratory). For height comparison, the Statue of Liberty in New York City and the Eiffel Tower in Paris are added on the right
with yield strength levels of 500 MPa and above, it will not be used in the ring segments of the tower for the foreseeable future. But molybdenum plays an important role holding the tower together. Tower segments are usually assembled using nuts and bolts up to size M72 (diameter 72 millimetres). Typical bolt steel alloys fulfilling the high demands for strength and toughness are 34CrNiMo6 (1.6582) or 30CrNiMo8 (1.6580), containing molybdenum additions in the range of 0.2- 0.5%.
Left: The interior of a wind turbine nacelle with drivetrain. Right: Wind turbines are difficult to access for maintenance and repair as the nacelle sits high above ground. Better materials can reduce the need for costly interventions
windmills. The low rotational speed of the rotor must be transmitted and transformed into a higher one, suitable to drive the generator. Therefore, shafts and gearboxes are required. Due to the criticality of these components in terms of reliability and performance, a combination of excellent strength, toughness and fatigue resistance properties is required. Quenched and tempered steels such as 42CrMo4 (AISI 4140) are a perfect solution for shafts. Carburizing steels with a CrNiMo alloy concept are the first choice for gear components. Normally, molybdenum is added to such steels in the range of 0.20.3%.
The tower of a wind turbine consists of individual ring segments. These are 20-25 metres in length, produced from flat-rolled heavy plates made from carbon steel. Most modern wind towers have heights of 70 –140 metres and diameters of 4-5 metres. The latest and largest offshore towers are typically manufactured from steel grade S355 (AISI A276) having a yield strength of around 350 MPa (or 50 ksi). Since molybdenum is only required for the production of plate steels
to-offshore capacity ratio of 80:20 is not expected to change significantly. Other geographical regions operate a much lower share of offshore turbines, but are expected to approach the European ratio in the future.
54 SUSTAINABLE STEEL STRATEGIES SUMMIT 2022 Steel Times International WIND TURBINES
Danieli Headquarters in Buttrio, Udine, Italy www.danieli.com Italy, Germany, Sweden, Austria, France, The Netherlands, UK, Spain, Turkey, USA, Brazil, Thailand, India, China, Japan A century of experienceparnership @danieligroup DA N I ELI GREEN METAL Patented, energy-efficient low-emission technologies including hybrid plants using renewable energy sources, and hydrogen-based processes for steel and nonferrous metals production. TECHNOLOGYGREENCOMPETITIVECAPEXANDOPEXMEANSDANIELIMETAL
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56 SUSTAINABLE STEEL STRATEGIES SUMMIT 2022 Steel Times International
However, due to the increasing torque density with the ever-increasing size and power rating of windmills, gear steels are facing more demanding performance requirements. Recent developments in gear manufacturing, inspired by past IMOA projects, indicate that substantial performance improvements are possible by raising the molybdenum content towards 0.5-0.8%. Other potential molybdenum applications could develop in the future, driven by weight reduction demands. As such, austempered ductile iron castings and ultra-high strength plate steels may play an increasingly important role for carrying frames and housings of powertrain aggregates. These alloys today typically have molybdenum additions in the range of 0.3– 0.8%.
Ride with the wind!
Molybdenum-intensive
Detailed analysis of the various components in current windmills indicate a molybdenum requirement of 100-120 kg Mo per rated MW. Given the technological development, in particular the increasing power rating of wind turbines, a significant share of the wind power market is predicted to be molybdenum-intensive. Projecting the International Energy Agency’s ‘Beyond 2 degrees scenario’ onto the expected mix of geared and gearless technologies, suggests that molybdenum demand by the wind power industry between now and 2050 should be in the order of 300,000 metric tons, more than the total amount of molybdenum mined in one year. Molybdenum use in alloys for constructing the necessary heavy-duty transportation and installation equipment, including vessels, cranes and jackup rigs, will appreciably add to this figure.
Powering the world without carbon emissions might seem impossible, but like developing effective Covid-19 vaccines and adapting to the pandemic, humanity is more than capable of rising to the challenge. Whichever of the future scenarios for renewable power generation proves true, molybdenum goes with the wind, and the required volume will be big.
Torque density
We are Steelmakers! Badische Stahl-Engineering GmbH Robert-Koch-Straße 13 D-77694 Kehl/Germany Phone (+49) 7851/877-0 Fax (+49) 7851/877-133 eMail info@bse-kehl.de www.bse-kehl.de www.harald-wehrle.deThe Future is Manless Technology ProtectingSTEELSAFEPeople ® SAFEEBT FlapBalconyEBT MonitoringEBT fillingSandEBT THM Tap ManipulatorHoleTHM MultiROB SLD Smart LeakageDetectorDetector Leakage TSM/LM2TechnologyTechnologySpray SandMan
58 SUSTAINABLE STEEL STRATEGIES SUMMIT 2022 Steel Times International WASTE GASES
From waste gases into dollars
1. Vice president, public policy. 2. European policy director. 3. Director of business development at Lanzatech
THE climate emergency, evolving customer demands, and the increasing costs of carbon emissions are now driving the transition to green steel. With 70% of global blast furnaces scheduled to be relined by 2030, the transition is rapid, and both risks and opportunities to steel producers are huge. There is no silver bullet solution to decarbonize the sector. Rather, eliminating carbon emissions will be achieved through the integration of multiple technologies to deliver bespoke solutions suited to the local market and circumstances. Among the options is an innovative carbon capture and use technology developed by LanzaTech. This uses the power of biology to feed the carbon-rich waste gases to micro-organisms which transform the pollution into ethanol and a range of other chemicals. These valuable products are the feedstock for essential materials as diverse as textiles, plastics and jet fuel. The technology creates value from a polluting liability and in doing so reduces fossil oil and gas extraction across the value chain, creating a more secure energy paradigm and a circular carbon economy.
Steel Times International SUSTAINABLE STEEL STRATEGIES SUMMIT 2022 59
WASTE GASES
Microbes have the potential to transform the current cli mate crisis; turning pollution into chemicals, and reduc ing fossil oil across the value chain. With LanzaTech, this technology can be utilized to both decarbonize the industry, and create valuable products for the economy.
By Tom Dower1, Greg Archer2, and Sanjeev Manocha3
WASTE
The majority of steel producers are already working to optimize and improve energy and resource efficiency to remain competitive. In addition, some are cutting emissions by progressively replacing solid fossil fuels with sustainable biomass or biochar which is most likely to be an option in areas with substantial biomass resources, such as Australia or Brazil. However, considerable care will be needed in identifying sustainable biomass supplies to ensure that the growing of energy crops or harvesting of biomass for use in steel production does not drive land use change or impact biodiversity.
and integrating the right suite of technologies is crucial – but the best combination is highly dependent upon local circumstances and will evolve over time; there are no silver bullets.
To complement fuel switching and recycling, carbon capture and storage (CCS) of the CO2 may be viable in some locations such as the UAE, Norway, the Netherlands and the USA where there are natural storage sites and some existing pipeline networks. But in other locations the costly infrastructure to transport and store CO2 will be prohibitive. In contrast, carbon capture and utilization (CCU), generates a new value stream with little to no changes in the existing steel making technologies or new infrastructure needs. This can replace heat and electricity generation through combustion of the flue-gases or in less advanced production sites’ flaring of waste gases.
Alternatively, where gas supplies are readily available, solid fossil fuels can be substituted by natural gas in a direct reduced iron furnace that reduces emissions from about two tonnes of CO2 per tonne of steel to 1.2 tons or less using natural gas, or potentially biomethane, which can also be used in combination with carbon capture. However, switching from solid fuels to gas comes with significant capex and energy costs.
GASES
Maximising steel recycling is always beneficial and a scrap-based electric arc furnace emits less than 0.5 tons of CO2 and is comparatively low capex. But scrap availability is limited, and it is a significant challenge to produce higher quality steels due to tramp elements such as other metals present in many scrap supplies.
Going further and displacing the natural gas with low-carbon hydrogen will progressively reduce, and could ultimately eliminate, most of the carbon emissions. But using only hydrogen to reduce the iron oxide
presents major challenges with storage and melting of direct reduced iron. Producing the huge quantities of hydrogen required also represents a major challenge. Green hydrogen, made through electrolysis of water using renewable electricity, requires both large amounts of water and massive generation of renewable electricity. There are already multiple demands on the small quantities of green hydrogen that are starting to become available and the competing demands for renewable electricity, notably to decarbonise electricity grids and electrify the transport and domestic heat sectors, are considerable. Only small amounts of green hydrogen are likely to be available for steel production in the foreseeable future.
Steel recycling
60 SUSTAINABLE STEEL STRATEGIES SUMMIT 2022 Steel Times International
The Earth has already warmed by more than 1˚C and could exceed the critical 1.5˚C threshold by the end of this decade unless global emissions are cut by 45% (from 2010 levels) and net-zero emissions achieved by 2050. In response, countries globally are accelerating efforts to reduce dependence on fossil fuels, pricing emissions and regulating polluters. Energy price spikes exacerbated by the Russian invasion of Ukraine are in turn driving global inflation and an increased focus on energy and food security.
Around the world, steelworks are ageing with 40% of blast furnaces globally due for relining by 2025, and 30% by 2030. With each relining costing around €100m, this presents a critical decision-making moment for the industry. A business-as-usual approach is likely to result in increasing the unsustainable costs of carbon emissions. The average steelworks today emits two tons of CO2 per ton of steel and with the rising price of carbon, emissions will increasingly squeeze margins and erode the commercial viability of unabated production. Selecting
With LanzaTech, carbon recycling technologies transform waste gases (offgases) containing carbon monoxide (CO), hydrogen (H2), and CO2 into ethanol and other products. This provides steel producers with an economical, sustainable, and flexible means of creating value from waste off-gas through conversion into sustainable products. The technology has been successfully deployed in two commercial operating facilities at a steel
Steel accounts for seven to nine per cent of global CO2 emissions and demand for green or lower carbon steels from customers, like the automotive industry, is creating an increased urgency to cut, and eventually eliminate, carbon emissions. Notably, emission trading schemes, which set a cap on emissions and require emitters to purchase credits to cover greenhouse gases released, are expanding beyond Europe. In North America, emissions trading operates in California and 12 north-eastern US states plus two in Canada with a trial scheme in Mexico. However, the price of carbon in North America is typically an order of magnitude lower than in the EU where prices have remained around €80 per ton of CO2 throughout 2022. In Asia, South Korea operates a successful emissions trading scheme and China has a two-tier approach with controls at both a national level and in major cities. Japan also operates two city level schemes. As pressure grows on countries to deliver promised emissions reductions, the geographical coverage of schemes is expected to expand as the available carbon budgets shrink causing the cost of emissions to rise.
Climate emergency
(SCOPE 1 EMISSIONS) Proprietary Value-in-Use lime in State-of-artsteel lime application technologies Technical support and solutions development Environmental burden management (air, water waste) & by-products valorisation (circular economy) (SCOPE 3 EMISSIONS) Captive lime plant audit, improvement & Stateoptimizationofart technology Operational excellence Developin eady echnolog OUR COMMITMENT TO SUSTAINABILITY EU Director of Innovation & Technology , Carmeuse TECforLime is a platform for services and solutions owned 100% by the Carmeuse Group, offering its technical expertise and know-how in lime production to all end-markets. The team of engineers works hand in hand with customers and application experts, to tailor solutions to each and every situation. We offer full services from mining to plant commissioning and operation, from optimizing plant performance to improving product quality, from maintenance to boosting kilns, and much more. SUSTAINABLEFOROFTHECARMEUSE,RIGHTPARTNERSTEELMAKERSGREEN&STEEL Lime through slag making plays an important role in quality and sustainable steel by reducing CO2 footprint. Carmeuse is the right partner to support steel industries in achieving their sustainability goals. We look forward to join forces to build future-proof sustainable and CO2 reduction is at the heart of our business strategy We continually invest in Best Available Technologies (BAT) We are keen to collaborate with our partners to address together the CO2 issue We are thesolutionsdevelopingforlongerterm
complexes to achieve product flexibility. LanzaTech technology is also future-proof as it can utilize a variety of gas streams without any noticeable alterations to equipment or technology. So, if the steel plant decided to move on from blast furnace to DRI, the technology will still integrate with new gas streams.Inresponse to the climate emergency the steel industry is reducing its emissions and will ultimately become carbon neutral and move towards producing green steel by 2050. But as the industry transitions there is no single pathway but a range of solutions that will both compete and integrate to lower emissions.LanzaTech has the potential to transform carbon liabilities into valuable products for industries with carbon rich waste streams and create a circular carbon economy. �
products can either mechanically recycled or chemically recycled using LanzaTech’s process, which couples gasification with gas fermentation. Through this chemical recycling process, end of life solid wastes are transformed to a synthesis gas that is converted by the microbes in the same way as industrial emissions. This enables the carbon to be infinitely recycled, locking it into the circular economy.
WASTE GASES
62 SUSTAINABLE STEEL STRATEGIES SUMMIT 2022 Steel Times International
Using biology enables multiple chemical products to be produced from recycled carbon using a wide range of waste gases. Steel mills can also switch production between valuable products as desired without changing the equipment and feedstock and while using a simple biological process. Traditional oil refineries and petrochemical facilities require numerous complex reactor steps and large-scale
and ferro alloy mill, with seven additional commercial plants in construction and several more in the engineering phase. Depending on the feedstock and geography, this gas fermentation technology can reduce emissions by up to 90% and in the process make intermediates for producing the chemicals, fuels and materials on which society relies. This is the circular economy in action.Low carbon chemicals produced through the LanzaTech process have been used in surfactants for detergents by Unilever. L’Oréal has used the ethanol as a building block to make polyethylene for packaging; and fashion brand Zara produced a boutique range of dresses made with polyester fibres, all made with industrial carbon emissions directly captured and repurposed through LanzaTech technology. CarbonSmartTM
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Solar Turbines' solutions accept unsteady flows of wide composition fuel gas (high H2, CO, CO2, HCs). Transform what you thought was waste gas into valuable power and heat.
SWITCH TO FLARE GAS
The steel sector is the second largest industrial CO2 emitter, and responsible for approx imately 7% of global CO2 emissions.[1,2] Given the Paris Agreement of 2015, the decar bonization of steel production is of urgent importance to support the limitations on global warming.[3] With this in mind, the open bath furnace is an increasingly important solution for reaching decarbonization goals. By Brett Belford1, Leander Reuter2, and Tim Kleier3
Green steel with open bath furnaces
1. Senior divisional specialist, green steel; 2. R&D specialist, green steel; 3. Head of green steel, SMS group in Dusseldorf
64 SUSTAINABLE STEEL STRATEGIES SUMMIT 2022 Steel Times International FURNACES
4. Be capable of producing valueadding slag as a by-product.
When comparing current national netzero targets with their respective national integrated steelmaking production in 2020, a whopping 35 - 37 Mt of production have to be decarbonized every single year from today until 2050 in order to meet those net zero targets (Fig 3).
Against the backdrop of the immense task at hand, it is clear that immediate progress must be made. To successfully deploy a large-scale DRP-OBF plant in the short term, qualifying suppliers should demonstrate key attributes that are already entrenched in their organization:1.Foundational knowledge of the design and operation of the BF-BOF route.
The immediate steel decarbonization task is substantial. The International Energy Agency (IEA) projects that the global steel industry has to cut total emissions by at least 50% by 2050.[2,7] However, despite stagnant or even slightly decreasing steel consumption per capita globally, overall demand is expected to rise due to population growth until at least 2050.[2,5,8] In consequence, specific emissions will have to decline even more by at least 60% to meet total emission targets.[2] The corresponding scenarios developed by the IEA can be observed in Fig 2
Fig 1
Overall, finite availability of steel scrap puts a limit on this emission reduction potential. Low-gangue ore feed for natural gas or hydrogen-based direct reduction and immediate melting in an electric arc furnace (NG DRI-EAF or H2 DRI-EAF route) suffers from the same problem, but with projected declining raw material availability and quality. As per Fig 4, the IEA foresees a total production share of 380Mt/yr based on direct reduced iron, of which more than 50% would have to be processed in electric reduction smelters due to insufficient highgrade ore supply for economic EAF melting.
Experience and short-term enablers for steel decarbonization
2. In-house knowledge on the design, construction and operation of DRPs and electric reduction smelters.
In the race to carbon neutrality, the technologies that meet the above listed criteria are limited. One leading candidate is the combination of the well-proven direct reduction of iron using a shaft furnace operating on natural gas (direct reduction plant/DRP), in conjunction with an open bath electric furnace (OBF). Alternative configurations incorporating an OBF can be combined with other reduction technologies producing a DRI feed.
Multiple technology options are emerging in the race to decarbonize iron production. But to be a viable short-to-medium-term candidate, the technology must:
1. Offer substantial CO2 footprint reductions against the conventional BF-BOF route.2. Be in a state of immediate technology readiness.3.Be capable of producing millions of tons of hot metal per annum.
5. Replace ironmaking plants on existing sites to allow brownfield adaptation while integrating with existing upstream routes for the shortest time to market of the resultant steels.6. Offer an operational cost base comparable with existing processes.
8. Offer opportunities for future adoption of non-fossil utilities and raw materials such as hydrogen and bio-carbon.
Increasing scrap availability and recovery rate, coupled with a shift towards a larger share of secondary steelmaking, will enable a portion of the emission cuts based on available technology and processes.
Steel Times International SUSTAINABLE STEEL STRATEGIES SUMMIT 2022 65
The task at hand
IN the steelmaking value chain, targeting CO2 reductions in the ironmaking stage of the conventional blast furnace (BF) – basic oxygen furnace (BOF) route offers the largest opportunities. The BF-BOF route accounted for 73% of steel produced in 2020.[4] With an average footprint of 1.9 CO2, eq. per ton of crude steel[5,6], decreases in emissions of this dominant sector offer the largest reductions.
This article aims to emphasize the immediacy of the need for mature technologies to initiate and sustain steel decarbonization, and suggest the OBF as a candidate for short-term deployment by summarizing its key attributes and advantages.
7. Offer proven versatility in processing low-grade iron ores.
Fig 3. Crude steel production by BF-BOF route per region in conjunction with national/regional net zero targets.[4]
technologies in emission reduction and granulation.Asaleading
At a macro level, the region in which the plant is located is driving the decarbonization timeline, affecting the availability and price of feed stocks and utilities, determining the future links to green power and hydrogen networks, and driving the technology selections to manage the ‘green’ handling of waste streams.
3. Proven references for the DRP at high throughputs utilizing low-grade iron raw materials.4.Proven references for high-powered electric reduction furnace technology.
66 SUSTAINABLE STEEL STRATEGIES SUMMIT 2022 Steel Times International FURNACES
5. Proven references for best available
Fig 1.Share of world crude steel production by technology route in 2020.[4]
supplier of steelmaking plants, the SMS group is uniquely positioned to offer a significantly decarbonized
ironmaking route. This ability rests on the multiprocess knowledge base summarized in Fig 5, complementing the above listed drivers for short term deployment of DRP-OBF plants.
Fig 2. Possible future world crude steel production with corresponding CO2 emission targets
Fig 4. Estimated shares of steel production by route in 2050 by a total forecast of 2000 mio tCS p.a.[2]
To complement the strong grounding in each of the foundational elements of the DRPOBF technology route, SMS group has to date undertaken numerous green iron studies for leading international steel producers looking to identify decarbonization roadmaps for their individual sites and circumstances. Each of these studies is unique, with no onesize-fits-all solution for each client nor for each site.
Additionally, the regional price of CO2 emissions and the impact of regional import barriers for high CO2 footprint steels will continue to alter the medium- and long-term operational expenditure of certain production routes.The SMS group’s combination of the key enablers to immediately deploy an ironmaking alternative, coupled with the growing experience in practical application of this technology to real-world sites, makes us a leading partner for short-term decision making and execution of decarbonizing existing integrated or green field steel plants.
FURNACES Steel Times International SUSTAINABLE STEEL STRATEGIES SUMMIT 2022 67
A key advantage of the DRP-OBF is that it can be adopted within the integrated route, or installed on a greenfield site. The combination of the DRP and OBF replaces the BF and its
temperature directly to the OBF, making use of the sensible energy to lower the specific energy consumption.
associated sintering, stove and coke facilities.
The ideal combination of a DRP and associated OBFs is to have both installed immediately alongside one another. This enables the DRI to be fed at an elevated
Fig 5. SMS group‘s technology portfolio for the primary stage of steelmaking
Open bath furnace technology and its suitability as a major ironmaking alternative.
The upper limit on OBF throughput from a single vessel is constrained currently at circa 1.5 Mt/yr hot metal production. The current proven ceiling on shaft furnace DRP production is 2.5 Mt/yr DRI. A viable arrangement for such a configuration is a freestanding DRP linked via hot feed conveyor to at least two OBFs. Fig 6 presents a layout of three circular OBFs associated with a 2.5 Mt/yr DRP. An alternative configuration linked to the same DRP capacity could be only two rectangular OBFs. Either configuration could satisfy the required throughput, with the final decision often resting on the particular needs of a givenThesite.OBF does have the distinct advantage that it can be uncoupled from the upstream DRI production step. The OBF can accept metallic feed in the form of HBI or DRI that is produced in an alternative location and transported to the site at which the smelting takesAnotherplace.advantage is that the products of the OBF largely mimic those of the blast furnace. As seen in Table 1 and Table 2, both the hot metal and slag properties are comparable. Specifically for the slag, fluxing agents can be dosed to the OBF to fine-tune slag composition. In addition, the DRP-OBF process is not limited to feed from a highquality oxide pellet source. The nature of the reducing environment in the OBF means that the DRP-OBF combination can consume BFgrade pellets with higher gangue quantities
Fig Mt/yrassociatedOBFsofConfi6.gurationthreecircularlinkedtoan2.5DRP
Fig 7. Distribution of global iron ore production by iron content with given ranges of suitability for the EAF and OBF process
Slag component
FURNACES
Other 0.8 2
* TiO2 in the final slag is driven by the feed materials.
[4] World Steel Association, World Steel in Figures 2021, Brussels, Belgium 2021.
Tapping temperature 1,480 – 1,500 °C 1,490 – 1,510 °C
Al2O3 10.5 – 11.0 10.5 – 11.0
P 0.10 – 0.12 0.02 – 0.03
Table 1. Element composition of blast furnace hot metal and open bath furnace hot metal
Open bath furnace [wt.-%]
*TiO2 0.60 – 0.65 0.50 – 0.60
The ability to generate a BF-type slag that can be used as a clinker substitute by the cement industry is not a factor to be overlooked. It offers the plant owner a desirable, sellable by-product, thus improving OPEX potential, and reduces the CO2 footprint of the cement industry downstream significantly.
Given that multiple OBFs are required to accept and process the HDRI feed from the largest DRPs, an inherent benefit is the flexibility of the hot metal tapping. Multiple tap holes, tapping sequences and quantities can be adjusted to exactly match the downstream steel plant requirements, with a reduced dependency on the hot metal buffering typical of existing blast furnaces.
Conclusion
Si 0.75 <0.5
[6] World Steel Association, Steels’s Contribution to A Low Carbon Future and Climate Resilient Societies: World Steel Position Paper, Brussels, Belgium
Open bath furnace [wt.-%]
C 4.5 4.5
Fig 8. andcirculationindicatingvaluationDRP-OBFchaintheofwastescrap
68 SUSTAINABLE STEEL STRATEGIES SUMMIT 2022 Steel Times International
Blast furnace [wt.-%]
Mn 0.13 – 0.15 0.14
In addition to the hot DRI fed to the OBF, up to 5% of the OBF material feed can be comprised of agglomerated waste or free-flowing scrap as shown in Fig 8
S 0.02 – 0.025 0.025 – 0.03
[1] H. Ritchie, M. Roser, P. Rosado, Our World in Data 2020.
and still deliver high yields and BF-type slags with FeO contents less than 1 wt.-%.
The Paris Agreement’s limitations on global warming and regional net-zero goals place steel producers under immense pressure to decarbonize rapidly. Accompanied with
FeO 0.3 – 0.5 0.6 – 0.7
Tapping temperature 1500 – 1550 °C 1550 °C
[8]2018.
MnO 0.15 – 0.20 0.20 – 0.25
Fig 7 presents the range of suitability of global iron ores mined for the EAF and OBF processes. The span suitable for the OBF is seen from iron ore sources with a total iron content as low as 58 wt.-%Fe to those of the highest quality.
[3] UNFCCC, in United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change 2015.
MgO 7.3 – 7.5 7.0 – 7.5
Fe 94.6 – 94.8 94.7 – 94.8
References
[5] World Steel Association, Sustainability Indicators: 2021 report, Brussels, Belgium 2021.
This allows steel plants to consume wastes arising from their existing facilities by utilizing an inexpensive agglomeration process to prepare these for addition to the furnace. BOF sludge and mill scale are popular considerations, as well as any waste streams high in fluxing components such as CaO. The addition of waste and scrap to the furnace does come at a power penalty, with 1% waste feed accounting for an increase in OBF real power of between 2 - 3%.
[7]2018.
S 0.75 – 0.80 0.50 – 0.60
Table 2. Composition of blast furnace slag and open bath furnace slag
SiO2 37 – 38 36.5 – 37.5
forecasted rising steel demand, the current CO2 footprint of the dominating integrated steel route has to be lowered. This can be achieved by reducing the emissions of the CO2-intensive ironmaking stage. The market-ready combination of the DRP-OBF offers the production of suitable quantities of high-quality hot metal that can be integrated into existing steelmaking sites. Moreover, this technology can be deployed immediately. In the future, further CO2 reduction will be possible in the same DRP-OBF plants through integration of green hydrogen and biocarbon sources. �
[2] International Energy Agency, Iron and Steel Technology Roadmap: Towards more sustainable steelmaking, OECD 2020.
R. Haslehner, B. Stelter, N. Osio, Steel as a Model for a Sustainable Metal Industry in 2050 2015.
Element Blast furnace [wt.-%]
CaO 41 – 43 40.5 – 41.5
M. R. Allen, H. de Coninck, O. P. Dube, O. Hoegh-Guldberg, D. Jacob, K. Jiang, A. Revi, J. Rogelj, J. Roy, D. Shindell, W. Solecki, M. Taylor, P. Tschackert, H. Waisman, Technical Summary: An IPCC Special Report on the impacts of global warming of 1.5 °C
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Together with our partner Gerdau, we are working on influencing the variance in the production process in real-time by optimizing the use of raw materials. As a result of using Fero software, the steel manufacturer is achieving 9% yearly savings with an average production
Optimizingtime.raw material consumption is one way to achieve the twin goals of profitability and sustainability. Traditionally, steel engineers tend to overestimate the quantity of alloys they will need to ensure a given heat of steel ends up within quality specs, and will add these materials generously in order to avoid ending up in the undesirable situation of needing to scrap the heat. However, with machine learning algorithms, we can transform this process to minimize the amount of costly new alloys added during production.
Building a greener future
in the production process. This saves both raw materials and energy.
*CEO, Fero Labs
road to true green steel is still long and highly complex. However, enormous potential is already lying fallow today. By optimizing the existing process to reduce raw material consumption and avoid scrap, we can create new paths of profitability and move closer to achieving sustainability goals at the same
Gerdauvolume.initially approached us because
70 SUSTAINABLE STEEL STRATEGIES SUMMIT 2022 Steel Times International LEARNINGMACHINE
My hope is that the high profitability achieved last year will help manufacturers survive the potential rough road ahead. An economic downturn could present several challenges, including rises in commodity prices and raw material costs, decreased demand, and the need to downsize workforces to maintain profitability.
In light of the current global political situation, the rapidly changing market environment, and the worldwide efforts to decarbonize industrial production, there is no question that our industry’s ability to transform into a reliable supplier of green steel quickly is crucial to our future viability. This article will reveal how firms can achieve that sustainable goal without setting aside rather, actually increasing–profitability. By Berk Birand*
As the regulatory environment tightens, involving increased scrutiny of CO2 emissions, producers that are not able to keep up with this change will, sooner or later, no longer have a market. Sales may not be recovered by the competition, but will simply disappear. As a result, entire business models are at
Saving 9% on raw materials
IT’S no secret that there has been extreme uncertainty and volatility present in the manufacturing sector over the past three years. In 2021, most manufacturers had tremendous success. Demand was high, boosted by low interest rates, higher savings rates, and the promise of government spending like the infrastructure bill. As a result, almost every sector achieved incredibly high profit margins. We saw steel companies’ margins go up to 25%, compared to typical margins of 7%. Most manufacturers knew this kind of success was never going to last, so they made the most of it while they could.
stake.The
At Fero Labs, we make factory optimization software that enables manufacturers to stay ahead of everchanging production conditions. Fero’s white-box ML software adapts to real-time fluctuations in raw material composition, significantly reducing the likelihood of scrap
Making supply chains more sustainable can be a challenge, because the work is so siloed. Typically you will see different teams working on different objectives. Some are optimizing quality, while others are trying to cut costs. As a result, sustainability often ends up falling into the bucket of lower-tier priorities.That’s where digital twins change the game. Using historical data, a digital twin can be built that creates a virtual copy of an existing steel plant. Engineers can then use this tool in conjunction with machine learning models to create a more efficient supply chain that optimizes for every goal at the same time, from cutting costs to reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
Once they had understood much of their data through insights that had previously been unavailable to them, the steel manufacturer focused on optimizing the raw material process. For this they tapped into Fero’s software, which learns from historical data to recommend the minimum amount of additional new material (if any) that needs to be added to a particular batch of molten recycled steel, thereby reducing the amount of freshly mined materials used. As recommendations are provided in real time, this approach also decreases the amount of time that the steel must be maintained in a molten state, reducing overall energy usage during production.
they wanted to lower production costs, while maintaining the same quality steel. Traditional tools were unable to make real-time adjustments or evaluate multiple non-linear relationships between data points. With Fero software, they were able to take various data points, including production temperatures and the final steel product thickness, and analyze them to see how they could optimize different aspects of the process.
Fero analyzed each heat in real time and told operators how much alloy to use so that they would meet quality specifications. Within six months of deployment, the average plant
proves that machine learning can significantly reduce waste and provide users with a clear competitive advantage.
When employed by steel plants, Fero’s
white-box ML-driven optimization software reduces alloy usage by up to a third. Avoiding mining, smelting, and transporting these alloys has so far prevented an estimated 450kt of CO2 emissions per year. If scaled to the rest of steel production in the US, this approach could prevent 11.9 Mt of emissions per year — equivalent to a quarter of New York City’s yearly CO2 emissions.
saw alloy reduction corresponding to $1-$6 per ton in raw material savings. Scaled across five or more plants, the results were even more dramatic, highlighting the vast amounts steel manufacturers could potentially save by deploying Fero across a wider number of grades.Theproject
Tackling climate change is more crucial than ever. For manufacturers reluctant to jeopardize production speed or quality to comply with environmental regulations, Fero provides a solution to lower costs and hit sustainability goals. The next 12 months will be transformative for manufacturers. They will have to start focusing on improving margins and profitability in light of continued supply chain issues. In the end, the most resilient manufacturers will emerge from this recession stronger than before.
Steel Times International SUSTAINABLE STEEL STRATEGIES SUMMIT 2022 71 LEARNINGMACHINE
Steel production accounts for more than a fifth of greenhouse gas emissions from manufacturing, making it a prime target for emissions reduction. Fero software reduces the use of mined ingredients in steel production by up to 34%, an approach that can be scaled to eliminate millions of tons of CO2 emissions annually, according to a recent report by the Global Partnership on Artificial Intelligence.
It’s key to remember that machine learning is not magic. This is a statistical discipline that can be used in a very predictable way to reduce emissions and cut costs while maintaining quality. By allowing customers to fully exploit the possibilities of automated data processing in production, we can achieve a greener future for the steel industry.
�
Machine learning tells Gerdau operators the exact amount of alloys they need to produce each heat, thus reducing the waste created by overdesign and adding money to the plant’s bottom line. This method also helps the manufacturer use fewer of the mined resources required to produce these ingredients–making their steel greener and better for the planet.
*UK sales manager for decarbonization and hydrogen applications, BOC
72 SUSTAINABLE STEEL STRATEGIES SUMMIT 2022 Steel Times International PERSPECTIVES
1. How are things going at BOC? Is the steel industry keeping you busy?
3. In which sector of the steel industry does BOC mostly conduct its business?
An industry in a revolution
2. What is your view on the current state of the global steel industry?
BOC’s parent company, Linde plc, is the global leading industrial gases supplier and it has a heavy presence across the steel making world. Similarly, BOC in the UK continues to be a key supplier to domestic steelmakers and we supply large gas volumes to blast furnace operations, steel conversion processing, downstream reheating and rolling and so on. BOC and Linde are present in all areas of the steelmaking operation, and we believe that as steelmaking begins to adopt low carbon operations, we will be a key technology and gases supplier into the future.
The versatility of steel keeps Wayne Bridger*optimistic, but, he says, the short-term chal lenges need to be addressed. Energy prices, market volatility, and geopolitical issues are now established obstacles within the industry, but despite this, BOC is focused on both growth and productivity – ensuring the industry keeps moving forward
Things at BOC are great; as the largest UK and Ireland gases producer we are successfully continuing to grow our business despite the recent challenges – and the steel sector remains one of our key areas of focus.
As a UK operator we can only really comment on what we’re seeing here, but the challenges faced by all energy-intensive industries – including steel – appear to be similar regardless of geography. Geopolitical issues including energy cost inflation, the war in Ukraine, environmental concerns and decarbonization are all key issues that steel and other sectors must navigate. We believe steel is making progress in the development of detailed implementation plans, but the need for alignment and support for transition investment are the key to further progression.
sustainable solutions, particularly as the effects of the current energy cost crisis continue to be felt. Historically, the high productivity role of oxygen in steelmaking has been the focus of much of BOC and Linde’s global efforts, in fact Steel Times International published the feature ‘25 years of CoJet technology for the EAF’ recently highlighting the benefits of productivity and the wider fuel and power savings effects of oxygen. Use of oxyfuel combustion is an important step on the pathway to decarbonization, reducing fuel consumption by 15-50%, and our technologies are ready for using hydrogen as fuel.
The digitalization of industry as a fast-moving revolution is a compelling dream but the delivery is perhaps beyond many established manufacturing sectors’ capability currently.
There is no doubt that as steelmaking takes steps to decarbonize, replacing fossil fuels with hydrogen is a critical step. We recognise that though the transition to hydrogen steelmaking has been demonstrated technically at a smaller scale, the logistical and economic challenges of hydrogen supply at a large scale continue. So as the leading industrial gases producer, BOC has a vital role and will need to support the steel sector during this scale-up transition. BOC has been a high-volume hydrogen producer for many decades so while hydrogen may be new to many, it is not new to BOC.
PERSPECTIVES
7. Hydrogen steelmaking appears to be the next big thing. What’s your view?
Yes, steel producers and other energyintensive, high temperature processors are searching for energy efficiency and
10. Where does BOC lead the field in terms of steel production technology?
8. In your dealings with steel producers, are you finding that they are looking to companies like BOC to offer them solutions in terms of energy efficiency and sustainability? If so, what can you offer them?
Steel Times International SUSTAINABLE STEEL STRATEGIES SUMMIT 2022 73
That’s like asking me to pick a favourite child… BOC and Linde supply gases and leading technologies to both sectors and both materials have important and well-established markets, so we don’t take sides.
9. How quickly has the steel industry responded to ‘green politics’ in terms of making the production process more environmentally friendly and are they succeeding or fighting a losing battle?
In recent decades the growth in steelmaking activity has been driven by market demand and access to natural resources including coal, consequently China and Asia were dominant features. As we move towards a low carbon future, the potential transition to hydrogen-based steelmaking may shift the balance of where steel is produced.
6. What are your views on Industry 4.0 and steelmaking and how, if at all, is BOC using it?
As a highly significant contributor to global CO2 emissions output, the steel sector needs to be very focused on the delivery of more sustainable steel making. There is no doubt that the transition to a low carbon future is highly challenging and costly and, therefore, the role of national governments to support steelmaking through this transition will be pivotal to its speed and success. The muchawaited Clean Steel Fund expected in 2023 will be a clear indicator of the ambitions of both steel producers and government.
There is no doubt that the promise of greater efficiency, improved and consistent quality, reduced downtime and critically reduced emissions are all highly desirable for steel and other manufacturing sectors. Overcoming barriers to adoption such as improving resilience in harsh environments, enhancing data analytics and upskilling the existing workforce to support implementation will all contribute to the gradual expansion of digitalisation and smart automation.
4. Where in the world are you busiest at present?
5. Where does BOC stand on the aluminium versus steel argument?
In recent decades BOC and Linde have provided leading oxygen technology particularly in EAF steelmaking; we recently celebrated 25 years of CoJet technology, and we have hundreds of installations globally delivering productivity improvement, power savings and yield improvement. The Ovako reheating project – which will be implemented in permanent full scale next year – is a great example of our expertise in reheating and our well established and leading REBOX technology has hundreds of global installations providing throughput increases and fuel saving benefits to existing furnaces.
74 SUSTAINABLE STEEL STRATEGIES SUMMIT 2022 Steel Times International PERSPECTIVES
13. Where do you see most innovation in terms of production technologies –primary, secondary or more downstream?
If a superpower existed to equalise the availability of natural resources and infrastructure globally so that all steel producers have access to a level playing field from a cost perspective, then the focus could shift quickly to productivity, technology and efficiency improvements to differentiate suppliers. That would be great for the sector and great for technology providers such as BOC and Linde.
UK steel producers are continuing to work hard on the development and deployment of their decarbonization roadmaps and this along with energy volatility are key areas of focus right now.
Growth. Like all businesses operating in challenging times, understanding how I can continue to achieve profitable growth is a concern. Working in an energy-intensive business I understand how important energy cost management is and the current cost volatility is immensely challenging for future growth.
11. How do you view BOC’s development over the short-to-medium term in relation to the global steel industry?
16. BOC is headquartered in the UK, but what’s happening steel-wise in the country?
12. What is BOC’s experience of the Chinese steel industry?
18. If you possessed a superpower, how would you use it to improve the global steel industry?
The versatility of steel means that global demand will continue into the future and, therefore, global producers need to overcome the challenges of decarbonizing its production while maintaining an economic and sustainable cost base. The short-tomedium-term challenges are already evident in the volatility and cost of energy and this is likely to prevail as we transition towards a more scaled up and resilient hydrogen/low carbon-based energy sector. The scale up delivery of a decarbonized energy sector will determine how challenging and how long the transition period extends for and during this transition phase, the collaboration between steel producers and national governments will be critical.
15. What exhibitions and conferences will BOC be attending in over the next six months?
14. How optimistic are you for the global steel industry going forward and what challenges face global producers in the short-to-medium term?
remain high, means that utilization of oxygen must be considered alongside hydrogen as part of the decarbonization toolset.
BOC will be at the upcoming UK Metals Expo 14-15th September where Linde’s Joachim von Scheele will deliver a presentation ‘Decarbonising Steelmaking: Solutions and Pathways’.
17. Apart from strong coffee, what keeps you awake at night?
BOC is a Linde company and BOC’s focus is on markets in the UK and Ireland so we have no direct interaction with Chinese steel producers. However, the recent investment by a Chinese steel producer into UK production is a positive sign that UK steelmaking remains viable and attractive in the global context.
If the key challenge is the decarbonization of steelmaking, primary production has to be the focus of innovation in order to achieve a low-carbon, cost competitive output. The role of hydrogen to replace coal in primary processing is an obvious focus for BOC but we also strongly advocate for oxygen in this context. The need to achieve maximum fuel efficiency, particularly if hydrogen costs
BOC has a very long track record in providing infrastructure and technology to allow steelmaking to function efficiently in the UK. Our expectation is that global steelmakers will move to adopt low carbon processes and, therefore, UK steelmaking will follow the trend. This shift is likely to require additional oxygen and hydrogen so BOC needs to be ready to respond to changes in demand for these key products.
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